Sweet and Sour Sicilian Eggplant Caponata

What you need

• 900 g (2 lb) eggplants, 2 medium, cut into 2.5 cm (1 in) cubes
• 150 ml (2/3 cup) olive oil, for frying; 2 tbsp of it stays in the pan for the sauce
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 stalks celery, sliced
• 340 g (12 oz) ripe tomatoes, seeded and chopped
• 2 tsp tomato paste
• 100 g (3/4 cup) green olives, pitted and halved
• 2 tbsp capers, rinsed
• 60 ml (1/4 cup) red wine vinegar
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 30 g (1/4 cup) pine nuts, toasted
• salt, for draining and to taste
• black pepper, freshly ground, to taste

Method

Restated from the original video

1. 1

   Toss the eggplant cubes with a good pinch of salt in a colander and leave to drain for 30 min.

2. 2

   Pat the eggplant dry with a clean towel.

3. 3

   Heat the frying oil in a large, deep frying pan over medium-high heat.

4. 4

   Fry the eggplant in batches, turning, until deep golden on every side and soft inside, 5-8 min per batch. Drain on paper towels.

5. 5

   Pour off all but 2 tbsp of the oil and lower the heat to medium.

6. 6

   Cook the onion and celery, stirring, until soft but the celery still has a little bite, about 8 min.

7. 7

   Stir in the tomatoes and tomato paste and cook until the tomatoes collapse into a thick sauce, about 8 min.

8. 8

   Add the olives and capers and cook for 2 min.

9. 9

   Stir the sugar into the vinegar until it dissolves, then pour it into the pan. Let it bubble until the sharp smell softens, 2-3 min.

10. 10

    Fold in the fried eggplant and simmer gently for 5 min so it takes in the sauce.

11. 11

    Season with salt and pepper. The balance should be clearly sweet and sour; add a little more vinegar or sugar if needed.

12. 12

    Take off the heat, scatter over the pine nuts and let the caponata cool. Serve at room temperature; it tastes even better the next day.

Imported from mashed.com. Recipe Grab pulled out what you need to cook it; the video stays where its author put it.