This recipe for Pasta Alla Norma {Pasta with Eggplant Sauce} turns everyday pasta into something really special.
Serve this Italian masterpiece with warm Homemade Garlic Bread for the perfect weeknight meal.
This dish is a perfect example of the simplicity of Italian cooking. You don’t need a lot of complicated ingredients to create a phenomenal dinner. It’s simply made with the flesh of roasted eggplant, plum tomatoes, white wine, and fresh basil.
The sauce is made by removing the flesh from roasted eggplants and adding them to the tomato sauce where they cook down, even more, making a delectable, flavorful dish that I promise you’re going to love!
Why This Recipe Works
- Roasting the halved eggplants with the flesh side down and only a little cooking spray, gives you perfectly cooked eggplant without it being saturated with oil.
- Smaller eggplants have fewer seeds that cut the bitterness and allows you to skip the salting step most recipes call for.
- Cooking the garlic in just a touch of olive oil instead of tablespoons makes it a much healthier dish.
- Adding the freshly grated cheese at the end while it’s hot allows the cheese to melt into the pasta adding not only a creamy taste but a silky texture.
Why Pasta Alla Norma?
According to, Food TV cook, Frankie CelenzaIn, In Italy, the word ‘Norma’ is used to describe something that is amazing or wonderful. I like the sounds of that. Let me tell you that this dish lives up to its name!
Ingredient Notes
- Eggplant: The fresher and smaller the eggplant the better. See the guide below for how to choose your eggplant.
- Pasta: I like to make this dish with penne pasta but you can use this sauce on any of your favorite pasta shapes.
- Tomatoes: Canned plum tomatoes are perfect for this dish but you can use chopped. Look for the best quality tomatoes possible (those with DOP on the label are best). See the guide below for more information.
- Wine: A great rule of thumb when using wine in your cooking is to use one you’d happily drink. I use a pinot grigio or sauvignon blanc. If you can’t use alcohol in your cooking replace with apple juice.
- Cheese: Parmesan cheese is best for this dish but any Italian hard cheese will work fine, Grana Padano cheese or Pecorino Romano are great choices.
How To Make Pasta Alla Norma {Pasta with Eggplant Sauce}
- Roast the eggplant. Once cooked, remove flesh and set aside.
- Boil the pasta water.
- Saute garlic in a pan. Add tomatoes.
- Pour in the wine. Reduce.
- Crush the tomatoes into the sauce. Add the eggplant flesh.
- Add the basil, and some reserved pasta water. Simmer.
- Add the pasta and finish cooking in the sauce.
- Mix in the cheese.
- Serve and enjoy!
Tomato Guide
Choosing the right tomatoes for your pasta sauce seems easy, but here are some great tips:
- When buying Canned tomatoes, go for whole plum tomatoes. They are picked and canned at the peak of ripeness. Manufacturers save the best quality tomatoes for canning them whole because they need to look pristine.
- Whole peeled tomatoes also break down easily when cooked, because tomatoes that are intact have less surface area exposed to chemicals that are added to canned goods to keep them from breaking down too much.
Choosing Eggplant
Choose the smallest eggplants you can. The younger it is, the sweeter and more tender the flesh. Eggplants turn more bitter they mature.
Pick smooth, shiny eggplants that feel heavy for their size. Avoid eggplants that feel lightweight as they may be past their prime.
Gently, but firmly, press your finger into the skin of the eggplant. The flesh should give a to the pressure and create a slight indent that springs back when pressure is released. If the depression remains, the eggplant is old.
Salt the pasta water. The pasta water should taste of the ocean. Cooking the pasta in well-salted water seasons the pasta. The best pasta sauce in the world can’t make up for bland pasta.
Step By Step Instructions
Start by cutting the eggplants in half and placing them flesh side down in a sheet pan. Then spray them with low-fat cooking spray.
Roast in a hot oven for 30 – 35 minutes. When the skin shrivels this is a good indication it is done.
Boil a pot of water for your pasta. Cook the pasta until almost done (about 2 minutes undercooked).
Carefully remove the flesh from the eggplant while it’s still hot by scooping it out with a spoon.
Repeat until all the flesh is removed from the skins of the eggplants.
While the pasta cooks, start your sauce.
Heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat in a deep frying pan. Add the garlic and cook until just browned.
Add the can of plum tomatoes.
Pour in the white wine and allow it to cook the alcohol off.
While the wine cooks down, crush tomatoes with a potato masher or the back of a spoon.
Continue to crush the tomatoes until they are your desired texture.
Add the eggplant flesh.
Next, grab a big handful of basil. I mean a good handful!
Chop or tear the basil and add it to the sauce.
Mix the basil in, lower the heat and allow to simmer until your pasta is 2 minutes underdone.
Undercooking the pasta and finishing it in the sauce allows the pasta to absorb some of the sauce giving it even more flavor.
Before draining the pasta, remove a cup of the cooking water and set aside.
Add the pasta to the pan with the sauce and half the cooking water. Allow simmering for two-three minutes to finish cooking the pasta.
Check the pasta is done. Once it is, add freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
Mix in the cheese and taste for seasoning. Season to taste and serve with extra grated cheese.
Erren’s Top Tips
- For an added smokey taste, try broiling the eggplant instead of roasting them and allow the skin to char a little.
- When roasting the eggplant, line the pan with nonstick foil to make it easy to remove.
- When cooking the pasta, salt like you mean it – pasta water should taste of the ocean and it’s the only time you get to add flavor to the pasta.
- An easy way to cut the basil is stacking the leaves on top of each other, rolling them into a cigar shape and then slicing it into thin slices.
- To keep the pasta from sticking, make sure you use a big enough pan with lots of water. A good rule of thumb is to use 10x more water than pasta.
- If your tomatoes taste of too much acidity, add a pinch of sugar, taste and repeat as needed.
- Don’t have wine? Try vermouth – its great for cooking and doesn’t go bad once opened. Plus, you can save the wine for drinking!
Did you make this?
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Let’s Make Pasta with Eggplant Sauce {Pasta Alla Norma}
Ingredients
- 1 pound pasta
- 4 small eggplants cut in half
- cooking spray
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 garlic cloves
- 14 ounces can plum tomatoes
- 1 cup white wine
- fresh basil A big handful
- ¼ cup Parmesan cheese freshly grated
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Pre-heat your oven to 400F. Place the eggplant halves face down on a baking sheet. Spray with cooking spray and roast for 30-35 minutes (you’ll know they’re done when the skin shrivels). When ready, carefully scoop out the fleshy center with a spoon and run a knife through it to cut into strips.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a roaring boil, and cook the pasta until about 2 minutes underdone.
- While the pasta cooks, heat the oil over medium-high heat in a large, deep sauté pan. Add the garlic and cook until just brown.
- Add tomatoes followed by the wine. Raise the heat and allow the alcohol to cook off the wine. While the wine cooks down, crush the tomatoes with a potato masher or the back of a spoon.
- Add the eggplant and basil to the tomatoes and mix well to combine, lower the heat and allow to simmer while the pasta finishes cooking.
- Before straining the pasta, with a ladle or strainer, use a mug to remove a cup of pasta water. Then drain the pasta and mix it into the sauce in the pan with half the cooking water. Cook for 2 – 3 minutes (adding more pasta water if it starts getting a bit dry). Check to see if the pasta is cooked. When done, add freshly grated cheese to the pasta and mix well to incorporate.
- Taste for seasoning and season with salt and pepper as needed. Serve with more grated cheese.
Tips + Notes
- When roasting the eggplant, line the pan with nonstick foil to make it easy to remove.
- When cooking the pasta, salt like you mean it – pasta water should taste of the ocean and it’s the only time you get to add flavor to the pasta.
- An easy way to cut the basil is stacking the leaves on top of each other, rolling them into a cigar shape and then slicing it into thin slices.
- To keep the pasta from sticking, make sure you use a big enough pan with lots of water. A good rule of thumb is to use 10x more water than pasta.
- If your tomatoes taste of too much acidity, add a pinch of sugar, taste and repeat as needed.
- Don’t have wine? Try vermouth – its great for cooking and doesn’t go bad once opened. Plus, you can save the wine for drinking!
Nick says
My. Mother would always say that the pasta water should be as salty as theBay ofNaples
Erren Hart says
Wise woman! 🙂
Sheena MacRory says
This Is such a tasty sauce .
Erren's Kitchen says
Thank you Sheena, I’m so glad you like it 🙂
Natalija R says
Simple, healthy and tasty
Goes to my favourites! Goes perfectly with my gluten free pasta <3
Erren's Kitchen says
Thank you so much Natalija 🙂