Sicilian Caponata - Sweet and Sour Aubergine
Sicily's best-known vegetable dish, sweet and sour at once. Raisins provide the sweetness instead of sugar, capers and olives the seasoning instead of added salt. It tastes better on the second day than the first.
Why this dish is good for you
Not a single gram of salt is added - the roughly 370 milligrams of sodium a portion come entirely from capers and olives, which bring seasoning and aroma at the same time. The aubergine contributes over eight grams of fibre, the pine nuts magnesium and vitamin E.
Ingredients
- Aubergine(in large dice, unpeeled)700 g
- Tomatoes(diced)300 g
- Celery(celery sticks, sliced - it should keep some bite)150 g
- Onion150 g
- Green olives(pitted, rinsed)50 g
- Olive oil45 g
- Raisins(they replace the sugar of the classic recipe)30 g
- Red wine vinegar30 g
- Pine nuts(toasted in a dry pan)25 g
- Capers(rinsed thoroughly - unrinsed they bring too much salt)20 g
- Basil(fresh, only at the end)10 g
Method
- 1
Fry the aubergine cubes in a wide pan with two thirds of the olive oil over high heat, in batches, until golden, then lift them out. Not too many at once, or they steam instead of browning.
- 2
Sweat onion and celery in the remaining oil for ten minutes - the celery should keep some bite.
- 3
Add the tomatoes and cook down for ten minutes.
- 4
Add olives, rinsed capers and raisins, then pour in the vinegar and let it evaporate uncovered for two minutes until the sharpness is gone.
- 5
Return the aubergines to the pan and let everything sit together for five minutes. No salt is added - capers and olives bring enough.
- 6
Take off the heat, fold in pine nuts and basil and leave overnight. Serve at room temperature, not hot.
🍆 Süßsauer ist arabisches Erbe
The pairing of vinegar and dried fruit came to Sicily with the Arabs and was called agrodolce there. It originally had a practical purpose: acid and sugar together preserve vegetables without refrigeration - which is why caponata really does taste better on the second day.
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