Behind the Variety: Where’s the Beef Eggplant?

Katie Elzer-Peters

It warms my heart to hear someone other than a food scientist in a lab talk about the concept of “mouth feel,” particularly when that person works with plant breeders who are creating new edible varieties that will flourish in the home garden and be delicious to eat.

Scott Mozingo, Product Manager for Ball Horticultural Company’s Burpee plant line, and the person who mentioned “mouth feel” in a recent conversation, says, “There is a need for commercial varieties that hold up through grocery store supply chains, but we are not selling a lot of commercial varieties. We are looking for plants that have good flavor and excellent yield in the home garden. We don't have to worry about shipability.”

He continues: “It’s a big ask to get people to spend three or four months to grow a plant that might produce one or two peppers or tomatoes, or one that is difficult to care for. We want to over-deliver and give gardeners varieties that produce a big harvest and the best-tasting tomato they’ve ever had. If they’re successful the first time out, they’ll be a customer for life.”

The new “wonder plant” in the catalog this year—one they predict will change people’s minds about eggplant—is the Meatball hybrid. “Eggplant is a big-selling crop—in the top 10—so it definitely deserves attention,” Scott notes, adding there is a reason why heirloom varieties stick around—they have some redeeming characteristics, but the Burpee team is constantly seeking to improve disease-resistance, yield, flavor, and more, with specific breeding programs. Again, all with an end goal of making home gardeners more successful.

Meatball is the product of a collaborative, long-term breeding project and is the second plant to enter the market from the same program. Early Midnight hybrid eggplant was the first; it’s an improvement on other varieties because it’s slower to develop seeds.

“The next step, after dealing with the seeds, was to improve taste and texture,” Scott says. “How can I say this nicely? Many eggplants are mushy when you cook them. When you cut into them, they also turn brown really fast, and both of those characteristics can make eggplant pretty unappealing.”

Meatball is anything but slimy when cut into and cooked. “It got its name because the flesh is so nice and firm that you can basically scoop ‘meatballs’ out of it,” Scott says. He mentioned that on the website there’s a recipe for making an eggplant burger. “This is a variety that’s going to appeal to the foodie gardeners.”

With garden centers constantly looking to expand their market, “foodie” plants are a natural fit. Katie Rotella, Ball Horticultural Co. senior public relations and digital manager, says “Meatball is just one of our plants that would be perfect for foodies. Peppermint Stick celery has great flavor and great color on the plate. Masterpiece Pea can be harvested and used at three different stages: young pea shoots are great in salads, you can eat the pods, or let them mature to enjoy as shelled peas.”

Scott adds: “Elevate these edibles beyond their status as plants. Merchandise them with dips or spreads, and encourage the culture of cooking and eating what you grow.” GP

Katie Elzer-Peters is a garden writer and owner of The Garden of Words, LLC, a marketing and PR firm handing mostly green-industry clients. Contact her at Katie@thegardenofwords.com or at www.thegardenofwords.com.