Eggplant/aubergine caponata
Print
Eggplant/Aubergine caponata
This classic Sicilian sweet and sour style ratatouille it’s meant to be served at room temperature or cold. Like most eggplant dishes, this gets better overnight.
- Prep Time: 20
- Cook Time: 20
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 6
Ingredients
- 4 medium-size black eggplants/aubergines
- 3 large sticks of celery with leaves, cut into ½-inch pieces.
- 100 g of pitted green olives
- 1 tablespoon of capers, rinsed and drained
- 1 tablespoon of pine nuts
- 1 cup of canned or bottled crushed tomato
- 1/4 glass of white vinegar
- 1 tablespoon of sugar (10 g)
- 10 leaves of basil
- 50 g of peeled almonds (optional)
- 1 onion
- 1 tablespoon of raisins, soaked in warm water and drained (optional)
- Salt and pepper
- Extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Wash the eggplant/aubergines and cut them into ½-inch cubes.
- Using plenty of hot oil, cook the eggplant/aubergines in two batches, turning a few times (10-15 minutes each batch). When they are golden and soft, drain them on kitchen paper. Set aside.
- In the same pan, gently stir-fry the onion and half the chopped celery in 5 tablespoons of oil (5 minutes). Do not let this brown.
- Add the tomato, basil leaves, olives, capers, pine nuts and the raisins.
- Season with salt and pepper and cook for 10 minutes over a medium heat.
- Pour in the vinegar and add the sugar; stir and allow to evaporate a little (1 minute).
- Add the cooked aubergines and the other half of the chopped celery to the sauce; reduce on a medium heat for 1-2 minutes and turn off the heat.
- Allow to cool.
- Serve the caponata cool or chilled, sprinkled with toasted and chopped almonds if you like.
