Zia Rosina’s Eggplant Fungetielle

Eggplant, tomato, garlic – all classic Neapolitan ingredients. A simple and delicious hearty side that brings you back home to those Southern Italian flavors.

Ingredients

4 cups Eggplant, large and diced into 1 inch cubes

3 Tbsp Olive Oil

3 Tbsp Garlic, minced

1/4 cup, Green Olives, pitted

8 ounce can Tomato Sauce (rinse can with 4-6 ounces of water to use residual tomato sauce)

1 Bay Leaf, dried

3 Anchovies, minced

1/8 tsp (to taste), Crushed Red Pepper Flakes

1/4 cups Basil or Parsley, chopped

Equipment

Chefs knife

cutting board

large mixing bowl

colander

paper towels

large frying pan

wooden spoon

serrated knife

Instructions

Prep –

Advanced Preparation: wash and dice eggplant into one inch cubes. Toss diced eggplant with ¼ tsp salt, and let sit in a colander for 15 minutes to pull out moisture. Strain excess water, rinse, pat dry with clean paper towels. [Note: If pressed for time, you can skip this step]. While eggplant is in colander, mince the garlic, anchovies, and basil or parsley.

Make –

1 – In a large frying pan on medium heat, add oil and garlic, saute until fragrant (1-2 minutes) being careful not to let the garlic turn dark brown.

2 – Add the eggplant, olives, and tomato sauce and water from rinsing the can to use all residual sauce and simmer.

3 – Add bay leaf, anchovies and crushed red pepper flakes, mixing well to blend all ingredients.

4 – Bring to a low simmer, cook for 20 minutes or until eggplant is tender. Add water as needed.

5 – Garnish with basil or parsley.