This is the best pasta alla norma recipe! Even though I say classic in the title, there are a couple of delicious twists. The tomato sauce base is amped up with jarred roasted red peppers and the eggplant is roasted to keep it's texture. It's simple, Italian cooking and a fantastic vegetarian dinner to add to your repertoire.
Hi! How do I not have an eggplant pasta on my site?! Terrible! Better late than never and I know you will love this one. Eggplant (or aubergine) can seem intimidating to use but I promise, it's really easy. It soaks up flavours and sauces so well and amps up a vegetarian pasta sauce to make it a filling main dish.
Pasta Alla Norma is such a classic Sicilian pasta dish and there are a lot of recipes around so I wanted to put my own spin on it. Jarred red peppers are always my secret weapon, they have a smokey flavor that is perfect when blended into a sauce. You could roast your own but I'm all about ease for this one. It's such an easy recipe!
Ingredients:
Eggplant - I used one medium eggplant and roasted the cubes until golden brown, you could use two if you really want it eggplant heavy. It shrinks so much when roasted. See notes below on salting.
Garlic - Fresh garlic cloves always!
Canned tomatoes - Use whole peeled tomatoes. Diced or chopped canned tomatoes are generally slightly inferior. A simple tomato sauce needs the best quality you can find. Canned cherry tomatoes are also a great option.
Jarred roasted red peppers - I used three whole peppers out of a jar. If the brine they are in is super salty then give them a light rinse. Feel free to roast your own but the jarred ones are so easy.
Olives - I LOVE adding olives to a tomato sauce, they add such a pop of flavour. Go for pitted ones so it is easier to eat.
Fresh basil leaves - This dish HAS to be finished with fresh basil. Always toss it through at the last minute before serving as it discolours so quickly.
Dried Italian herbs - Just gives the sauce a little boost in flavour.
Honey - I love using just a touch of honey or sugar in a tomato sauce to balance it out. Totally optional.
Do you need to salt the eggplant?
To salt or not to salt. The main reason eggplants were salted in previous years was to draw out bitterness. Unless your eggplant is really large, it's not necessary anymore.
I still salt to draw out moisture as I find it absorbs less oil when roasting (eggplants are such sponges!) and crisps up better. If you are time poor then absolutely don't worry about it.
Simply sprinkle salt all over the eggplant cubes and leave for 20 minutes then dab water off with a paper towel.
Substitutions and variations
Sauce - To make it even easier feel free to use your favorite marinara sauce! You could also make your own tomato sauce with fresh tomatoes.
Add some spice - You could go more for my Arrabbiata base and add some red pepper flakes to the sauce.
Jarred peppers - A traditional pasta alla norma does not have this but I just love the smoky flavor it brings. Totally leave them out if you are a purist but it does make such a rich tomato sauce using them.
Don't like eggplant? Use any vegetables you like. This is a really delicious base recipe that you could add anything into. Zucchini, broccoli - anything!
Expert tips
- Salting the eggplant - As mentioned above, not compulsory but it does end up a bit crisper and absorbs less oil.
- Undercook dried pasta by a minute from packet instructions so it can finish cooking in the sauce and still be al dente. Check out my guide for cooking the perfect pasta.
- Try and find really good quality canned tomatoes. It makes a huge difference. Make sure they are whole tomatoes and not chopped (the chopped are generally inferior quality). Italian and San Marzano in particular are the best.
How to make this recipe
The full ingredient list, method and a short tutorial video are in the recipe card below.
First steps: Cook your pasta in well salted water (see notes below on that!) once the tomato sauce is cooking. Blitz the tomatoes and red peppers together in a food processor (or with a stick blender).
ONE: Drizzle with olive oil and roast the eggplant on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper until golden brown (about 25 minutes).
TWO: In a large frying pan gently cook the garlic in extra-virgin olive oil for one minute over a medium heat.
THREE: Add the tomato mixture and bring to a gentle simmer. Add the dried herbs, honey, black pepper and a big pinch of salt. Simmer for 15 minutes.
FOUR: Add your cooked pasta and the olives with a splash of pasta water and let it gently bubble away for a couple of minutes.
FIVE: Carefully mix in the roasted eggplant.
SIX: Top with basil right before serving and serve with lots of freshly grated parmesan cheese or pecorino romano.
Are you salting your pasta water enough?
If you can stomach a mouthful of your pasta water, you probably haven't salted it enough! I have learnt a lot about salting water from Samin Nosrat and her book and series Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat.
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For two people I generally use about 1.75L of boiling water and I use about ¾ tablespoon of table salt. Personally, I don't want to waste fancy salt in water. Table salt is generally the saltiest of all salts so if you use something like Diamond Crystal Kosher salt or Maldon, you might need to go closer to 1.5-2 tablespoons.
Experiment with what works for your tastes. I can't stress enough the importance of salting your pasta water. It makes a HUGE difference. Remember, pasta has zero salt in it so seasoning your water is the one chance you have to add some flavour INTO the pasta.
Want to make some fresh pasta to go with it?
I have so many easy to follow guides for making fresh pasta at home. For a classic egg pasta dough my Easy Homemade Pasta Dough is fool proof and works every time. You could cut it into some Homemade Pappardelle.
I think a Potato Gnocchi would be pretty great with this sauce too! You could boil them and pan fry for some added texture too.
Haven't made fresh pasta before?
You've come to the right place! For total pasta beginners, I have two pasta shapes that are SO easy and you don't need a pasta roller. Hand Rolled Pici Pasta is a rustic spaghetti shape that is made from flour, water and olive oil.
The second one I would suggest is my Hand Rolled Gnocchi Sardi. It is made from semolina flour and water and is by far the easiest pasta to make at home.
Recipe FAQs
Anything!! I have used a rigatoni as it's one of my personal faves but long pastas like spaghetti or fettuccine will be delicious. Gnocchi would also be a winner - any type of pasta you love will be great.
Yes! It is such a fantastic option and delicious sauce to make for anyone following a plant based diet. Just skip any parmesan on top.
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for 2 -3 days. This isn't a great one to freeze as eggplant can get a little mushy.
Want some other pasta dish to try?
If you loved this simple eggplant pasta dish than check out my recipe section for all sorts of delicious pasta recipes! For some more tomato based fun I personally love my Tomato and Nduja Pasta or my Tomato and Mushroom Pasta with Pancetta. A slightly more luscious tomato option is my super popular Creamy Tomato Pasta.
Made this pasta recipe and loved it?
I would love love LOVE if you could leave me a review and star rating down below and let me know what you thought! I love to hear any changes or adaptions you have made too. Also if you put a photo on instagram, please tag me so I can see, it makes my day!
Recipe
Best Pasta Alla Norma (classic eggplant pasta)
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Ingredients
- 350 grams pasta
- 1 x eggplant cubed
- 3 tablespoons olive oil divided
- 3 garlic cloves finely chopped/minced
- 2 x 400 gram cans tomatoes
- 1 x jar roasted red peppers I used 3 whole peppers out of a jar
- 1 teaspoon dried Italian herbs
- ¼ - ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ tablespoon honey optional
- 100 grams olives drained weight
- Salt to taste
- Parmesan to serve
- Handful fresh basil leaves to serve
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425f (220c) and line a baking tray with parchment paper.
- See notes below about salting the eggplant. It's up to you and is great either way.
- Drizzle the eggplant with 1.5 tablespoons of olive oil and toss. Sprinkle with black pepper and salt (but don't use salt here if you have salted the eggplant before).
- Roast in the oven for 25 - 30 minutes until golden, tossing half way through.
- In the mean time make the tomato sauce and cook your pasta.
- Blitz the tomatoes and red peppers together in a food processor or with a stick blender.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over a medium heat and add the garlic and cook for a minute.
- Add the tomato mixture and bring to a gentle simmer.
- Add the black pepper, a good pinch of salt, the honey, Italian herbs and simmer for 15 minutes. Cook your pasta during this time.
- Add the cooked pasta in with a splash of pasta water and toss well and then let it gently bubble for a min or two.
- Add the roasted eggplant cubes and toss through very gently.
- Serve with a mountain of freshly grated parmesan and lots of fresh basil leaves.
Jenn says
Absolutely delicious! Thank you for creating these veggie forward recipes. I had to skip the roasted peppers as we’ve an allergy but I did mix in roasted zucchini and topped off with nutritional yeast and of course parmesan at the end as the instructions noted-so yum! As always instructions are a breeze to follow and I’m loving the photos with labels and extra notes at the end! Thank you Emilie!
Anna says
Soooo delicious!!! I’m more of a creamy pasta fan but this won me over
Emilie Pullar says
I am too!! This is actually a tomato sauce I love haha 🙂
Amy Selby says
So so so delicious! Loved the smokey flavour the roasted peppers added to the sauce, it was a simple but perfect flavour combo. The instructions were easy to follow and it was quick enough to make that I will add it to my weeknight cooking rotation. Plus all the ingredients were super affordable!
Emilie Pullar says
Thanks so much Amy!! So glad you loved and thank you so so much for making x