Eggplant Pasta
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Eggplant Pasta, or Pasta alla Norma, is an easy vegetarian dinner that tosses roasted eggplant and pasta noodles in a well-seasoned tomato sauce. Simple, savory, and cheesy, this 40-minute weeknight meal has it all!
This Roasted Eggplant Pasta is an easy meatless meal that tosses roasted eggplant cubes and rigatoni pasta in marinara sauce seasoned with Italian seasonings and sautéed aromatics. So simple and so delicious, it’s ready to eat in about 40 minutes!
As much as I love making my vegan eggplant parmesan for comforting Sunday dinners, I wanted to create something even easier. That’s why I used mostly store-bought ingredients for this recipe—the flavors are still there, but I’m able to get it on the table much faster.
As a bonus, this recipe is still a lot like the traditional Sicilian pasta dish, pasta alla Norma (eggplant and pasta in tomato sauce). It just happens to be seriously simple!
Why you’ll love this family favorite recipe!
- SO good: This delicious and healthy 40-minute meal is full of fresh and bright Italian flavors.
- Vegetarian: And easy to make gluten-free and vegan.
- Make it ahead: You can make the sauce ahead of time and freeze it for a quick dinner that’s easy to reheat!
Ingredients
Eggplant – You’ll need two medium- to large-sized eggplants. Make sure they feel firm and don’t have many or any skin blemishes. Dicing the eggplant into cubes helps them roast faster in the oven, but you can always grill the cubes in a grill basket if you prefer.
Pasta – I like rigatoni pasta noodles, but you can use any pasta you have on hand. Make this dish gluten-free by using lentil, brown rice, or bean-based noodles instead.
Italian seasoning – Use a store-bought Italian seasoning mix to keep this recipe quick and easy.
Marinara sauce – I went with jarred tomato sauce. It’s given a boost with a handful of aromatics and simple seasonings to still give you a filling and tasty sauce.
Ricotta – An optional add-in that’ll make the tomato sauce nice and creamy. If you can’t find ricotta cheese, use a mixture of parmesan and mozzarella cheese instead.
Instructions
Step 1: Season the eggplant. Place the cubed eggplant on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to coat.
Step 2: Roast. Roast the eggplant in the oven until the cubes are golden and soft. Set them aside.
Step 3: Cook the pasta. Cook the rigatoni in a large pot of boiling salted water until it’s al dente. Reserve 1/4 cup of pasta cooking water before draining the rest.
Step 4: Make the sauce. Sauté the onion, garlic, Italian seasoning, and salt in a large skillet. Pour in the reserved pasta water and marinara sauce, then heat to a simmer. Stir in the roasted eggplant, then add the cooked pasta. Toss until everything is coated in the sauce.
Step 5: Serve. Divide the eggplant rigatoni into serving bowls and garnish with fresh basil and parmesan. Enjoy!
Tips and FAQs
- That reserved pasta cooking water is like liquid gold. It’s super starchy, which helps thicken the marinara sauce and stick to the pasta noodles. There’s just no comparison to regular tap water.
- Roasting the eggplant cubes is crucial to this pasta dish. It takes longer than pan-frying, but the flavors become deeper because the natural sugars are given more time to caramelize. Don’t skip this part!
- Always salt the pasta water before adding the pasta to start the seasoning process right from the beginning.
My Pro Tip
Recipe Tip
If you love creamy, salty, and cheesy pasta, don’t skip the ricotta. Stir it into the pasta sauce right before adding the eggplant.
Variations
- Veggie add-in ideas: Grape tomatoes, roasted broccoli, lentil meatballs, or mushrooms are all welcome in the marinara.
- For a protein boost: Beef up your pasta with cooked ground beef, turkey, or chicken, or top each bowl with chicken meatballs or turkey meatballs.
- Vegan option: This recipe is naturally vegan as long as you leave out the ricotta cheese and serve it with vegan parmesan cheese.
Serving suggestions
The wholesome flavors in this eggplant pasta make it easy to pair with lots of side dishes, like sautéed asparagus or this impressive tomato burrata salad. Whatever you do, make sure you include some bread on the side. My savory zucchini bread is always a good choice, but you can never go wrong with freshly baked garlic bread, either.
Some eggplant pasta recipes will have you sprinkle a generous amount of salt over the raw eggplant to draw out its bitter flavor. That isn’t necessary in this recipe since we’re roasting the eggplant. By seasoning it with a little salt, pepper, and oil, it becomes deeply flavorful and savory in the oven.
It’s up to you! Eggplant skin is edible, but it may taste bitter depending on how large the eggplant is. If your eggplants are on the larger side, you can peel them to avoid the bitterness or opt for smaller eggplants (with the skin on).
Storage
Refrigerator: This eggplant pasta keeps best if the pasta and sauce are stored separately. Place the cooked pasta into one airtight container and your sauce into another. Refrigerate for up to 5 days.
Freezer: Store the eggplant pasta sauce in an airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw the leftovers in the fridge overnight.
Reheating: When you’re ready to enjoy this savory dish, boil some fresh pasta, heat the sauce on the stovetop, and then combine the two!
More easy vegetarian dinners
If you made this recipe, be sure to leave a comment and star rating below. Thanks!
Eggplant Pasta
Ingredients
- 2 eggplant, diced (divide onto 2 baking sheets lined with parchment)
- ¼ cup olive oil, divided
- Salt and pepper
- 16 oz. rigatoni pasta
- 1 cup onion, diced (½ large onion or 1 small onion)
- 3 garlic cloves
- ½ tsp italian seasoning
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ cup water
- 24 oz. marinara sauce
- Optional: ½ cup ricotta to make it creamy, add in with sauce before adding eggplant
- Fresh basil for garnish
- Freshly grated parmesan for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450°F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Dice the eggplant into 1” cubes and place it on the baking sheets. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of olive oil overtop, then sprinkle with salt and pepper and use your hands to toss.
- Roast the eggplant in the oven for 25-30 minutes, tossing halfway through, until golden and soft; set aside.
- While the eggplant is roasting, bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the pasta according to the package instructions.
- Heat the remaining olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat, then add the onion and sauté for 3-4 minutes. Add the garlic, Italian seasoning and salt and sauté for an additional minute.
- Next, pour in the water and marinara sauce and bring the sauce to a simmer. Transfer the roasted eggplant to the sauce and gently stir together, then add the cooked pasta and repeat the same process.
- Serve pasta as-is or topped with fresh basil and parmesan cheese. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Agree that the eggplant requires additional cooking, but liked the flavors a lot. I love how chunky the eggplant is, compared to a pureed version. I added some plant-based sausage to increase protein levels, but definitely a keeper~
Thanks Maria! Glad you enjoyed the pasta!
This recipe needs more olive oil, marinara sauce, Italian seasonings, Parmesan cheese and for the eggplant to be cooked much longer. Also i think I would purée the eggplant to make this pasta creamier and more easily cook the eggplant.