As a child, I often wondered what sort of monstrous creature would lay a huge, purple-black egg, for surely the eggplant was named after such an egg laid by such a creature. Imagine my relief, tinged with disappointment, when I eventually learned that the first eggplants, grown in China, were small, ivory, and egg-shaped, with a delicate pearly skin–just like an ordinary egg. Learn a bit about the noble eggplant and check out our tasty Asian eggplant recipe!