So happy to have the opportunity to be an ambassador of Sicilian Culinary Heritage for this TV channel.
Making Caponata from our Farm for Arte Channell was a beautiful experience, a big responsibility considering how important is this dish for Sicilians. Just to have an idea there are officially 36 different Caponata recipes in Sicily from the forbidden Peppers on it (Classical Palermo School) to add some chocolate in Modica area to the never-ending debate about whether to use garlic or onion
Where did Caponata come from?
Perhaps the name can help us find its origin. In Sicily, there is a fish called Capone, also known as Mahi Mahi fish. It seems that this sauce was created to enhance the flavor of the meat of this beautiful, yet sometimes boring dish. However, it appears that there is no fish in the official Caponata recipe.
As is often the case, we can find some answers in one of the most important food revolution times for this island – the Arabic era. With them, the first aubergines (US eggplant) were imported, and for poor people who couldn’t afford fish, it looked like a valid alternative. Just elaborating more and more on the sauce with aubergine took the place of the fish, and Caponata became the dish that everybody now knows.
Ingredients 4 persons:
- 300gr Eggplant
- 300gr Peppers
- 50gr Green Olives (entire)
- 1 Onion
- 200gr Tomato Sauce (Passata)
- 20gr pinouts
- 1 Tblsp Sultanas
- 1 Tblsp Salty Capers
- 1 Cellery
- 5 glass red vinegar
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 Tea Spoon Sugar
- Salt and Pepper
and that’s it Caponata. A masterpiece of Sicilian culinary culture, you want to do this with us, plan a visit to Sicily or stay connected for our Online Cooking class, Buon Appetito!