Pasta alla Norma from Ottolenghi Simple (page 184) by Yotam Ottolenghi

Where’s the full recipe - why can I only see the ingredients?

Always check the publication for a full list of ingredients. An Eat Your Books index lists the main ingredients and does not include 'store-cupboard ingredients' (salt, pepper, oil, flour, etc.) - unless called for in significant quantity.

Notes about this recipe

  • Eat Your Books

    Can substitute ricotta salata cheese for pecorino Romano cheese.

  • lena_r0jk5n on April 10, 2026

    Delicious! For everyone saying their eggplant was burning - I just flipped mine to check on them every 15 min or so to make sure they were good and they got a really lovely deep toasted color. I think baking them long enough is what gives the dish lots of its flavor!

  • eclairea on September 25, 2025

    Eggplant took longer than expected to bake as I have a small oven, but everything came together quickly after that. Found ricotta salata as recommended and it elevated the dish. So good, can’t wait to make again.

  • AmomentOfMusic on July 28, 2025

    This is a lovely recipe that really lives up to the promise of this book: simple, quick and delicious. A weeknight hero that has quickly entered into our regular rotation

  • FoodyFocus1 on June 02, 2025

    Absolutely delicious. Will be added to the regular menu in this household

  • Stephenn31 on April 08, 2025

    Pretty good. The eggplant gets a bit of a nutty or meaty flavour with the baking and cheese.

  • sosayi on September 11, 2024

    So good! Also made a fresh passata in place of using canned tomatoes, which thickened up perfectly. One other change: I peeled the whole eggplant, which made the eggplant melt more into the dish to trick the children into eating it all without complaint! Would make again.

  • kkmatti on August 18, 2024

    Glad I took the advice of all of these other reviewers and made this recipe! We loved this. The eggplant is super meaty and the flavors married well. I only had 2/3 of the pasta called for in this recipe and that actually seemed like the correct amount. We also used a fresh passata in place of the tomatoes, which was really lovely. Will absolutely make this again.

  • crandall57 on August 11, 2024

    Absolutely delicious! Roasting the eggplant is key for this dish. I used pecorrino romano cheese and gluten free pasta. I replaced the dried chile with some Aleppo pepper flakes and dried chili flakes. I also added about 1/2 a teaspoon of black garlic powder.

  • mooo42 on June 13, 2024

    Really great! Used a 32 oz can of crushed fire roasted tomatoes, added some spoonfuls of capers, and used parsley instead of basil. Would definitely make again.

  • Ishie1013 on January 23, 2024

    Wow! This was the first time I've ever had Pasta alla Norma, and it shall not be the last. I was a bit skeptical of how few ingredients there were and what they were, but it came together absolutely beautifully and tastes incredible. A great way to pack a lot of veggies into a small portion.

  • sosayi on September 21, 2023

    Echoing the other comments that this is a fabulous version of Pasta alla Norma. I roasted eggplant w/ zucchini and Italian frying peppers (since I only had one eggplant), which was I would repeat again. Loved the addition of the huge bundle of fresh oregano to the simmering sauce. I didn't even have basil to add at the end, but it was still wildly flavorful and a huge hit all around.

  • Delys77 on January 05, 2023

    Despite not having a huge collection of books, I have 6 recipes for this dish and this is the second I have made, the other being from Jamie's Italy. Both are very good but I will give the edge to this one. Very nice balance of flavours, most especially the smoky element from the roasted eggplant. I used rotini, as those are my son's favourite, and it worked very well. I didn't brush and tossed as suggested and it worked fine for me. I will admit to using garlic oil in addition to the garlic, plus some zucchini to add a bit more vegetable. The result was pungent with garlic, smoky with eggplant, with a great balance of acidity from the tomato. Big winner.

  • Skamper on June 16, 2022

    If you roast the eggplant in advance, this is an easy and delicious weeknight meal. One indian red chili, unseeded, provided the right stealth heat for us. I used banza penne.

  • dc151 on September 12, 2021

    I've made this twice now. This worked so much better with smaller eggplants, which caramelized so much better and made for a wonderful raghu. Used with a fusilli. Lovely! Edited to add I made this tonight with Chinese eggplant, zucchini and an orange bell pepper tonight for a fuller flavor profile. Roasted them all together. Even better than the original in my opinion!

  • clkandel on October 30, 2020

    Such a tasty sauce given it cooks in 10 minutes. The eggplant is delicious. Roasting it before adding it to the sauce gives it such a great texture.

  • dinnermints on August 12, 2020

    Very good. In the sauce, eggplant had an unctuousness from being roasted, even though I ended up using less oil and dried it out a bit (typical for me). I sprayed olive oil on the eggplant with a pump spray; maybe would try brushing it next time (or tossing it and hoping for the best, as that really would be more simple). Per other posters' suggestions, I also reduced the oven temp by 25 degrees. I used one can crushed fire roasted tomatoes and one can whole, and that seemed to work pretty well. I roasted the eggplant a couple of days in advance, and might do that again.

  • Lepa on February 24, 2020

    This was delicious. The tomato sauce was so rich and had such a wonderful taste. I followed other posters' suggestions and brushed olive oil on the eggplant rounds after trying to toss the slices and finding that only a few ended up with olive oil. I should note that I accidentally bought one can of sauce and one can of whole tomatoes and the resulting sauce was so good and saucy I might do the same next time.

  • aargle on February 19, 2020

    I was expecting a very pleasant pasta dish but was delighted to find that it was fabulous. I followed the recipe to the letter and next time will reduce the cooking time of the eggplants by 5 minutes. I love these recipes that are more than the sum of its parts.

  • Ro_ on January 17, 2020

    Aubergine being one of my favourite foods, I really loved this and even my partner who doesn't really like aubergines that much enjoyed it. Used parmesan cheese, and dried oregano instead of fresh. Like another note-leaver, a few of my aubergines got a bit burnt, so I'd reduce the heat or the time in the oven next time. Also agree with the comment that said tossing the aub slices with oil in a bowl doesn't result in even coating.

  • JJ2018 on May 08, 2019

    Really enjoyed this - as other reviewers say this tasted a lot more impressive then the list of ingredients would suggest. Pecorino really added to the dish. Will definitely make again

  • seherhussain on March 31, 2019

    Super easy to put together (thanks to the baking of the eggplant) and delicious results! Will repeat.

  • ksg518 on February 11, 2019

    This was delicious - a recipe where the ingredients add up to something more than you expect. I like the idea of roasting the eggplant although I nearly burnt mine so I'll either slice them thicker next time or reduce the cooking time. I didn't have the dried chilies so I just added a small pinch of red pepper flakes.

  • Zosia on December 12, 2018

    Very tasty and quite doable on a busy weeknight. I particularly liked the treatment of the eggplant.

  • nadiakoj on December 04, 2018

    Fabulous dish. One of the best pasta dishes we've had at home

  • anya_sf on October 27, 2018

    I baked the eggplant a day ahead. Tossing eggplant with olive oil in a bowl coats it unevenly; it's more work, but brushing with oil works better - however, it didn't seem to matter in the final dish. The only mild chile I had was a large pasilla, so I tore a couple of pieces off and simmered them with the tomatoes, then removed them with the oregano stems. Used 12 oz spaghetti. This recipe is unusual in that the eggplant remains in slices and the tomatoes whole, but somehow it works. My family devoured this.

  • Astrid5555 on October 18, 2018

    One of the best pasta alla Norma recipes I have cooked so far. Eggplants are baked in the oven separately and then added to the finished tomato sauce. Used Aleppo pepper flakes for additional smokiness and topped the pasta with some leftover feta cheese I happened to have in the fridge. Husband was very happy ;-)!

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Reviews about this recipe

  • Salt Sugar and I

    The eggplant slices break up into the sauce and go silky and moorish. They add a lovely roasted caramelised flavour to the sauce...If you can be in love with a pasta sauce, this is it for me.

    Full review
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