Stuffed eggplant (melanzane ripiene)

This classic Italian recipe for stuffed, crumbed and pan-fried eggplant makes a great accompaniment to roast chook or pan-fried veal. You could also serve it with steamed green beans for a perfect vegetarian meal or at room temperature as part of an antipasto. Choose eggplants with firm and glossy skin which are heavy for their size.

• serves

  4–6

• prep

  25 minutes

• cook

  40 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 1 kg small eggplants (2 halves per serve) 
• 2 cups breadcrumbs
• 1 cup grated pecorino cheese with black pepper
• 2 eggs
• salt and pepper
• garlic
• continental parsley
• olive oil

Cooling time 20 minutes

Instructions

Remove stems and cut the eggplants in half. Place them in a large pot of water and bring to the boil. Simmer for about 20 minutes. Remove when flesh is soft, drain and leave to cool. 

With a small spoon, carefully remove all the flesh from each half of the eggplant, leaving the skin intact. Place the pulp in a colander to drain off excess water. To the eggplant pulp, add crushed garlic, breadcrumbs, pecorino cheese, eggs, chopped parsley, salt and pepper to taste. Mix well.

Adjust the consistency by adding more breadcrumbs or cheese to the mixture if too moist, another egg if too dry.

Fill the skins with mixture and shallow fry both sides of each half in hot oil. Any leftover stuffing can be shaped into a pattie and fried separately. Drain on absorbent paper.  

They can be served hot or cold.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.