Caponata Recipe: Sicilian Sweet and Sour Aubergine Stew

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This caponata recipe gives you Sicily’s best-loved sweet and sour aubergine stew. You fry cubes of aubergine until golden. Then you toss them with celery, onion, tomato, green olives and capers. A splash of vinegar and a little sugar pull the flavours together. The dish takes about an hour, and it tastes even better the next day.

What Is Caponata?

Caponata is a cooked vegetable dish from Sicily. Italians call it an antipasto or a contorno, which means a starter or a side dish. Many Sicilians also eat it as a light main course with good bread. You serve it cold or at room temperature, never piping hot.

The heart of the dish is agrodolce. That word means sweet and sour. Vinegar gives the sour note, and sugar gives the sweet one. Salty olives and capers balance both. The result is bold, bright and rich all at once.

Nobody agrees on where the name comes from. Some food writers link it to caupona, an old Latin word for a tavern. Others say the first versions used capone, a Sicilian word for a fish, and the vegetable version came later. We cannot settle that argument here. What we do know is that every Sicilian family has an opinion on how to make it.

If you like Sicilian food, you will enjoy our arancini recipe with saffron and ragù. Both dishes show how Sicily mixes sweet, salty and sharp flavours.

Caponata Recipe Ingredients

This caponata recipe serves six as a starter or side dish. Buy the best olive oil and the ripest tomatoes you can find. In a dish with so few ingredients, quality matters.

• 3 large aubergines (about 900 g), cut into 2 cm cubes
• Fine salt
• About 150 ml olive oil, for frying, plus 2 tablespoons for the sauce
• 1 large red onion, thinly sliced
• 3 celery stalks, sliced 1 cm thick, plus a few tender leaves
• 400 g tin of chopped tomatoes, or 500 g ripe fresh tomatoes, chopped
• 80 g green olives, stoned and roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoons capers, rinsed (if you use salted capers, soak them first)
• 50 g raisins
• 40 g pine nuts
• 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1½ tablespoons sugar
• A small handful of fresh basil leaves

How to Make Caponata

Step 1: Salt and Dry the Aubergine

Put the aubergine cubes in a colander. Sprinkle them with a good teaspoon of salt and toss. Leave them for 30 minutes. The salt draws out bitter juices and water. Pat the cubes dry with a clean tea towel. Dry aubergine soaks up less oil and browns better.

Step 2: Fry the Aubergine

Heat about 4 tablespoons of the oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add a single layer of aubergine. Fry for 6 to 8 minutes, turning often, until the cubes turn deep golden and soft inside. Lift them out with a slotted spoon onto kitchen paper. Fry the rest in batches, adding oil as needed. Do not crowd the pan, or the aubergine will steam and turn grey.

Step 3: Cook the Sauce

1. Wipe out the pan. Add 2 tablespoons of fresh olive oil and warm it over medium heat.
2. Add the onion and celery. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring now and then, until soft but not brown.
3. Stir in the tomatoes. Simmer for 10 minutes, until the sauce thickens.
4. Add the olives, capers and raisins. Cook for 2 minutes more.

Step 4: Add the Sweet and Sour

Return the aubergine to the pan. Pour in the vinegar and sprinkle over the sugar. Stir gently so the cubes keep their shape. Cook for 5 minutes. Taste the sauce. It should taste sweet first, then sharp, then salty. If it tastes flat, add a splash more vinegar. If it bites too hard, add a pinch more sugar.

Step 5: Toast the Pine Nuts and Finish

Toast the pine nuts in a dry pan over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Shake the pan often, because they burn fast. Stir most of them into the caponata and keep a few for the top. Let the dish cool to room temperature. Tear over the basil and the celery leaves just before you serve.

Two Ways to Make Caponata in Sicily

Sicilians love to debate the right way to cook this dish. Two styles come up most often.

• The Palermo style uses olives, capers, celery and often raisins and pine nuts. This is the version in our recipe.
• The Catania style often leaves out the raisins and pine nuts. Some cooks add sweet peppers for extra colour and softness.

Some cooks fry each vegetable separately. They add everything to the sauce at the end. That method gives you more texture, but it takes longer. Others cook everything in one pot. The dish is softer that way, and the flavours blend more. Try both. You will soon find your own favourite.

Tips for the Best Caponata

• Use firm, shiny aubergines. Old ones turn bitter and spongy.
• Fry in batches. A crowded pan gives you pale, oily cubes.
• Do not stir too hard. You want chunks, not mush.
• Make it a day ahead. The flavours need time to settle. The sharpness of the vinegar softens overnight.
• Taste before you serve. Cold food needs a little more seasoning than warm food, so check the salt and vinegar again.

How to Serve Caponata

Take the caponata out of the fridge about 30 minutes before you eat. Cold dulls the flavour. Here are a few classic ways to serve it:

• On toasted, crusty bread as crostini, with a drizzle of olive oil.
• As part of an antipasto spread with cheese, cured meats and olives.
• Beside grilled fish, such as swordfish or sea bream.
• Tossed through warm pasta for a quick supper.
• Stuffed into a roll with a slice of fresh mozzarella.

Good bread matters here. Try our Ligurian focaccia recipe to scoop up every last drop. For a warming meal on a cold evening, serve the caponata next to our pasta e fagioli.

How to Store Caponata

Spoon the cooled caponata into a clean airtight container. It keeps in the fridge for up to five days. Cover the top with a thin layer of olive oil to protect it. Do not freeze it. The aubergine turns watery when it thaws.

Olive oil makes all the difference in a dish like this. If you want to taste the new season’s oil in Italy, read our guide to the olive harvest and olio nuovo.

Caponata Recipe FAQ

What does caponata taste like?

Caponata tastes sweet, sour and salty at the same time. The aubergine is soft and rich, the celery adds crunch, and the olives and capers add a salty kick. Our caponata recipe leans slightly sweet, thanks to the raisins.

Do you eat caponata hot or cold?

You eat it at room temperature or slightly chilled. Warm caponata tastes heavy and oily. Cooling it lets the vinegar and sugar settle, so the flavours come through.

Why is my caponata bitter?

Bitter caponata usually means the aubergine was old or you skipped the salting step. Choose small, glossy aubergines and salt them for 30 minutes. A pinch more sugar at the end can also help.

Can I make caponata without frying the aubergine?

Yes. Toss the cubes in oil and roast them at 200°C (180°C fan) for 25 to 30 minutes, turning once. The caponata is lighter, but it lacks the deep, golden flavour of fried aubergine.

You Might Also Enjoy

• Arancini Recipe: Sicilian Rice Balls With Saffron and Ragù
• Osso Buco Recipe: Milan’s Braised Veal Shanks with Gremolata
• Cantucci Recipe: Authentic Tuscan Almond Biscotti

Plan Your Italy Trip

Ready to taste Sicilian food where it began? Start with our ultimate Italy travel guide and plan your trip region by region. You can also read the planning hub for your trip to Italy.

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