Ciambotta

Summer vegetables fried apart and stewed together, so each keeps its own character.

Vegan.

Ingredients

• 1 large aubergine, in chunks
• 3 peppers, in strips
• 3 potatoes, in chunks
• 400 g ripe tomatoes, chopped
• 1 onion, sliced
• 6 tablespoons olive oil
• a handful of basil
• 1.5 teaspoons salt

Method

1. Salt the aubergine chunks in a colander for 30 minutes and pat them dry.
2. FRY EACH VEGETABLE SEPARATELY in the oil — aubergine first, then potatoes, then peppers — lifting each out as it colours. They cook at completely different rates and this is the only reason the dish is not mush.
3. Soften the onion last in what oil is left, then add the tomatoes and cook 10 minutes.
4. Return all the fried vegetables, season, and stew together for 15 minutes with the lid off so it thickens rather than boils.
5. Tear the basil in at the end.
6. Eat it warm or at room temperature, never hot from the pan. It is better after an hour standing.

Our own recipe. This one was written for this site rather than taken from anywhere, so there is no source to point you at. The quantities and the order of the steps are choices, not the only way to do it.

Filed under Italy · All recipes