Traditional Italian pasta with eggplant and tomato sauce is known as pasta Alla Norma. It’s a fantastic, meat-like but main vegetarian meal with all the qualities of the perfect pasta dish: cozy, filling, and slurp-worthy terrific!
This typical Sicilian pasta dish traditionally started by frying eggplant in a lot of oil on the stove. The eggplant keeps its shape better when roasted, especially when done at a high temperature to caramelize the top, and less oil is involved.
The traditional way to finish it is with a generous quantity of fresh basil, but if you don’t have any, there are other options to give a hint of another flavor, such as fresh thyme or more dry herbs in the sauce.
Even card-carrying carnivores will be requesting seconds of this superb and satisfyingly “meaty” vegetarian main meal!
Ingredients
- 5cm/1″ cubes of eggplant (800g/1.6 lb), divided into two medium/large pieces.
- Extra virgin olive oil, two tablespoons
- 5 teaspoons of salt and pepper each
Pasta Sauce:
- Extra virgin olive oil, two tablespoons
- Two chopped, finely ground garlic cloves
- One-half of a small onion, coarsely chopped (or 2 eschallots)
- 65 cc of dry white wine
- 24 ounces/700g of tomato passata
- 70 ml of water
- One teaspoon of dried oregano or Italian herbs
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
- 5 teaspoons of salt and pepper each
- Spaghetti, 300g / 10 ounce (You can use any other pasta)
Presenting:
- 1/2 cup roughly chopped basil leaves
- Grated Parmesan Cheese (or, if you have it, ricotta Salata, which would be more typical)
Roasted Eggplant:
- Set the oven to 240 C/450 F (220 C fans) for preheating. Line a tray with parchment paper or baker’s paper.
- Combine salt, pepper, oil, and eggplant in a bowl, 20 minutes of roasting after spreading on the tray.
- After flipping, roast for another five minutes. Allow cooling on a tray.
Cooking Pasta:
You should bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. After preparing the sauce (see part below), boil the pasta for a few minutes until it is al dente or to your satisfaction.
Sauce:
- Over medium heat, warm the oil in a huge pan. Add the garlic, and sauté for 20 seconds or until it becomes golden, then add the onion and cook for 2-3 minutes or until cooked.
- You may add wine after turning the heat up to medium-high. Allow the wine to boil until it has evaporated while scraping the pan’s bottom to deglaze.
- Include tomato passata. Now add the water to the passata bottle, put on the top, shake it, then add that as well (use every last drop!).
- You should add salt, pepper, red flakes, and dry herbs. For five minutes, stir and boil.
- After adding cooked and drained pasta, stir in the eggplant. Gently toss the pasta in the sauce until it is covered (so the eggplant would not go completely mushy!).
- Serve with a generous sprinkle of fresh basil and parmesan as a garnish.