Eggplant that look like tomatoes
Stuffed Rotonda red eggplant are now an essential dish in our home.
The first time, I discovered them last summer while shopping at a local farm.
I wanted to try them because, I was too curious to discover the taste of these eggplant, which look a lot like tomatoes.
The Rotonda red eggplant received the DOP mark recognition in 2007, its production takes place mainly in some municipalities in the province of Potenza, including Rotonda, where it seems it was brought by some war veterans returning from Africa, to the beginning of the last century.
The taste of Rotonda DOP red eggplant is spicy and bitter on the finish.
Due to this peculiarity, the Rotonda eggplant is not appreciated by everyone.
But how do you cook Rotonda’s red eggplant?
To tell the truth, this eggplant is suitable for many preparations, it is excellent breaded and fried, grilled on the plate, or sautéed with other vegetables.
I definitely prefer it stuffed with rice.
Yes, because, as they say, even the eye wants its part.
Its rounded shape and small size make it perfect for serving a delicious first course with a really nice appearance.
Your guests will be pleasantly impressed and will have the impression of eating small morsels of rice.
So … Get the recipe and prepare them …
How to prepare stuffed Rotonda red eggplant
After washing the eggplant, dip them in boiling water for a few minutes to soften them slightly.
Let them cool for a moment then proceed by cutting the caps and emptying them.
Slightly salt the pulp and the inside of the eggplant, put the latter upside down to drain them for half an hour.
Cut the buffalo mozzarella into small pieces and leave it in a colander to drain.
Cook the rice in boiling water and toss the eggplant pulp in a pan with oil and garlic.
When the pulp is golden brown, add the chopped tomatoes, basil, a pinch of salt and pepper, let it cook for a few minutes and then remove the garlic.
Drain the rice ‘al dente’ and toss it in a pan with the vegetables for a minute.
With the fire off, add the pecorino, mix well and add salt if necessary.
Fill half of the eggplant with rice, add a little mozzarella and cover with more rice.
Sprinkle the surface with pecorino, arrange them in a baking dish and bake them without the caps for about 15 minutes at 180 °.
After this time, place the caps on the eggplant and continue cooking for another 5-10 minutes.
Anna’s advice
The quantities of the filling are indicative because the size of the eggplant also varies a lot.
To decide the amount of filling, I adjusted in this way: I weighed the pulp of the eggplant (they were 150 grams) and I cooked half the weight of rice (75 grams).
I am always very generous with pecorino and buffalo mozzarella😄
You can add a little buffalo mozzarella on the surface, in the last few minutes of cooking, before covering them with the caps.
A very tasty variant provides a filling consisting of … Stir-fried eggplant pulp with small pieces of potatoes, onion or shallot, salt, pepper and a pinch of nutmeg.
I let it cool and add an egg, some pecorino and a generous grating of caciocavallo.
Then I mix and stuff the eggplant, then bake for 20-25 minutes at 180 ° …
I honestly can’t say which of the two versions is the best.
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For a greedy and unusual first course we suggest you also try our version of risotto with speck, apples and cheese or the cabbage rolls with sausage and rice .
And if you like, take a look at Paolone’s Youtube channel too … Thanks friends! 😉
