Two choices make this version: the eggplant is fried until bronze, not blond, and the pasta is finished with ricotta salata, never fresh ricotta or parmesan. Half the eggplant is folded through the sauced pasta off the heat and half is laid on top, so you get silk inside and a little crispness on the plate.
Make ahead The tomato sauce keeps two days in the fridge; fry the eggplant on the day you serve.
Pasta alla Norma
Total 1 hr 15 min · Prep 40 min · Cook 35 min · Serves 4
Method
Salt the eggplant in a colander 30 minutes, then rinse briefly and dry completely.
Make the sauce: warm the olive oil with the garlic, add tomatoes crushed by hand, salt, and simmer 20 minutes; finish with torn basil and remove the garlic.
Fry the eggplant in 170 C oil in batches until deep bronze on both faces; drain on a rack and salt faintly.
Boil the pasta in well-salted water to one minute shy of al dente.
Toss the pasta in the sauce with a splash of its water for a glossy coat, then fold in half the eggplant gently, off the heat.
Plate, shingle the remaining eggplant on top, and snow over the ricotta salata with a basil leaf on each plate. Sing if moved.
Equipment
Deep Frying Pan
Sauté Pan2 options
Colander
Box GraterRicotta salata wants the coarse holes for a proper snowfall.2 options
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Estimated per serving
- Calories
- 719 kcal
- Protein
- 21.5 g
- Carbohydrates
- 82.8 g
- Fat
- 34.1 g
Per serving · 1/4 of the recipe Ingredient-based estimate; brands and preparation change the result. Frying estimate includes 70.1g absorbed oil for the whole dish, using a published salt-treated eggplant reference. Cut size, salting and frying temperature change uptake; sodium is omitted.
Nutrition sources: CREA Centro di ricerca Alimenti e Nutrizione · USDA Agricultural Research Service · Caseificio La Cava
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