These little round eggplants are about the size of peas, are fresh and normally come still on the branch. Watch out when you eat them in a dish that is very temperature hot - it can explode when you bite it and be hotter than the rest of the meal. Some people cut them in half to avoid the mini-explosions, but I don't.

This is also known as Thai eggplant

Thai eggplants come in a variety different sizes and colors. The closest to its American cousin is the skinny, long and green one. The texture and taste are the same. You will also find the long skinny light purple ones in many markets around the US.

The most common eggplants in Thai cooking are the round white, green or golden ones about the size of a golf ball. They are essential in chili sauce and curry dishes.
- The unripe ones are used in curries and are eaten fresh with various chili sauces. My mother taught me to pick young eggplants by looking at it cap and pick the ones with large caps.
- The outer flesh of the ripe ones are eaten only with chili sauces and never used in curry. Cut the stem and quarter the ripe ones to separate the seeds in the center core. You will see a big ball of brown seeds in the center that most people do not eat. But I know a few people who thoroughly enjoy them. The childhood story of eating seeds and having the plant growing out from parts of your body still is in the back of my mind, so I avoid eating the seeds.

Then, there are tiny little ones, sometimes called pea eggplant, that are about the size of peas that come in clusters of 10 to 15 eggplants, similar to cherry tomato cluster. These are slightly more bitter than the golf ball sized ones. Even though, these eggplant look like peas, the taste is quite different; they are quite bitter. Peas are not a good substitute for pea eggplants.

These Thai eggplants can be difficult to find in the Northeast of the US. If you are in the west or south, fresh ones are available at most Oriental markets.