''Tortang talong'', also known as eggplant omelette, is an
omelette
An omelette (sometimes omelet in American English; see spelling differences) is a dish made from eggs (usually chicken eggs), fried with butter or oil in a frying pan. It is a common practice for an omelette to include fillings such as chiv ...
or
fritter
A fritter is a portion of meat, seafood, fruit, vegetables, or other ingredients which have been Batter (cooking), battered or breading, breaded, or just a portion of dough without further ingredients, that is deep-frying, deep-fried. Fritters ar ...
grilled
Grilling is a form of cooking that involves heat applied to the surface of food, commonly from above, below or from the side. Grilling usually involves a significant amount of direct, radiant heat, and tends to be used for cooking meat and v ...
whole
eggplant
Eggplant (American English, US, Canadian English, CA, Australian English, AU, Philippine English, PH), aubergine (British English, UK, Hiberno English, IE, New Zealand English, NZ), brinjal (Indian English, IN, Singapore English, SG, Malays ...
s dipped in an egg mixture. It is a popular
breakfast
Breakfast is the first meal of the day usually eaten in the morning. The word in English refers to breaking the fasting period of the previous night. Various "typical" or "traditional" breakfast menus exist, with food choices varying by regi ...
and
lunch
Lunch is a meal typically consumed around the middle of the day, following breakfast and preceding dinner. It varies in form, size, and significance across cultures and historical periods. In some societies, lunch constitutes the main meal ...
meal in the
Philippines
The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
. A common variant of ''tortang talong'' is ''rellenong talong'', which is stuffed with meat, seafood, and/or vegetables.
Etymology
The name ''tortang talong'' means "eggplant omelette"; from a suffixed form of ''
torta
Torta is a culinary term that can, depending on the cuisine, refer to cakes, pies, flatbreads, sandwiches, or omelettes.
Usually, it refers to:
* cake or pie in South America, much of Europe, and southern Philippines
* flatbread in Spain
* a t ...
'' ("omelette" or "flat cake"), and ''talong'' (eggplant). The name is sometimes shortened to ''tortalong''.
Description
The basic ''tortang talong'' recipe involves first grilling the whole eggplant until the flesh is soft and the skin becomes charred and almost black. This can be done in a charcoal grill, a baking pan, or over a direct flame while wrapped in
aluminum foil
Aluminium foil (or aluminum foil in American English; occasionally called tin foil) is aluminium prepared in thin metal leaves. The foil is pliable and can be readily bent or wrapped around objects. Thin foils are fragile and are sometimes ...
(like on a
gas stove
A gas stove is a Kitchen stove, stove that is fuelled by flammable gas such as natural gas, propane, butane, liquefied petroleum gas or syngas. Before the advent of gas, cooking stoves relied on solid fuels, such as coal or wood. The first gas sto ...
). The grilling gives the eggplant a characteristic smoky flavor. The charred skin is then peeled off, although the stalk is retained. The flesh is mashed flat with a fork and dipped into a beaten egg mixture seasoned with a salt and spices to taste. The eggplant is then pan-fried until the outside is golden brown and crispy, while the core remains soft and creamy.
The most common varieties of eggplants in the Philippines are the long and slender purple kind. When larger and rounder eggplant varieties are used, the eggplant may need to be halved or quartered (with the stalk still attached) so they can be grilled more evenly.
''Tortang talong'' is most commonly eaten for breakfast or lunch. It is served on
white rice
White rice is milled rice that has had the husk, bran, and germ removed. This alters the flavor, texture and appearance of the seed; helps prevent spoilage (extends its storage life); and makes it easier to digest. After brown rice is milled ...
, sometimes accompanied with a dipping sauce (like
soy sauce
Soy sauce (sometimes called soya sauce in British English) is a liquid condiment of China, Chinese origin, traditionally made from a fermentation (food), fermented paste of soybeans, roasted cereal, grain, brine, and ''Aspergillus oryzae'' or ''A ...
,
vinegar
Vinegar () is an aqueous solution of diluted acetic acid and trace compounds that may include flavorings. Vinegar typically contains from 5% to 18% acetic acid by volume. Usually, the acetic acid is produced by a double fermentation, converting ...
,
banana ketchup
Banana ketchup, also known as banana sauce (in export markets), is a Philippine fruit ketchup condiment made from banana, sugar, vinegar, and spices. Its natural color is brownish-yellow but it is often dyed red to resemble tomato ketchup. ...
, etc.) or additional seasoning (like
black pepper
Black pepper (''Piper nigrum'') is a flowering vine in the family Piperaceae, cultivated for its fruit (the peppercorn), which is usually dried and used as a spice and seasoning. The fruit is a drupe (stonefruit) which is about in diameter ...
,
calamansi
Calamansi (''Citrus'' × ''microcarpa''), also known as calamondin, Philippine lime, or Philippine lemon, is a citrus hybrid cultivated predominantly in the Philippines. It is native to the Philippines, parts of Indonesia (Borneo, Sumatra, and ...
side dish
A side dish, sometimes referred to as a side order, side item, or simply a side, is a food item that accompanies the entrée or main course at a meal.
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas
**Spanish cuisine
**Spanish history
**Spanish culture
...
''
relleno
The chile relleno (, literally "stuffed chile") is a dish in Mexican cuisine that originated in the city of Puebla. In 1858, it was described as a "green chile pepper stuffed with minced meat and coated with eggs".
The most common pepper used is ...
'', "stuffed"), commonly anglicized as "stuffed eggplant omelette". This version is cooked in the same way as the regular version, except that the omelette also includes various
stuffing
Stuffing, filling, or dressing is an edible mixture, often composed of herbs and a Starch#Food, starch such as bread, used to fill a cavity in the preparation of another food item. Many foods may be stuffed, including poultry, seafood, and v ...
s of pre-cooked meat (like minced beef or pork or ''
longganisa
Longaniza (, or ) is a Spanish sausage ( embutido) similar to a chorizo and also closely associated with the Portuguese linguiça. Its defining characteristics are interpreted differently from region to region. It is popular in the cuisines ...
''), seafood, and/or vegetables.
In some versions, the eggplant is not grilled, but is instead boiled, resulting in a softer version that lacks the characteristic smoky flavor of the original dish. Non-traditional restaurant variants may also remove the stalk and puree the eggplant before mixing it with the omelette.
The basic ''tortang talong'' recipe as well as ''rellenong talong'' stuffed with vegetables are considered
vegetarian
Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the Eating, consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects as food, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slau ...
. A
vegan
Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal products and the consumption of animal source foods, and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. A person who practices veganism is known as a ve ...
version can also be made using squash, flour, and tofu as an
egg substitute
An egg is an organic vessel grown by an animal to carry a possibly fertilized egg cell (a zygote) and to incubate from it an embryo within the egg until the embryo has become an animal fetus that can survive on its own, at which point the ...
.
See also
*
Kulawo
''Kulawo'' is a Cuisine of the Philippines, Filipino salad made with either minced banana blossoms (''kulawong puso ng saging'') or grilled eggplant (''kulawong talong'') cooked in coconut milk which distinctively is extracted from grated cocon ...
*
Tortang carne norte
''Tortang carne norte'', also known as corned beef omelette, is an omelette or fritter from Cuisine of the Philippines, Filipino cuisine made by pan-frying an egg and shredded canned corned beef (''carne norte'') mixture. It is usually seasoned ...
*
Tortang kalabasa
''Tortang kalabasa'', also known as squash fritters, is a Filipino omelette made by mixing mashed or finely-grated pumpkin (''calabaza'') with flour, water, egg, salt, and pepper. Other ingredients like minced vegetables can also be added. It ...
*
Tortang sardinas
''Tortang sardinas'', also known as ''tortang tinapa'', sardines omelette, or tinapa fritters, is a Filipino omelette made by mixing shredded '' tinapa'' (smoked sardines) with eggs. It can also include tomatoes, onions, garlic, salt, ground b ...
*
Poqui poqui
''Poqui poqui'', also spelled ''puke puke'' or ''puki puki'', is a Filipino eggplant and scrambled eggs dish originating from the Ilocos Region of Northern Luzon in the Philippines. It is very similar to ''tortang talong'' in that the eggplant ...
*
Ukoy
''Okoy'' or ''ukoy'', are Filipino crispy deep-fried fritters made with glutinous rice batter, unshelled small shrimp, and various vegetables, including calabaza, sweet potato, cassava, mung bean sprouts, scallions and julienned carrots, oni ...
Tocino
Tocino is bacon in Spanish, typically made from the pork belly and often formed into cubes in Spain. In Caribbean countries, such as Puerto Rico and Cuba, ''tocino'' is made from pork fatback and is neither cured nor smoked but simply fried un ...