Authentic Caponata Recipe
Sicily, Italy
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Introduction & history
With over 30 different recipes throughout Italy, this famous Sicilian vegetable relish can be easily tailored to match anyone’s taste. Traditionally, caponata is an eggplant-based dish prepared with the addition of tomatoes, peppers, capers, olives, onions, and celery. However, some recipes also call for the addition of pine nuts, almonds, raisins, or even artichokes or wild asparagus. After being sautéed one at a time, the vegetables are typically seasoned with sugar and left to simmer in vinegar, slowly melting into a tangy medley of sweet and sour flavors. Caponata can be enjoyed hot, although it is most often preserved for a few days after preparation and served as an antipasto course, either at room temperature or cold, which allows the flavors time to mellow and meld. Also, in some parts of Sicily, caponata is prepared with the addition of bitter dark chocolate — a common flavor enhancer left behind by the Spaniards that is present ... Read more
Pair with
Serve With
Cooking tips
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eggplants
The basis of almost every caponata recipe, eggplants can sometimes be unpleasantly bitter, which is caused by toxins that build up if the vegetable has grown slowly, especially in colder climates with less sunlight. However, that bitterness can easily be reduced by the so-called disgorging: slice the eggplants and then either soak them in heavily salted water for a couple of hours or sprinkle them ... Read more -
onion and celery
These are the two other mainstays of caponata, and while some recipes use red onion to complement the other sweet flavors, traditional recipes call for either yellow or white onion. As for celery, it can be blanched before use or even deep-fried, although sautéeing it alongside onions works just fine. -
tomatoes
Some recipes call for more tomatoes than others, but it is pretty much up to anyone's personal preference whether those will be fresh, canned, or in the form of liquid tomato purée called passata. However, if you can find them, you should always opt for the fresh, perfectly ripe San Marzano tomatoes, as their juicy chunks make the best jam-like coating for the other caponata ingredients. Still, remember ... Read more -
agrodolce
When the oily richness of fried vegetables and the tangy tomato coating seem overwhelming, agrodolce (lit. sour-sweet) is what wonderfully balances out the flavors of caponata. For something sweet, you can simply try sugar, honey, or even sultanas and raisins, which is another example of Arab influence on the island’s cuisine. On the other hand, the sour component comes from vinegar or sometimes even ... Read more
Recipe variations
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Catania-style Caponata
Ready in 1h 20minThis Catania-style caponata recipe is published with the permission of the Catania Tourism Organization. The eggplant and peppers are fried, the celery, the olives, and the capers blanched, while the raisins are soaked, and the pine nuts are toasted. The said ingredients are then mixed with a sweet and sour sauce and cooked slowly for a few minutes so the flavors combine.
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Italian Academy of Cuisine's Caponata Siciliana
Ready in 1h 20minPublished by the Italian Academy of Cuisine, this simple recipe describes the very basic Sicilian version of caponata. Also known as caponata di Palermo, when prepared like this, this vibrant summer vegetable relish can be enjoyed either as a cold antipasto, spread on crispy bruschettas, or while it's still warm, as a side to various meat, poultry and seafood dishes or topped over rigatoni or ziti for a filling pasta meal.
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Italian Academy of Cuisine's Caponata di Carciofi
Ready in 50minCourtesy of the Italian Academy of Cuisine, this caponata also hails from Sicily but makes for a completely different version of the classic dish by using artichokes instead of eggplants. Also, caponata di carciofi is enriched with raisins and flavored with mint, whose fresh sweetness is an interesting twist to this aromatic vegetable relish.
Catania-style Caponata
PREP 50min
COOK 30min
READY IN 1h 20min
This Catania-style caponata recipe is published with the permission of the Catania Tourism Organization. The eggplant and peppers are fried, the celery, the olives, and the capers blanched, while the raisins are soaked, and the pine nuts are toasted. The said ingredients are then mixed with a sweet and sour sauce and cooked slowly for a few minutes so the flavors combine.
Ingredients
800g (28 oz) eggplant, disgorged and diced beforehand
400g (14 oz) green peppers, diced
250g (8.8 oz) onion, julienned
150g (5.3 oz) celery
75g (2.5 oz) tomato concentrate
100g (3.5 oz) green stoned olives
25g (1 oz) capers
40g (1.5 oz) pine nuts
50g (1.8 oz) raisins
100 ml (1/3 cup + 1 tbsp + 2 tsp) white wine vinegar
100g (3.5 oz) sugar
extra-virgin olive oil, as needed
vegetable stock
salt, to taste
ground black pepper, to taste
basil leaves, to taste
Preparation
For the sweet and sour sauce, brown the julienned onions, add sugar and salt. Drizzle some vinegar over them and let evaporate. Add some tomato concentrate, dilute with vegetable stock and finish cooking.
Chop and blanch the celery, do the same with the stoned olives and the capers. Dice the eggplant and the peppers, fry them separately in plenty of olive oil. Soak the raisins and toast the pine nuts.
Combine the fried aubergines, peppers, pine nuts, raisins, celery, olives, capers and the sweet and sour sauce. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cook all the ingredients on a slow fire for a few minutes.
Sprinkle generously with basil leaves.
Other Variations
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Italian Academy of Cuisine's Caponata Siciliana
Ready in 1h 20minPublished by the Italian Academy of Cuisine, this simple recipe describes the very basic Sicilian version of caponata. Also known as caponata di Palermo, when prepared like this, this vibrant summer vegetable relish can be enjoyed either as a cold antipasto, spread on crispy bruschettas, or while it's still warm, as a side to various meat, poultry and seafood dishes or topped over rigatoni or ziti for a filling pasta meal.
-
Italian Academy of Cuisine's Caponata di Carciofi
Ready in 50minCourtesy of the Italian Academy of Cuisine, this caponata also hails from Sicily but makes for a completely different version of the classic dish by using artichokes instead of eggplants. Also, caponata di carciofi is enriched with raisins and flavored with mint, whose fresh sweetness is an interesting twist to this aromatic vegetable relish.
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