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This Eggplant Caponata recipe bursts with smoky, sweet, and sour flavors from roasted eggplant and peppers, sweet raisins, zesty olives, capers, and tangy sherry vinegar. It's a crowd-pleasing dish, perfect for making ahead as flavors deepen overnight.
Craving vibrant, bold flavors to spruce up your menu? This caponata transforms simple ingredients into a rich, layered masterpiece that everyone will love!
What is Eggplant Caponata?
It's a traditional Sicilian dish, often described as a relish, featuring fried eggplant simmered with tomatoes, and an array of fresh and jarred ingredients, creating a sweet-and-sour, lip-smacking flavor. It's typically served as an appetizer or side at room temperature or chilled.
My version strays slightly from tradition-I roast the eggplant instead of frying and use sun-dried tomatoes for a slight twist-but it still captures that vibrant mix of rich, savory, and tangy notes.
Enjoy this Caponata solo or with quick-pickled red onions for zesty crunch, paired with my no-knead artisan bread and vegan mozzarella cheese for a stunning vegan antipasto platter. Serve it alongside my grilled polenta, these portobello mushroom steaks, or use it to enhance any meal.
Ingredients Needed
These ingredients are all easy to find, and many are likely in your kitchen now. Here's what you'll need:
- Golden Raisins: Soak in sherry vinegar for sweet-tangy depth; regular raisins will work too.
- Sherry Vinegar: Adds nuanced acidity for caponata's signature tang; swap with red wine vinegar, avoiding balsamic's sweetness.
- Eggplant: Choose small, firm eggplants with smooth, glossy skin and no soft spots for the best tender, caramelized texture.
- Olive Oil: Avocado oil can be used too.
- Red Bell Pepper: Roasted for smoky sweetness; yellow or orange peppers work too. Swap with jarred if that's all you have (about 6oz, drained).
- Yellow Onion: You can use shallots for a milder, sweeter flavor.
- Celery: If you don't have it, leeks with work or fennel for a slight anise twist.
- Garlic: Fresh is best here!
- Sun-Dried Tomatoes: Adds umami depth similar to estratto (Sicilian tomato paste), intensifying the dish's complexity.
- Tomato Paste: Binds flavors with rich intensity. Omit if you don't have it.
- Olives: Castelvetrano olives add a mild, buttery brininess. Avoid cocktail olives, but if needed, substitute with kalamata.
- Capers: Non-pareil are smaller, firmer, and milder in brine, making them a superior choice. Capote will work, but I would use less and rough chop them.
How to make it
Start by preheating your oven to 425°F and lining 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Here's how to do the rest:
- Soak raisins in sherry vinegar in a small bowl.
- Toss eggplant with olive oil and salt; spread on baking sheets. Roast eggplant and bell pepper halves (skin-side up, oiled) for 25-30 minutes, swapping trays halfway.
- Heat olive oil over medium heat, then sauté onion and celery until soft, 10-12 minutes. Add garlic and sauté until fragrant.
- Add tomato paste and cook for 1 minute until darkened.
- Now add the sun-dried tomatoes, olives, capers, and soaked raisins; reduce the heat to low.
- Stir in roasted eggplant and chopped roasted pepper.
- Simmer 5-10 minutes, season, and serve garnished.
FAQs
Toss caponata with pasta, mix with white beans, or spread on sandwiches for bold flavor. Spoon it over polenta, into grain bowls, or onto pizza and zucchini boats. Try it as a vegan omelette filling for a zesty twist. The optiona are endless!
Sweating draws out extra moisture, yielding a firmer texture and bitterness-free taste. Typically, smaller eggplants can forgo sweating because they're naturally milder and less watery. The sweating is optional, but to ensure perfectly caramelized eggplant with a smooth taste, lightly salt cubes with ¾ teaspoon kosher salt, sweat in a colander for 20-30 minutes, wipe dry with a clean towel, and avoid adding extra salt before roasting.
More full-flavored recipes to try
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Recipe
Eggplant Caponata
Ingredients
- ¼ cup golden raisins (sub regular raisins)
- 3 tablespoons sherry vinegar
- 2 small eggplants about 1 ½ pounds, cut into ½-inch cubes
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt , more to taste
- 6 tablespoons olive oil , divided
- 1 large red bell pepper , halved, deseeded and stem removed,
- 1 medium yellow onion , finely chopped
- 1 rib celery , very finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic , minced
- ¼ cup sun-dried tomatoes , finely minced
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- ½ cup green olives , pitted and chopped
- 2 tablespoons capers , rinsed and drained
- Black pepper to taste
- Optional for garnish: toasted pine nuts and minced fresh parsley. (See note for serving ideas)
Recommended Equipment
- 2 Large Baking Sheets
- Parchment Paper (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F (218 °C) and position racks in the top and bottom thirds.
- Combine raisins and sherry vinegar in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Toss eggplant with 4 tablespoons olive oil and ¾ teaspoon salt. Spread evenly on the sheets, leaving space for the bell pepper halves.
- Place bell pepper halves skin-side up on one sheet and rub with a little olive oil.
- Roast with the bell pepper on the bottom rack and the other sheet on the top rack for 15 minutes. Stir the eggplant, then swap the sheets and roast another 10-15 minutes until the eggplant is tender and the bell pepper is charred.
- Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté onion and celery for about 5 minutes until softened. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook until very soft, 6-8 minutes.
- Add garlic and cook for 30-60 seconds until fragrant. Stir in tomato paste and cook for 1 minute, until slightly darkened.. Add sun-dried tomatoes, capers, olives, and the soaked raisins with vinegar. Reduce heat to low and keep warm.
- Transfer roasted eggplant to the skillet and stir. Peel, chop, and add the bell pepper (to peel: flip the peppers upside down after roasting and cover. Trapped steam loosens the skin for effortless peeling)
- Return the heat to medium-low and cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally (this allows flavors to infuse into the eggplant fully). Season with black pepper and adjust salt if needed. Season with black pepper and adjust salt if needed.
- Serve warm or at room temperature, garnished with pine nuts and parsley if desired
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