Cluster eggplant, scientific name Solanum anguivi, is a loose western term that is given to the fruit of a prickly shrub that grows wild and semi-cultivated. It is one of the only eggplants that is thought to have little relation to the common domesticated eggplant, S. melongena.

Cluster eggplant is quite unique to all other eggplant varieties. The fruits are small, the size of a pea in fact. Fruits range in flavor from bitter to tart when raw and maintain some starch content until cooked. The fruits only reach edible flavor once cooked, achieving a rich flavor and luscious texture. Unlike common garden eggplants, the foliage of the cluster eggplant is also used as a food source in addition to the fruit.

Nutritional Value

Cluster eggplant fruits are dried and ground as medicine against high blood pressure.

Serving Ideas

Very little information is distributed about the best cooking methods of cluster eggplants outside of Africa. They are often picked unripe to avoid overbitterness, then chopped, cooked and mixed into a variety of vegetable, meat, or fish stews and sauces. Only a handful of fruits are available at a time and the fruits are only picked as needed. Excess fruits are sun dried after cooking to preserve them. The dried fruits are ground into powder and added to soup recipes.

Geography/History

Cluster eggplant is native to Africa and perhaps the closest relative to the wild eggplant ancestors of Africa, as all eggplants are descendants of spiny solanums of Africa. Cluster eggplant never migrated far from the continent, regardless of its dispersal among birds and pollinators. It is widely distributed throughout Africa and its neighbouring islands with limited presence in Saudi Arabia. Cluster eggplant has blade like stems, thorny and prickly branches which have been a protective survival element of the plant that has survived centuries and even attempts at semi-domestication, which occurs in limited areas in Uganda and Côte d’Ivoire. Thus, it is primarily harvested from the wild and sold as a valuable indigenous vegetable on a local market level versus wide global distribution.

Seasons/Availability

Cluster eggplant are available during summer months.