Classic Pasta Alla Norma Recipe (2024)

It is essential NOT to add the eggplants to the sauce before tossing the pasta, otherwise the eggplant flavor will be lost. Instead, first toss the pasta in the tomato sauce and then add the eggplants at the very last moment. In Sicily, some places serve the eggplants separately at the table, only to be added just before eating the pasta. The basil is also best if added raw at the end (before the eggplants), as it loses much flavor when cooked.

Heat your oil to the proper temperature BEFORE you add the eggplant and it will not be absorbed.

Mama Mia
Put all the garlic cloves on my plate if no one else wants them

Eggplant absorbs oil like a sponge. Why not cook the sliced eggplant under the broiler, and then cut into cubes. Much healthier and easier.

Im blessed to be of Sicilian heritage: my grandparents were Sicilian immigrants... they shared their language , food & spirit with me.
re: Pasta "Norma": in today's context, id suggest a lighter touch w/ tomatoes: skip the sauce & simply toss fresh tomatoes into hot drained pasta.. proceed otherwise.
Angela Quartararo would SO approve!

I roasted my eggplant--much easier and healthier with no loss of flavor, especially when you use fresh eggplant and ripe tomatoes from the farmstand and basil picked from the garden. David Tanis never steers me wrong, and his recipes are always a delight to make, simple yet sophisticated and elegant. A summertime delight.

Salt water just after it reaches a boil. (Salted water takes longer to boil.) For more complex-flavored, less oily eggplant, roast until skin begins to blister, drain, dice and finish in tomato sauce (leaving skin on). For crisper eggplant, dip cubes in egg wash, toss with panko and parmesan and dried oregano, and bake until golden. Toss cooked pasta with tomato sauce and top with eggplant. The eggplant's skin is its most nutritious part.

My Sicilian friend (who makes this dish often) tells me no one in Sicily calls it Pasta alla Norma. The just call it pasta with eggplant! Like "penne con melanzane fritte".

You can also use fresh ricotta, it’s even more delicious and creamy. I recommend to try with fresh ricotta.

A recipe that presents proper technique for use of garlic in basic tomato sauce! Thank you! The only instruction missing is to remove and discard the cloves when the sauce is done. Your loved ones and other humans you come across will appreciate!

The simple tomato sauce was delicious. Why so good? don't know. The whole simmered garlic, amount of basil leaves, or was it the higher quality canned tomatoes. Lots of eggplant, and am considering only using 1 lb and not 2 lb. But then, we ate the entire amount, with gusto. Definitely again. Panko lightly browned in olive oil for the crumbs - thanks to a comment below.

I roasted the eggplant in the oven and my family ate it out of the sheet pan and I had to start all over again.

Used one large can of whole peeled tomatoes (that I then crushed) and the sauce was perfectly tomato-y. Roasting the eggplant in the oven is definitely the way to go. So easy. I used fresh, shredded mozzarella and it was amazing. One of the best pastas I've ever made.

I read somewhere that pasta a la Norma is a misnomer for pasta "normale" since eggplant is so pervasive in Sicilian cooking.

this will not take you thirty minutes unless you have 8 arms and incredible dexterity... couldn't find ricotta salata in stores, so I substituted it with a dollop of regular ricotta, which worked fine. I roasted my eggplant because I didn't want the hassle of monitoring it on the stove along with the sauce, the pasta, and the breadcrumbs. The finished project was good, but the eggplant felt more like a textural add, and I wasn't picking up the taste. I used canned tomatoes.

Is the flavor in the room with us? This felt bland. And I don’t know what Emerils are working in the NYT kitchens, but my stove can’t fit a pot for the pasta, a skillet for the eggplant, and a pan for the sauce - I should have baked the eggplant.

Like the best Italian: simple but good. I followed the recipe but used dried basil except for fresh and two small cans of diced tomatoes. Follow the comment tips, e.g. take out the garlic after cooking sauce, make sure the oil is the right temp so it doesn't act like a sponge, add eggplant to sauce toward the end. I used Romano, which worked surprisingly well.

Good with feta!

Followed the recipe, but brushed the eggplant slices with oil, seasoned them, then did them on the grill. Delicious.

I want to reiterate another poster's note: to wit, add the eggplant only at the last minute prior to serving (after tossing the pasta in the sauce).

I thought this dish was very delicious and so easy to make.

I did my eggplant in an air fryer (20 minutes at 400) and it turned out perfectly.

Added one good glug of red wine when adding the tomatoes and it gave the sauce a wonderful depth.Then added one good glug to my glass!

Allow 40 mins. Start eggplant first, and keep pasta water hot. Rao's or other sturdy fusilli take ~16 minutes at 2500' elevation. With five cups of unpeeled tomatoes, the garlic, onion, and basil, the sauce was so flavorful. Two pounds of eggplant added to the tomatoes made four ample servings. Cooked 1/2 pasta and will boil another batch later in the week for this wonderfully fresh, savory sauce. Bellweather ricotta slathers on in soft pillows. Def. add crunchy whole grain breadcrumbs.

A tip from a friend who is a fabulous cook....Best way to prepare eggplant for cooking is to slice, then salt both sides then put in a colander and cover it with paper towel so it will sweat out extra water. May take 5-8 hours or even overnight. Pat those little slices dry and when oil is at the right temperature throw them in!!

Eggplant needs to be in smaller pieces or, preferably, falling apart.

Hi! Recommend lots of olive oil. No need to blot out, minimise, etc. Olive oil is delicious!!! Used lots while cooking the eggplant in a pan in two batches. Saved it all and mixed into the final dish along with the eggplant, with fresh tomatoes and then the pasta. Was luscious, lots of flavoured olive oil, very soft eggplant, fresh tomatoes plus some tomato paste for depth. Served over orecchiette with grated parmesan cheese at the end, a great summer meal! Enjoy!!

It’s possible to pan roast eggplant in a well seasoned cast iron skillet with almost no oil (1/2 tsp) loosely covered with a lid Eggplant soaks up almost any oil you add in and becomes soggy. This way the outside roasts, inside steams a bit. It doesn’t turn into a soggy oily mess.This way if you put everything together at the end and don’t mix the eggplant in the sauce ahead of the pasta, the eggplant keeps its shape and texture really nicely.

I put the eggplant slices on the grill. They come out beautifully.