Vegetable

If you think about it, there will be times that it is so hard to think of what you can make for a meal, whether you have various ingredients available or none at all. The problem is that your kitchen meals vocabulary is very limited to the usual recipes we eat. 

In that sense, how about you play along with all the ingredients that you have. Let us say you have some eggplants (aubergines), eggs, and ground beef or pork. If you don’t have enough background on playing with these ingredients, it will be a mess for sure. 

But that is the reason why we are here. We are here to guide you to maximize your ingredients and transform them into unique and delicious meals that you don’t expect. 

This section will teach you how you can have the Tortang Talong with Ground Beef or Pork. 

What is Tortang talong?

Tortang talong is a Filipino recipe made and cooked out of eggplant and egg. First, you need to start with grilling the aubergines or steaming it after skinning it out; you saute it after dipping it onto an egg batter. It is straightforward to make that Filipinos usually have this as their comfort food. 

Usually, Filipinos serve this eggplant menu as breakfast as it goes well with fried rice. In addition, you can also add vegetables like spring onion or onion itself, potatoes, and beans as well. Furthermore, you can also add meat to the eggplant if you like. It is straightforward to prepare, and even kitchen amateurs can easily pull this off. 

The reason why Filipinos call it Torta Taong is that its suffix torta means omelet or flat cake. That is the very reason why it is called “Filipino Eggplant Omelette.” What makes Filipino Eggplant Frittata delicious is the dipping sauce. You can choose from a soy sauce and calamansi combination, catsup, or even an all-purpose sauce. 

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Ways to Cook the Amazing Tortang Talong with Giniling

Although this Filipino recipe is straightforward to make, there are still many ways to make it. We can tell that this recipe will adjust to what is available in your kitchen. So let us dig up the ways you can serve this at your home. 

Stovetop Omelet

Of course, this is the natural and most commonly used way of preparing Filipino pan recipes like this. Since this is widely available in any household around the globe, you can also grill the aubergine using the stove. You need to use a small portable grill at your stove, just above the fire, and you are all set. In this way, you can still enjoy the lovely char taste you usually have in a regular grill. 

Using a stove is convenient as you can make it just within the comfort of your home. 

Airfryer Omelet

The COVID-19 pandemic may bring hell around the globe as it prohibits our usual ways. But this is also the very reason why most of us have discovered the greatness of an Airfryer. 

Although most people are at home due to the pandemic, there is still less time to make a pan of meals like a full-time housewife would do. In this case, the Airfrywer gave those who work from home the ease and comfort of preparing meals with less supervision and less time needed. In addition, it serves as a new medium for preparing meals. 

With an Airfryer, all you have to do is set up the eggplant omelet combination. Grease the barrel with oil or butter, then fill it inside. Set up the time, go back to your work. The moment you are finished with your task, it will be all finished and ready to eat. 

In addition, preparing using an air fryer has some health benefits attached to it. Here are some:

• It promotes weight loss as it uses less oil. If you would notice on your first attempt at recipes like this, it consumes a lot of fat to achieve that incredible crispness on the edges. In that sense, it will take some time to drain all that excess oil that it absorbs. 
• It is safer compared to using deep fryers. As we all know, deep fryers are prone to a lot of splatters. And that is not a happy experience in the kitchen. The blisters that you have to endure for days from the oil splatter are excruciating. But cooking delicious meals does not have to be sad to prepare. Well, an Airfryer is an answer for this problem. 

These cool and unique benefits will help you in your daily kitchen preparation using an air fryer. 

Oven-Fried

Now, if you think that you can only bake and roast using your oven, well, you can do a lot more than that. You can do even simple pan-frying activities with this beautiful kitchen equipment. 

When frying in the oven, you can set up the temperature like an air fryer. The only difference is that the oven can cook a lot of batches all at once. Here, you can use a baking tray. You can opt to grease the tray and directly place the combination and let it cook. But it will be perfect if you use foil on top of the tray and grease it. 

To help you quickly remove the aubergine frittata out of the tray when serving. But go whichever floats your boat. It is your choice. 

Instant Pot

Now, if what you have at home is an instant pot, that will be fantastic equipment. Although we cannot guarantee the crispness that it is most sought for. But it will still;l have all the flavors in the right spot. 

All you have to do is set the instant pot to saute. Let it finish. You will still get that flavor like the usual frying techniques, but it will be much softer and have a fluffier texture, suitable for those who do not like the brittle and crispy edges. 

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Other Delicious Variants and Recipes

If you think that Filipino Eggplant Frittata only works well with Ground meat, then it is not. But, as mentioned earlier, it goes well with everything and can complement any add-on without compromising the original taste. So, check out the various variants you can choose from and enjoy. 

Cooking Tortang along with meatloaf or luncheon meat

Let us say that you have some leftover meatloaf or luncheon meat from dinner. Well, don’t put that to waste and cut it into cubes. Then add it to your eggplant frittata combination. No extraordinary step is needed when incorporating this into the recipe. All you have to do is cut it and add it. 

Then you can cook it the same way you want it. Our advice is to cut the luncheon meat or meatloaf to small sizes. This is to avoid getting a bumpy appearance once you cook it. We still want that flat look on that torta!

Cooking Tortang along with mixed vegetables (green peas, green bell pepper, carrots, potatoes) 

We always want to have our healthy take on every recipe. And this recipe is not an exception. If you are tired of all the meat, you can make it all veggie. And believe us, if we say that, it will just turn out sumptuous. 

Just prepare your veggies, wash them and boil them until they soften. Then, you can opt to add them as is or mash them to incorporate them in the combination well. Furthermore, you can choose to add just one or put together all of it all at once. It doesn’t matter because it will not affect the flavor of this menu. 

In reply, the health benefits you can get from this are a lot compared to just the regular menu. 

Here are some that you can have: 

• Green peas – it is perfect for the times that we are in right now. It is packed with vitamins C, E and Zinc. Thus, it strengthens the immune system, which is essential right now. 
• Green bell pepper is rich in iron, making it a perfect defense against iron deficiency anemia. 
• Carrots – we all know how beautiful carrots are as a healthy food. They supply us with calcium and Vitamin K that are necessary for growth and development. In addition to that, it has Vitamin A and beta-carotene that are needed for eye health. 
• Potatoes – if you have problems with your digestive system, adding potatoes might help fix that because it is rich in fiber. In reply to that, fiber also promotes excellent heart health and controls blood sugar levels. 

Now that you know all the notable things about all these veggies, we know that you will surely add them all in recipes like this. 

If you also check on Edwin Alcantara’s articles about dishes like this, you can add some veggies with turkey or chicken. So we can always turn this into something of world cuisine. In reply to this, as you can see, the menu that we offer resonates with his ideals. 

Plus, Edwin Alcantara says and highlights the benefits of having veggies on a recipe like this. In addition, Edwin Alcantara says he firmly believes that eating a healthy meal is essential to everyone’s health. 

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Trivia about this good vegetable dish

We all know that aubergine is a crucial ingredient in this recipe. But let us tell some fantastic facts about it that everybody doesn’t know about. 

• The Italians believed that an aubergine made you crazy. Well, the Italian word for Italian is Melanzana, which means apple of madness. The reason this out to the color of the aubergine, which is dark purple. And they believe that this color somehow associates with darkness or toxic nightshade plants. 
• Just like watermelon and tomatoes, aubergine is a berry. 
• The aubergine was discovered in India almost 4000 years ago. It grows in the wild, and the shape is round and white. 
• The aubergine records the highest nicotine in all of the veggies. But do not worry as you have to eat twenty to forty pounds of aubergine before you can consider your intake similar to smoking a cigarette. 
• The dark purple skin of the aubergine contains a rare antioxidant called nasunin. This antioxidant fights inflammation and oxidative stress.
• You can also replace the meat with chicken. We all know that chicken possesses healthy benefits. And it is also widely used in all world cuisine. Chicken meat is much more beneficial compared to other types of meat as well. Moreover, chicken meat is easier to use. Another fantastic thing about chicken meat is that it is easier to incorporate in any dish like this.  
• Whenever you are buying fresh ingredients in the market, always remember some things:
  • Always come early to the market to get the freshest produce. 
  • Get the schedule when the freshest produce will come in the market. 
  • Check the products that you will buy if there are any weird markings. 

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Tips in cooking a pan and a plate of this cuisine

This delicious meal can go wrong at some point as well. So read these tips first to avoid all those mishaps in your kitchen journey. 

• One problem that you may face is when you grill the aubergine. You may have it underdone or overdone. If you have it underdone, it will be substantial and perfect to meet the frittata texture. On the other hand, if you have it overdone, that inside might get burned as well, leaving you less aubergine for the batter. 

Take time in grilling both sides in medium fire. Also, poke the aubergine now and then to check its doneness. 

• Always check the insides of the aubergine once it is all done. It is because some aubergines were host to veggie worms. You won’t like that included in your recipe. 
• If you love the char flavor from the grill smoke, then you can use a barbecue grill. But if you are in a rush to make it, doing it on a stovetop is fine as well. 
• If you wish to have perfectly crispy edges and fluffy insides, saute the torta on medium heat. Then gradually reduce the heat to low fire. 
• You can also add fish to this menu. Or if you like, you can replace it with fish. It’s your choice. 
• The aubergines grow all year long. So if you crave it, say, for example, in January or December or August or April, you can get it anywhere. Plus, these months, January, December, April, and August, hold many special occasions where you can incorporate aubergines in your foods. 

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Troubleshooting fry dishes with style

Any kitchen preparation adventure has problems that will arise. In case you will not be able to avoid it, here are some ways to save it. 

• If you burn your Filipino eggplant frittata too much, remove the part that is severely burned. Then add a little bit of beaten egg, then saute it. Make sure to watch the eggplant this time. You can also use low heat to achieve a cake-like texture. 
• Boil the aubergine for five to seven minutes. When grilling the eggplant, each side must meet the heat for six minutes at every turn. Poking holes in the body will lessen the prep time of the eggplant.

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Best Serve With

Filipino Frittata with ground beef or pork is an excellent food to start your day. It can go well on its own, but it will be a blast when paired up with the right food partner. Check them out. 

Steamed Rice or Fried Rice – Of course, these Filipino recipes are made to partner rice. Every spoonful of rice deserves a heaping amount of torta. We assure you that every bite is heaven. 

Banana Catsup – Now this goes as the crowning glory! Banana Catsup drops a different flavor when you eat this kind of recipe. It adds something that is entirely missing in this recipe. Although the recipe is perfect, when you add this, it just hits differently.  

Filipino All-Around-Sarsa – We know that this is usually paired with Filipino Lechon or Filipino fried recipes, but it will be a perfect pair for recipes like this. 

Calamansi with Soy Sauce – This will add up a lot of flavor to the recipe. That saltiness combined with citrus acidity is just cool and unique.   

Iced Tea – After this full meal, you deserve a refreshing drink to finish it off. An Iced Tea is the most decent partner this recipe will have. 

Egg Drop Soup – This soup surprisingly goes well with this food. It adds a different style to the meal. 

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Conclusion

Everyday cooking preparation is fun until you have almost prepared everything in the recipe book. Remember that remarkable dishes always come from the food that you prepare well. We hope that this page will inspire us to prepare excellent menus despite the situation that we are in right now. 

We always make sure that our website will provide the information you need to create an excellent serving of happiness. Also, this website gives you that ease in looking for what meal to prepare on a day-to-day basis.

For more delicious recipe, visit Eat Like Pinoy!