🍆 Pasta with eggplant (pasta con le melanzane)
Pasta con le melanzane is a southern Italian pasta with cubes of eggplant cooked into a tomato sauce with basil, finished with grated ricotta salata. The eggplant turns soft and silky and gives the sauce body, while the salty cheese adds a sharp finish. It is a simple everyday dish, closely related to pasta alla Norma.
Diets
Allergens
Contains (in a typical recipe):
What it is made of
Recipe
Ingredients
- 320 g short pasta
- 2 eggplants (about 600 g), diced
- 400 g chopped tomatoes
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 garlic clove
- Fresh basil and salt
- 40 g ricotta salata, grated
Method
- Salt the diced eggplant for 20 minutes, then pat dry.
- Sauté the eggplant in the oil until golden, add the garlic and tomatoes and simmer 15 minutes.
- Cook the pasta in salted water, drain and toss with the sauce and basil.
- Serve topped with grated ricotta salata.
How to make it lighter
- Roast the eggplant cubes in the oven with a light brush of oil instead of pan-frying.
- Measure the oil: 1 tbsp olive oil ≈ 120 kcal.
- Use more eggplant and less pasta for a lighter plate.
History
It is a home-style dish of Sicily and southern Italy, where eggplant has been grown widely since it was introduced during Arab rule. Today it is cooked throughout the summer in many variations, from the more formal pasta alla Norma to quick weekday versions.
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Values are estimates per 100 g for a typical recipe; home and restaurant versions vary. Diets and allergens are worked out from the ingredients of a typical recipe — always check with whoever cooked the dish. Not medical advice. Nutrition data: Me Nutrition dish database v13. How we count →