Slow-Cooked Summer Tomato and Eggplant Sauce
Here you prepare the tomatoes and sauté the base of onions and garlic in the exact same way as in the previous recipe, but the final sauce is unique. First you soften the eggplant chunks in the pan before adding the tomatoes. Then you cook the vegetables covered for a long time, so the chunks break down even more. The aim is to soften the eggplant so much that it almost melts into the tomatoes—which explains the traditional name for this sauce, melanzana affogata: literally, “suffocated eggplant.” The eggplant does not disappear, though, either in flavor or texture, I assure you. If you love eggplant as much as I do, you will want to make this sauce—and plenty of it.
Recipe information
Yield
makes about 3 quarts of sauce
Ingredients
Recommended Equipment
Preparation
Step 1
Prepare the tomatoes for sauce, following one of the methods on page 261.
Step 2
Trim and peel the eggplants (or, if the skin is tender, peel in stripes; see box, page 254). Cut them lengthwise in 3/4-inch-wide slices, stack the slices, and cut them into 3/4-inch-wide strips, then chop into 3/4-inch chunks.
Step 3
Following the procedures for “Initial Sautéing” in the main recipe, stir together the oil, the onions, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in the saucepan. Cook for 5 or 6 minutes, add the garlic and let it caramelize in a “hot spot,” then stir in a couple tablespoons of water and cook the onions and garlic together for a minute or two.
Step 4
Now pour the eggplant pieces into the pan, sprinkle on 1 teaspoon salt, and turn to coat the pieces with the oil and sautéed onion and garlic. Cook over medium-low heat, uncovered, stirring and turning the eggplant frequently. If the pan gets dry and the pieces start to brown, stir in several spoons of water; lower the heat if needed.
Step 5
Cook for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the eggplant chunks are very soft, almost mushy, but still retain their shape. Pour in the prepared tomatoes and juices, rinsing the tomato bowl with 2 or 3 cups water and pouring it into the pan (the eggplant needs the additional liquid). Sprinkle on the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and the peperoncino, and stir to blend everything together. Submerge the basil branches in the sauce, cover the pan, and raise the heat to medium.
Step 6
When the sauce reaches the boil, lower the heat to keep an active simmer and cook, covered, for 40 minutes or so. The eggplant should now be broken down and melting into the tomatoes.
Step 7
Uncover the pan and let the sauce bubble gently and gradually reduce. Stir carefully as it thickens, to make sure the eggplant doesn’t stick to the pan bottom; lower the heat if necessary. Cook, uncovered, for a total of 45 minutes to an hour, until the sauce has the consistency you like, then turn off the heat. Pull out the basil before using, and store sauce as in the main recipe.
A memory from Childhood: Suffocated Eggplant with Scrambled Eggs
Step 8
A simple dish that I loved as a child (and still adore) is beaten eggs cooked in a small pan of bubbling melanzana affogata (or Slow-Cooked Summer Tomato and Eggplant Sauce, above). Here’s how to make enough for 4 servings:
Step 9
Heat 3 cups of sauce in a skillet until simmering. Crack 4 fresh eggs in a bowl and beat them with a couple pinches of salt. Pour the eggs on top of the hot sauce, raise the heat to high, and scramble up the eggs and sauce together with a fork for 1 minute. Serve hot for a great breakfast, lunch, or brunch—or supper.
Step 10
Instead of scrambling the eggs, try poaching them: make an indentation in the simmering sauce, crack an egg into it; do the same for each serving. Cover the skillet, and cook slowly (about 4 minutes) until the egg is done to your liking. With a spatula, lift out a portion of sauce with an egg nestled on top, and serve.
