Sicilian eggplant caponata in sweet and sour sauce
Sicilian caponata with fried eggplants, celery, olives and capers in a sweet and sour sauce: a tasty side or starter, even better the next day.
Are you looking for real Sicilian caponata, the kind of sweet and sour dish that tastes of summer and brings everyone together at the table?
Then this recipe is exactly what you need. Caponata is a dish of fried eggplants tossed with celery, onion, olives and capers, bound by a tomato sauce and finished with that sweet and sour touch that makes it unmistakable. It is a side dish, but also a generous starter to spoon over toasted bread.
The whole secret lies in the sweet and sour balance: the vinegar brings acidity, the sugar softens it, and together they create that round, full flavour that defines Sicilian cooking. That is why it helps to dissolve the sugar in the vinegar and add it at the end of cooking, letting it evaporate over high heat.
It has at least three clear advantages: it is completely vegan, it is made with simple, inexpensive ingredients, and it gets even better the next day, when the flavours have time to come together.
A useful tip: if you want to lighten it up, roast the eggplants in the oven with a little oil instead of frying them. And remember to taste before serving, because the sweet and sour should be adjusted to your liking.
Serve it warm or cold, never piping hot: resting really does it good. It keeps in the fridge for a few days in a sealed container.
Ready? Let’s make the caponata.
Base preparations used
Steps
- Cut the eggplants into cubes, salt them and let them drain for 20 minutes, then pat them dry and fry them in hot oil until golden. Drain on paper towels.
- Blanch the celery, cut into pieces, for a few minutes, then sauté it in a pan with the sliced onion and a drizzle of oil.
- Add the passata, the olives and the capers and cook for 10 minutes over medium heat.
- Add the fried eggplants, then deglaze with the vinegar in which you have dissolved the sugar: this is the sweet and sour. Let it evaporate over high heat for one minute.
- Season with salt and pepper and let it rest for a few minutes to develop the flavour. Serve it warm or cold.
Helpful tips
For a lighter version, roast the eggplants in the oven instead of frying them.
The sweet and sour balance is up to you: taste and adjust the vinegar and sugar.
It is even better the next day, once the flavours have melded together.
Serve it as a side, a starter or on toasted bread.
Average nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 220 kcal
- Carbohydrates
- 18.0 g
- Sugars
- 12.0 g
- Protein
- 3.0 g
- Fat
- 15.0 g
- Saturated fat
- 2.0 g
- Fiber
- 6.0 g
- Sodium
- 420 mg
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