Caponata
Author: 
Serves: 4-6
 
Ingredients
  • 2 medium eggplants, cut in 1-inch cubes
  • 1 celery rib, chopped
  • 1 medium onion, finely sliced
  • 3-4 large tomatoes (about 1 lb or 450 g), peeled and roughly chopped
  • 3 Tbsp capers, drained
  • 2 Tbsp raisins, softened in water and squeezed
  • 1 cup black olives, pitted
  • scant ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
  • 2 Tbsp sugar
  • 2 Tbsp almonds, chopped
  • extra-virgin olive oil
  • freshly ground black pepper
  • sea salt
  • oregano leaves
Instructions
  1. Place your cubed eggplant in a colander and lightly sprinkle it with salt. Let the bitterness drain out for about 30 minutes. Rinse, squeeze out the excess water and pat dry with paper towels.
  2. Pour a generous drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil in a large pan over medium heat . Add eggplant. Turn up the heat and saute until lightly brown on all sides (you may need to cook the eggplant in batches). Do not overcook! Remove from the heat and set aside.
  3. In a separate thick-bottomed casserole, heat some extra-virgin olive oil. Add celery, onion, and tomatoes and cook for about 7-10 minutes. Add capers, raisins, olives, sugar, and vinegar and mix. Add some salt to taste.
  4. When vinegar has evaporated, turn down the heat. Throw in your sauteed eggplant and simmer for another 10 minutes, or until tender (but not mushy!).
  5. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add a few oregano leaves and chopped almonds. Give it all a nice stir, and taste it again. If needed, you can add a little more pepper or salt or vinegar or simply a nice drizzle of good extra-virgin olive oil.
Notes
- I like to use almonds and oregano, but feel free to substitute with pine nuts and basil if you like.
- You can use 1 can of strained tomatoes instead of fresh tomatoes.
- Caponata can be refrigerated up to ⅔ days. It can be freezed in an airtight container.
Recipe by Very EATalian at https://www.veryeatalian.com/sicilian-caponata/