One-pot pasta in spicy feta tomato sauce with arugula and roasted dehydrated eggplant

Ingredients for 3 servings:

• 3 large eggplants, approx. 300 g each
• 75 g arugula
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp olive oil, for frying
• some oil, neutral
• 300 g pasta, e.g. E.g. fusilli or rigatoni
• 3 shallots
• 5 garlic cloves
• 150 g feta cheese, made from sheep’s milk
• 600 ml vegetable stock
• 300 ml water
• 600 ml tomatoes, pureed
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 2 tbsp raw cane sugar
• ¼ tsp chili flakes
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• n. B. Pfeffer

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Rest time approx. 30 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 25 minutes; Total time approx. 1 hour 25 minutes

vegetarian

Wash the eggplants and then cut into approximately 1.5 cm cubes. Place the cubes in a bowl with the salt and mix well. To ensure the eggplant loses a lot of water quickly, line a plate with unbleached coffee filters, lightly brush them with neutral oil, and then spread the eggplant cubes flat on top. Place the plate on the turntable in the microwave uncovered at 900 watts for about 10-11 minutes. Because raw eggplants are very bulky, you can only dehydrate one eggplant at a time. Remove the eggplant cubes from the microwave and return them to the bowl. While the eggplants are in the microwave, wash the arugula and spin dry. Peel and finely dice the shallots. Peel and press or finely chop the garlic. Cut the feta cheese into small cubes. Heat the olive oil for the eggplant in a large non-stick pan and roast the eggplant cubes over medium heat for about 5-6 minutes. The dehydrated eggplant cubes now require hardly any fat for frying, as they have lost their spongy texture and can therefore hardly absorb any more fat. Because they are no longer in the water, they quickly turn a roasted brown rather than mushy, and are full of flavor. Then add about 3/4 of the arugula to the pan and let it collapse briefly. Return the contents of the pan to the bowl and set aside. Now heat the olive oil for the sauce in the pan and sauté the shallots and garlic over medium heat for about three minutes. Add the tomato paste and raw cane sugar and roast briefly. Deglaze with the vegetable stock and water. Add the passata, red wine vinegar, and chili flakes, and bring to a boil. Now add the raw pasta and let everything cook, covered, for about 10 minutes. Then sprinkle about 2/3 of the feta cheese over the pasta and stir uncovered for about two more minutes until the cheese has melted and the pasta is al dente. Finally, add the fried eggplant cubes and arugula back to the pan and heat briefly. Season with pepper. If you like it spicier, add a little more chili flakes. When serving, garnish with the remaining arugula and sprinkle with the remaining feta cheese cubes. Note: There should be enough salt at the end. The feta cheese contains salt, and the salt from the eggplant isn’t completely gone. For this reason, I diluted the vegetable broth with water. You can add more salt at the end if desired. Notes on making the dehydrated eggplant: The salted eggplant cubes lose about half their weight in a relatively short time in the microwave due to the properties of the microwave and the osmotic effect of the salt. This is much faster than the long drying process in the oven and is also much more effective than simply dehydrating with salt. The cubes are shriveled afterward, but still dry, and deliver the pure flavor of the eggplant. If the microwave only has a power of less than 900 watts, it will take longer. The coffee filters absorb the dripping water, and the rest evaporates in the cooking chamber. To prevent the cubes from sticking to the filter, it is better to lightly oil the filter beforehand. Kitchen paper doesn’t work well, and if the kitchen paper has prints on it, the heat could transfer the color to the eggplant. If you stack the raw eggplant cubes too high, the bottom cubes won’t be able to release their water as well, and the result will be less attractive. Therefore, when cooking larger quantities, it is better to plan for multiple cycles and time, and perhaps prepare the cubes before later use in the dish. The recipe specifies the dehydration in the microwave as a resting time, not a cooking time.