This Eggplant with Sundried Tomato and Mozzarella recipe came from a trip to a very popular steakhouse here in London after a friend suggested we visit for our catch up dinner. I had never heard of this little spot where queues line the narrow street. We arrived early enough to only have to wait fifteen minutes, a precariously short time in comparison with the time given to the people at the door when we left two hours later (two-and-a-half hours for a table for four).
With the incessant stream of visitors into London lately, it has been a busy few days catching up with my friend James. If you have followed this blog for a while you will have likely seen James when we first met in New Zealand through the wonderful site that is Couchsurfing in 2012. Its a little crazy to think that we have only spent time together a few times and we don't stay in regular touch that we come together and this friendship is one of the most stable in my life.
The energy James enthuses through every aspect of his life is addictive to be around and it was so great to catch up and meet some of the other people he is currently in business with. Their passion and drive leading us to drink more beer in the last three days then I have in the last two months was worth it because that energy is something I wish was a more consistent feature in my life.
The side to go with my burger was an eggplant layered dish that sounded great, but the first bite of this was so addictive I came home and made something similar, but healthier within a week and then remade it and remade it again just the same because this is that good and so here is the adaptation aptly named Eggplant with Sundried Tomato and Mozzarella.
Eggplant has a bit of a reputation for requiring slicing and needing to often be drained to make a great dish, but this dish doesn't require any of that fussiness, instead this needs to be cooked with a lid on so the steam pulls out the liquid from the eggplants naturally alongside the olive oil.
Before you know it you'll be enjoying the saltiness of the sundried tomatoes pairing perfectly with the rest of this dish and lets be fair, fresh mozzarella is a gold member ingredient to add subtle flavor to any dish. Somehow this all works incredibly well and will be a staple in my kitchen for summers to come. Whilst it isn't super pretty, the taste is worth it.
How to prepare Eggplant with Sundried Tomato and Mozzarella
- Prep your veggies: This dish comes together quickly and all the vegetables need to be sliced and diced before you begin cooking.
- Lightly cooked: Cook the diced onion and garlic until lightly cooked.
- Cherry matos: Toss in the cherry tomatoes and stir.
- Cover: Cover the pan and cook until the tomatoes are soft.
- Eggplants: Toss in the eggplants with a little olive oil (enough to keep the pan lightly coated) and a little water, stir and cover.
- Soft eggplants: Once the eggplants are soft, add in the sundried tomatoes and stir together, allowing to cook uncovered.
- Torn cheese: Turn the heat off and tear your cheese, allowing to sit and melt a little for a couple minutes.
- Serve: Stir through cooked pasta or spoon on top of bread with a little torn basil. Enjoy!
Tips for the best Eggplant with Sundried Tomato and Mozzarella
Easy eggplant: Eggplant dishes usually tell you to cut and drain before cooking, but we want fresh eggplants here which will lose some of their moisture in the cooking process and help soften them.
Finely cubed: The smaller your eggplant is cubed the quicker it will cook - you'll want to make sure they're as evenly cubed as possible.
More light summer dinners you'll enjoy
Vegetarian Nachos
Meatball Sandwich
Zucchini and Corn Quiche
Eggplant with Sundried Tomato and Mozzarella
Recipe by Roamingtaste
Serves 4
Ingredients:
1 red onion, finely chopped
4 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 ½ cups cherry tomatoes, quartered and halved
2 eggplants, ends removed and cubed
⅓ cup sundried tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 large fresh mozzarella ball, torn
Fresh torn basil to serve
Directions:
Place the onion and garlic in a pan with olive oil on medium heat until cooked, approximately 2 minutes.
Add the tomatoes and cook for 2 minutes, then cover and cook for a further 3 minutes until soft.
Add the cubed eggplant, stirring and adding a little olive oil and 2 tablespoons water.
Cook covered for 10 minutes, until the eggplant is soft, stirring every couple minutes or so to ensure the mixture doesn’t burn, adding a little oil and water as necessary.
Once the eggplant is soft, add the sundried tomatoes with 2 tablespoons of sundried tomato oil, stirring to combine.
Allow to cook uncovered for 1 minute.
Remove from the heat and sprinkle the torn mozzarella over the mixture evenly. Allow to sit for 2 minutes for the cheese to melt a little.
Serve immediately with torn basil on crusty bread or tossed through some pasta.
Print
Eggplant with Sundried Tomato and Mozzarella
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4
- Category: Side
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
This eggplant dish couldn't be easier by cooking it with the juice of fresh cherry tomatoes and serving with fresh mozzarella, this works as a bruschetta topping, a side or swirled through pasta or even with some steak.
Ingredients
1 red onion, finely chopped
4 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 ½ cups cherry tomatoes, quartered and halved
2 eggplants, ends removed and cubed
⅓ cup sundried tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 large fresh mozzarella ball, torn
Fresh torn basil to serve
Instructions
- Place the onion and garlic in a pan with olive oil and cook on medium heat until cooked, approximately 2 minutes.
- Add the tomatoes and cook for 2 minutes, then cover and cook for a further 3 minutes.
- Add the cubed eggplant, stirring and adding a little olive oil and 2 tablespoons water.
- Cook covered for 10 minutes, until the eggplant is soft, stirring every couple minutes or so to ensure the mixture doesn’t burn, adding a little oil and water as necessary.
- Once the eggplant is soft, add the sundried tomatoes with 2 tablespoons of sundried tomato oil, stirring to combine.
- Allow to cook uncovered for 1 minute.
- Remove from the heat and sprinkle the torn mozzarella over the mixture evenly. Allow to sit for 2 minutes for the cheese to melt a little.
- Serve immediately with torn basil on crusty bread or tossed through some pasta.
Notes
Easy eggplant: Eggplant dishes usually tell you to cut and drain before cooking, but we want fresh eggplants here which will lose some of their moisture in the cooking process and help soften them.
Finely cubed: The smaller your eggplant is cubed the quicker it will cook - you'll want to make sure they're as evenly cubed as possible.
Recipe by Roamingtaste
Nutrition
- Calories: 148 calories
Leave a Reply