Rigatoni With Eggplant, Peppers, and Tomatoes

  4.3 – 17 reviews  • Italian

Yum! Crispy bagel chips that go well with soup, salads, dips, or just on their own! Use your imagination and add any of your preferred seasonings. Very addictive for those who prefer “salty, crunchy” foods!

Prep Time: 30 mins
Cook Time: 30 mins
Total Time: 1 hr
Servings: 6
Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

  1. 2 tablespoons olive oil
  2. 2 eggplants, diced with skin
  3. 1 red bell pepper, sliced
  4. 2 cloves garlic, minced
  5. salt and black pepper to taste
  6. 1 tablespoon olive oil
  7. 6 tomatoes – peeled, seeded, and chopped
  8. 1 sprig fresh thyme, chopped
  9. 1 pound rigatoni pasta
  10. 12 basil leaves, chopped
  11. 12 black olives, sliced

Instructions

  1. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the diced eggplant in the hot oil, stirring frequently, until lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Stir in the red pepper and garlic; season with salt and pepper. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and cook until the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes.
  2. Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir in the chopped tomatoes, and bring to a simmer; season with fresh thyme, salt, and pepper. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until the tomatoes have reduced slightly, about 15 minutes.
  3. bring a large pot of lightly-salted water to a boil; stir in the rigatoni and cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, until tender but still firm to the bite, about 13 minutes. Drain and return to the pot.
  4. Stir the eggplant mixture into the pasta along with the basil and olives. Spoon the tomato sauce overtop to serve.

Reviews

Jeffrey Garcia
I put it on top of cooked spaghetti squash so less carbs! Delicious!!!
Melissa Webb
I did not have fresh thyme or basil so I used dried. Very good and light. Great summer pasta!!!
Zachary Lynch
I did not have fresh thyme or basil so I used dried. Very good and light. Great summer pasta!!!
Samantha Murray
Wonderful recipe. I add some of my homemade Italian seasoning and a splash of white wine to the tomato sauce; it just seems to want it!
Eric Stewart
I really enjoyed this, it was easy to make and I plan on eating it often. I chose to not cook the tomatoes separately. I also used a little (lot of) extra garlic. Some of the people who commented that it was flavorless perhaps weren’t as generous with the garlic.
Christina Stafford
Wonderful! (Once I omitted the eggplant) 🙂
Eric Meyer
Could have been beteer with lots more seasoning, garlic, salt, etc. Truly lacked flavor. My husband felt the same. i feel like I really had to cover it with Romano to give it the zip we were looking for. I’ll keep looking for a similar dish.
Thomas Rich
Okay I made a few minor changes. I used whole wheat penne and green olives instead of black..the rest was followed spot on. Nice little pasta side dish for us! My family doesn’t even care for eggplant but they ate this and didn’t complain at all! Thanks!
Adam Walker
This is a great recipe for those with extra tomatoes, peppers and especially eggplant. I made a few changes. Cooked eggplant in cast iron skillet along with peppers and garlic. I did add 2 tablespoons of tomato paste to the fresh tomatoes to thicken it up a bit since i didn’t have 6 tomatoes and made do with 2 large and 14 cherry tomatoes. I think the eggplant is outstanding and the dish works! I also substituted a tablespoon hot chili oil for one of the 2 tablespoons used in the eggplant browning but that’s just to our taste…
Brittany Lee
OMG. i was great i used can tomatoes. and dried herbs. it was simplemente delicioso!!
Barbara Smith
Flavor simply lacked. I ALMOST went with one medium eggplant, but decided that it just didn’t look like it would be enough. so i added a second small-medium one, which i believe game me a good proportion with the full pound of pasta. given some of the other reviews, i think that the “seasoning” ingredients needs to be increased. i also used two cans of diced tomatoes instead of fresh, simply becasue it was on hand. it was a solid meal, and i could see the potential for greatness. i also topped it with some fresh Parmesan which was a big help. i also feel that it will most likely make a great cold leftover. DEFINITE for giving a second try. 🙂
Tracy Davis
Delicious and very easy. The cooking time for the eggplant seemed a little long though.
William Miller
This was very easy to make. The only thing I would change is not using as many red peppers as it over powered the eggplant a bit. I would probably add mushrooms to this too.
Rachael Johnson
This was kinda like a vege spaghetti. Simple to make, but nothing spectacular.
Peter Burns
Loved it. Made it with one good size eggplant and kept the rest amounts the same. Used canned tomatoes since I was short on tomatoes. Had to use dry herbs as well…so I figure if it is this good with these changes, the fresh ingredients could only be better. Thanks for the great recipe to use my eggplant and red pepper without a lot of cheese.
Tricia Davidson
I made this for two,I used one eggplant, kept the garlic, red pepper and basil the same, as they are ingredients we tend to add extra when cooking anyway. I didn’t have fresh tomatoes, so I used one can of diced tomatoes. I also sprinkled some parmesan cheese over the eggplant mixture in the pan.Served over ziti,as it was what I had on hand and I lightly sprinkled some grated parmesan cheese over the tomato sauce mixture. It’s a good summer recipe for eggplant and not heavy like eggplant dishes with a lot of cheese.
Patricia Walton
I was looking for a way to use our eggplant and other vegetable harvest from the garden and found this recipe. I didn’t leave the skin on the eggplant because I didnt’ know how that would taste, so I guess that’s why my eggplant cooked so quickly. I removed it from the pan early and let the peppers continue to cook. I also added a little red onion to the eggplant mixture and the tomatoes. I was surprised at how delicious this was. My husband and I loved it. The olives and basil really added a nice touch. Whenver I have pasta I always top it off with pecorino romano cheese. I also added a couple of hungarian hot wax peppers which gave it some zip. This meal was so easy and used up all the vegetables my husband picked in the garden yesterday!

 

Leave a Comment