Roasted Eggplant Tomato Pasta Sauce

This simple eggplant tomato sauce is rich, low in fat, deliciously tangy and sweet and easy to make. It' satisfying, with a 'meaty' texture, perfect to serve with your favourite pasta. 

You might also like roasted red pepper pasta.

Eggplant tomato sauce is a simple Mediterranean-style dish popular in a number of countries. Tomatoes and eggplants are the most quintessential ingredients in Mediterranean cuisine in general and can be cooked in different ways. They form the basis of Turkish 'soslu patlican', Sicilian 'pasta alla norma' and many other dishes.

My version of this sauce also contains red pepper for added sweetness and complexity and is low in calories.

Eggplant tomato sauce ingredients and substitutions

• Eggplant: ensure it's firm and without greyish spots.
• Tomatoes: use very ripe tomatoes for maximum flavour.
• Canned tomatoes: use tomato passata instead (and omit the tomato puree), if desired.
• Tomato puree: adds richness of flavour.
• Red bell pepper: adds sweetness.
• Red onion.
• Garlic: adjust the amount to your taste.
• White wine: if you prefer to omit it you could add a little balsamic vinegar into the sauce instead (approx. 2 tsp).
• Paprika: use either sweet, smoked or hot. Alternatively use a bit of each.
• Olive oil: use any.
• Sea salt and pepper to taste.

Optional ingredients

• Red pepper flakes.
• Dried Italian herbs/mixed herbs.

Can I add eggplant into pasta sauce

Yes, you can, but you need to pre-cook it first. This is because cooking with acidic ingredients (i.e. tomatoes) keeps other vegetables firm. Eggplant, which requires quite a bit of time to soften anyway, would take a long time to fully cook in the sauce.

So it's best to pre-cook the eggplant first and then combine with the sauce and cook for several minutes to allow the flavours to develop.

Why is it a good idea to roast the ingredients

I did this for 2 reasons. One was to avoid using too much oil and the other, to add flavour. Eggplant can be fried, but this usually involves using copious amounts of oil, which I wanted to avoid. Roasting eggplant softens as well as adds flavour to the eggplant. This also applies to other vegetables, which is why I decided to also roast the red pepper as well as the garlic.

Top tip

Roasted garlic is more mellow than fresh so your eggplant pasta sauce won't be too garlicky.

Step-by-step recipe instructions

Preheat the oven to 200 C/ 400 F/ gas mark 6.  Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

1.Place the eggplant halves, cut side up, whole garlic cloves and pepper halves, skin side up, on top of the baking sheet. Brush the eggplant with a little oil (approx. 1 tsp) and season lightly.  Roast in the centre of the oven for 25-30 minutes until softened.

2. Remove from the oven and set aside for a few minutes to cool. In the meantime start making the sauce.

3. In a pot heat up 2 tablespoons of oil, add the onions and fry gently for 2 minutes.  Add the wine and continue cooking for another minute.

4. Chop the eggplant and add into the pot along with the chopped tomatoes. Cook for a couple of minutes stirring occasionally.

5. Peel the pepper and garlic and puree together.  Add into the sauce along with the canned tomatoes, tomato puree, paprika, salt and pepper to taste. Cover and simmer for about 20 minutes stirring often.

6. Remove from the heat and serve this roasted aubergine sauce with your favourite pasta and freshly chopped basil leaves.

What pasta goes well with tomato eggplant sauce

Robust, rich tomato-based sauces generally pair well with large pasta shapes and this recipe is no exception. You could serve it with fusilli, penne or rigatoni, but it also works well with long pasta shapes such as tagliatelle, linguine and spaghetti. I do not recommend small pasta shapes as these work better in soups.

Serving

This healthy eggplant tomato pasta sauce is delicious with a drizzle of oil or simply on its own. You can also enjoy it with a handful of freshly chopped basil leaves and grated parmesan (if you don't need it to be vegan, though make sure it's vegetarian).

What to make ahead

• Roasted vegetables: once cooled cover and refrigerate overnight. Make the sauce and assemble the recipe the following day.
• Entire sauce from start to finish: once cooled cover and refrigerate. Serve with freshly boiled pasta over the next 3 days.

Top tips

• Use firm eggplant without any greyish spots.
• This recipe contains a lot of tomato sauce, but you can change the proportions by adding more eggplant.
• I recommend using very ripe, quality tomatoes (such as beef tomatoes) for maximum flavour.
• Use either sweet, hot or smoked paprika (or a bit of each). 
• Best served hot with your favourite pasta (large or long pasta shapes work well).
• Refrigerate leftovers for up to 3 days. Reheat the sauce then combine with freshly cooked pasta.
• Freeze this eggplant and tomato sauce for up to 3 months.

More easy eggplant recipes to try

• Easy Eggplant Pasta Bake
• Vegan Eggplant Casserole Recipe with Beans
• Vegan Stuffed Eggplant with Quinoa in Tomato Sauce
• Roasted Eggplant (Aubergine) Dip
• Vegetarian Moussaka (Mushrooms & Lentils)

Check out also these other easy plant-based meal ideas including this collection of vegetarian pasta meals.

Keep in touch!

If you make this eggplant tomato sauce recipe I'd love to know how it turned out for you. Did you make any substitutions? Let me know in the comments below, thanks!

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