Crispy Breaded Aubergine Pasta
There’s no better way to enjoy aubergine than with crispy breadcrumbs and a silky tomato sauce. This recipe is the perfect way to indulge your aubergine obsession. It’s oily, salty and oh so delicious.
It’s hard to go wrong with aubergine, tomato and pasta, the three musketeers of delicious cuisine. You get the glutenous bite of the pasta with the smooth crunch of the breaded aubergine, bathed in the acidy sweetness of the tomato sauce. Just wonderful.
Aubergine has to be one of my favourite summer fruits. Its soft and fleshy interior soaks up flavour like a sponge. However, I often find that you forget about it. The smoothness of the fruit blends into the background, and you’re left focusing on other flavours.
In this recipe, I want to showcase the aubergine front and centre. Coating aubergine slices in breadcrumbs and frying them in copious amounts of oil makes them unforgettable. These slices have a crunchy and salty bite followed by that smooth and sumptuous aubergine flesh we all know and love.
This aubergine recipe is something I reach for when I need a little decadence. Carbs, salt and fat never fail to cheer me up, and this recipe has all three in spades. I’m sure you’re going to enjoy it.
Need more aubergine recipes?
- Sun dried tomato ragu with aubergine and courgette
- Fried aubergine with black pepper and miso
- Roast aubergine and potato curry
Crispy Breaded Aubergine Pasta
This meal is around 79% less polluting than the average UK meal.
Eating this recipe will save around 2.31 KG CO2e per person.
That’s equivalent to the emissions produced driving 19.10 KM in a modern car.
How do I calculate this?Ingredients
Breaded Aubergine
- 2 Medium Aubergine (sliced into 1cm rounds)
- 150 g Panko breadcrumbs
- 100 g Corn flour
- 200 ml Water
- Vegetable oil for shallow frying
Spicy tomato sauce
- 4 (400g) Cans Plum tomatoes
- 4 Cloves Garlic (finely chopped)
- 1/2 Teaspoon Chilli flakes
- 1 Teaspoon Dried oregano
- 2 Tablespoons Olive oil
- 50 g Capers
- 1 Teaspoon Sea salt (I've used maldon)
- 400 g Pasta (cooked to packet instructions)
Instructions
- Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Toss in the 4 cloves of chopped garlic, 1/2 teaspoon of chilli flakes and 1 teaspoon of oregano. Fry for about a minute.
- Pour in the 4 cans of plum tomatoes and stir to combine with the oil and garlic. Then, using a potato masher or fork, break down any large pieces of tomato. Work the tomatoes until all the sauce has an even lumpy consistency.
- Season the sauce with the teaspoon of sea salt, cover and reduce to a simmer. Cook for 25-30 minutes until the sauce is smooth and rich.
- Whilst your sauce is cooking, prepare your aubergine. Add the 100g of corn flour to a small bowl. Then whisk in the 200ml of water, a little at a time, until you have a smooth slurry. The sauce should be gloopy but not too thick.
- Arrange the 150g of panko breadcrumbs on a large tray or bowl. Now take an aubergine round and dunk it into the cornflour slurry. Toss the aubergine a few times to cover the fruit. Then take the coated aubergine and place it into the breadcrumbs. Toss and flip the aubergine until the fruit has an even crumb coating. Then remove and place onto a large tray. Repeat this process until you've covered all the aubergine slices in breadcrumbs.
- Heat a wide cast iron or non-stick pan over a medium heat. Pour in enough vegetable oil to cover the bottom of the pan with a coating of oil about half the thickness of your aubergine slices. Allow a few minutes for your oil to heat up.
- Now fry your aubergine slices, working in batches so as not to crowd the pan. Cook the rounds for 3 minutes, on each side, until the breadcrumbs are golden brown. Place the cooked aubergine on wire rack and season immediately with salt and a little black pepper.
- When all your aubergine are fried, plate your pasta. Generously heap the tomato sauce over your pasta and top with the breaded aubergine. Then finish with the 50g of capers and a drizzle of olive oil.