| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 1 hr |
| Prep: | 20 min |
| Cook: | 40 min |
| Yield: | 10 to 12 servings |
Ingredients
- 1 cup olive oil, for frying, plus more if needed
- 3 medium eggplants, cut into small dice
- 3 small green zucchini, quartered and cut into 1/4-inch pieces
- 3 small yellow squash, quartered and cut into 1/4-inch pieces
- 2 onions, chopped 1/4-inch pieces
- 6 celery ribs, cut into 1/4-inch slices
- 3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 1 1/2 cups red wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 cup roasted red peppers, thinly sliced
- 1 cup kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
- 1 cup capers
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano leaves
- 2 cups prepared marinara sauce
Instructions
- In a very hot pan, separately cook the vegetables over a medium-high flame with a bit of the olive oil. Cook the onions and the garlic together in the same pan in a little more oil. Set all cooked vegetables aside in a large bowl.
- Make the “agrodolce”: Combine vinegar and sugar in a small saucepan and reduce by half over medium-high heat for 3 to 4 minutes.
- While vegetables are still warm, combine with the roasted peppers, olives, and capers. Pour the “agrodolce” vinegar over the vegetable mixture and toss to coat. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add the chopped herbs and marinara sauce and stir.
- Serve the caponata at room temperature.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 12 servings |
| Calories | 313 |
| Total Fat | 21 g |
| Saturated Fat | 3 g |
| Carbohydrates | 32 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 9 g |
| Sugar | 12 g |
| Protein | 4 g |
| Cholesterol | 1 mg |
| Sodium | 1038 mg |
Reviews
I’ve made this many times over the past few years and it is wonderful every time. Wondering how much would be compromised by oven roasting the veggies to reduce fat calories.
Unbelievably delicious! The flavors meld together in a way that is indescribable. It is my favorite dish to make in the summer using my garden veggies. Absolutely worth the effort. Thank you so much for this recipe!
Too many caponata recipes add shortcuts that hurt the recipe. this is both efficient but also true to this very old Sicilian dish. Add to it Michael Chiarello’s polenta crustini and you have one very delicious and special appetizer.
This is the most amazing caponata ever. I actually broiled the eggplant since I did not have enough burners for all the vegetables. My husband said it was 3 star michelin restaurant quality. He’s French so that says alot!
I say this is the yummiest condiment ever, but honestly I eat it more as a side dish. I serve atop seared rare tuna. I have made this for many friends and the cannot rave about it enough. I agree with the other reviews as to cutting the recipe down by two-thirds. If you want to have some left over make the whole recipe though. Also, a great recipe to can and give as a holiday gift…the vinegar content preserves this well, just make sure to follow normal canning procedure.
I remember as a child .. coming home for lunch and having caponata on crusty Italian bread .. and I never had the recipe until now .. I made this and OMG .. right back to my youth. I used all zucchini (husband doesn’t like eggplant) and it was great.
Absolutely delicious. Makes a huge amount but I wouldn’t change one thing about this recipe.
This recipe is a lot of work because of the chopping and individual cooking of each of the vegetables BUT it is so worth it. I made 1/3 of the recipe because I wanted to try it first before I made such a large amount. Next time I will make the full recipe. It is just delicious. It has the right mix of sweet to sour and everything just seems to go together perfectly. My Grandmother used to make this when I was growing up but every time I tried making it, I just could not get it right. This recipe tastes just like I remember. It would make a delicious topping for bruschetta or used like a relish for cold cut sandwiches. the possibilities are endless. Don’t forget the crusty bread! By the way, I added some crushed red pepper flakes just to give it a little kick.