This caponata recipe is a sweet and savory blend of eggplant, peppers, tomatoes and olives, all simmered together to create a delicious appetizer or side dish option. A unique offering that’s easy to make and is sure to get rave reviews!
When I’m looking for a party snack that everyone will love, I turn to appetizer recipes such as a mezze platter, mini quiches or this vibrant and flavorful eggplant caponata.
Whenever I see caponata on the menu at a restaurant, I have to order it. I just love the complex flavors, especially when served over a piece of toasted bread! I’ve since learned to make this dish from Italy at home, and it happens to be quite simple to put together.
Table of Contents
Caponata Ingredients
To make this recipe, you will need eggplant, olive oil, salt, black pepper, red onion, red bell pepper, celery, garlic, capers, olives, tomatoes, raisins, brown sugar, red wine vinegar, red pepper flakes, pine nuts and fresh herbs.
How Do You Make Caponata?
Start by cutting an eggplant into cubes and roasting it in the oven until golden brown. Heat olive oil in a pan, then add diced red onions, celery and red bell peppers, and cook until the veggies are tender. Next, add the roasted eggplant along with tomatoes, raisins, olives, capers and seasonings. Let everything simmer until the mixture is thickened. Stir in fresh herbs along with toasted pine nuts, then serve or refrigerate for later use. Serve with crusty bread and enjoy!
Tips For the Perfect Dish
- Feel free to prepare this dish up to 3 days in advance. Eggplant relish actually tastes best if you let it sit in the refrigerator for 24 hours. This gives the flavors time to meld.
- You can use any herbs you like to finish the dish. The most common choices are fresh parsley, mint, basil or some combination of those herbs.
- The finished dish should take on an almost jam-like consistency. Don’t be afraid to cook the mixture until you reach the perfect level of thickness.
- You can freeze caponata for up to 2 months. Simply thaw the dish overnight in the fridge, then reheat over low heat on the stove until everything is warm and any excess water has evaporated.
Quick Tip
You can garnish your caponata with extra pine nuts and sprigs of fresh herbs for an elegant presentation.
Recipe FAQs
Caponata is an eggplant dish where this vegetable is browned and combined with other ingredients including tomatoes, onion, celery, olives and capers. This dish always contains a sweet element such as raisins, honey or sugar. Traditionally people would serve caponata as a main course, but in modern times people serve it as a side dish alongside a protein, or as an appetizer with bread.
Caponata and ratatouille contain similar ingredients such as eggplant, tomatoes bell peppers and onions. Ratatouille is served hot as a side dish or vegetarian main course. Caponata is served room temperature or cold as more of a salad or spread, and contains extra ingredients such as raisins, pine nuts and olives.
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How To Serve Caponata
While this dish is most often an appetizer with crostini, I actually like to offer it in numerous ways.
- Pizza: Dress up a plain cheese pizza by adding dollops of caponata over the top after it comes out of the oven.
- Pasta: This dish makes for a great pasta sauce. Toss it with penne or spaghetti and serve as-is or with grilled chicken on top.
- Sandwiches: Create the ultimate vegetarian sandwich by spreading caponata onto an Italian style roll and adding slices of fresh mozzarella and a handful of greens such as arugula.
- Topping: Spoon this eggplant over grilled chicken tenders, sirloin steak or grilled swordfish to make your meal extra special.
This dish is absolutely loaded with flavor, and I find myself making it on a regular basis. It’s just that good!
More Appetizer Recipes
Easy Mini Pizzas
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The Best Veggie Tray
21 mins
Cheese Fries with Bacon
45 mins
Spinach Artichoke Dip
30 mins
Bacon Wrapped Smokies
50 mins
Caponata Video
Love This Recipe?
Please leave a 5-star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 rating in the recipe card below and a review in the comments section further down the page.
Caponata
Ingredients
- 1 pound eggplant cut into 3/4 inch pieces
- 6 tablespoons olive oil divided use
- salt and pepper to taste
- 3/4 cup red onion diced
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 1/2 cup celery diced
- 1 teaspoon garlic minced
- 1/4 cup green olives chopped
- 2 tablespoons capers drained
- 1 1/4 cups canned crushed tomatoes do not drain
- 1/4 cup golden raisins
- 2 teaspoons brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes or more to taste
- 1/4 cup pine nuts toasted
- 2 tablespoons chopped herbs such as parsley, mint or basil
- cooking spray
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Coat a sheet pan with cooking spray.
- Place the eggplant on the sheet pan in a single layer. Drizzle with 3 tablespoons of the olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes or until eggplant is tender and browned.
- While the eggplant is in the oven, warm the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large pan over medium heat.
- Add the red onion, red bell pepper and celery to the pan. Cook for 5-7 minutes or until vegetables are tender.
- Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
- Add the olives, capers, raisins, brown sugar, red wine vinegar, red pepper flakes and tomatoes. Stir to combine.
- Add the cooked eggplant to the pan. Stir and bring to a simmer.
- Cook for 10-15 minutes or until mixture has thickened and has a jam-like consistency. Stir in the pine nuts and chopped herbs. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve hot, at room temperature, or you can refrigerate it and serve it cold. Caponata will stay fresh in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Notes
- This dish can be made up to 3 days before you plan to serve it, and it actually tastes best if you let it sit in the refrigerator for 24 hours. This gives the flavors time to meld.
- You can use any herbs you like to finish the dish. The most common choices are parsley, mint, basil or some combination of those herbs.
- The finished dish should take on an almost jam-like consistency. Don’t be afraid to cook the mixture until you reach the perfect level of thickness.
perfect appetizer, Thanks for this amazing one.
This was a delicious appetizer! Loved it with cheese on a cracker!
This is such a great Caponata recipe! 10/10 recommend!
I never had this dish before and it looked so good I had to try it! Thank you for this yummiest! I really enjoyed it!
The combination of eggplant, tomatoes, and sweet and sour flavors was absolutely delicious. It’s the perfect dish for a summer gathering or just a cozy night in.
I love eggplant and loved this tasty recipe too!
This was very yummy! I served it with pita chips.
I’m always looking for new recipes for eggplant, so I’m super happy to have found this one. It looks amazing and I can’t wait to make it.
This came just in time! I was looking for a way to cook up my eggplant. Loved how easy and delicious this was.
I have all the ingredients for this recipe — cannot wait to try it at home!
Oh I love caponata but I’ve never made it at home. I can’t wait to try this with dinner this week!
This is my first time hearing about Caponata and I LOVE it – so tasty and love all the textures of the veggies in it!
I was just thinking of this recipe when I stumbled across it on pinterest. Can’t wait to make it!
LOVE caponata! This recipe is the perfect combination of flavors and veggies. One of my favorite appetizers ever. YUM!
I just love caponata, but I have never tried to make my own before! I will have to try this recipe soon. 🙂
My hubby and I are going to love this recipe! Perfect for little get togethers! So excited! Looks so delicious and very tasty!
This is so flavorful and went well with our chicken dinner! I’m going to use the leftovers in a sandwich tomorrow like you suggested! Great recipe!