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Cubes of eggplant fried until dark and lacquered at the edges stand in for guanciale in this late-summer carbonara, tossed with mezze rigatoni in a silky pecorino and egg yolk sauce with a spoon of white miso. Serves 4, less than an hour, most of it salting.
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This is not a traditional carbonara. Traditional carbonara is guanciale, pecorino, eggs and pepper, and nothing else. This one has eggplant instead of pork and a little miso.
What Makes This Work
- The eggplant is the bacon. Carbonara is known for guanciale which is cured pork jowl. Carbonara is made with emulsified egg and cheese in a sauce that coats without scrambling. Take the pork out and most meatless versions reach for cream. My version salts the eggplant, presses it dry, dusts it with cornstarch and shallow-fries it until it collapses into something dark, sweet and chewy at the edges. That gives you the crisp, the savory depth.
- Salt it, then press it drier than feels reasonable. Wet eggplant steams instead of browning. Twenty to 30 minutes in a colander with salt pulls the water to the surface, then lay the cubes on a towel and press with a second towel. If the towel comes away wet, keep going.
- Cornstarch makes the shell. A single tablespoon, tossed until every cube looks matte, forms a thin glassy crust that holds up even once the eggplant meets the sauce. It does not taste like a coating.
- Hot oil, uncrowded pan, hands off. Two batches in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high. Leave the cubes alone for the first 3 to 4 minutes so the undersides set; stir early and you tear the surface before the crust forms. They are done when they have shrunk by about a third, turned deep mahogany with crispy edges, and feel custardy in the middle. Drain on a paper towel, and sprinkle with salt.
- Miso stands in for the cure. A tablespoon of white miso whisked into the yolks and pecorino brings the deep, salty, slightly fermented note the pork would otherwise provide. You will not taste it as miso.
- Lowest heat, constant tossing, pull it early. Pour the egg mixture over the pasta over the lowest setting your stove has and keep it moving, adding pasta water a splash at a time, until the sauce turns glossy and clings like a thin crème anglaise. Pull it off the heat the second it looks right. Residual heat finishes it.
- Hold half the eggplant back. Half goes into the skillet with the garlic and pepper so its oil coats every piece of pasta. Half goes on top at the end for texture.
Ingredient Highlights
- Eggplant. One large Italian globe, about 1¼ pounds, cut into ½-inch cubes with the skin on. If you grow eggplant, pick when the skin is glossy and springs back from a thumb press. Once it goes dull and stays dented, the seeds inside have turned brown and bitter.
Tips and Swaps
A few things that came up in testing.
- Dry eggplant, hot oil, an uncrowded pan. Do not touch the eggplant for the first few minutes. It needs uninterrupted contact with the pan to build a crust.
- Hold half the eggplant back for the top.
- Grind the pepper coarse fresh.
- Lowest heat for the sauce, keep the pasta moving, and pull it early. If you are nervous, sauce it fully off the heat and return to low only if it has not thickened.
- On salt: the salted eggplant, pecorino and miso season the dish fully. Taste at the end and adjust with pepper and cheese, not salt.
- This does not reheat well/ the eggplant will go limp and soggy.
Crispy Eggplant Carbonara (No Pork)
| Prep: 30m | Cook: 30m | Total: 1h |
Cubes of eggplant fried until dark and crispy at the edges stand in for guanciale in this late-summer carbonara. A spoon of white miso in the yolks brings back the depth.
Ingredients
For the eggplant
- 1 large globe eggplant (about 1 1/4 pounds / 570g), cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 4 cups)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt (use half as much if using Morton), plus more for the pasta water
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1/3 cup avocado oil, plus more as needed
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
For the carbonara
- 1 pound mezze rigatoni
- 4 large egg yolks (save the whites for your morning scramble the next day!)
- 1 large whole egg
- 1 cup finely grated Pecorino Romano (about 3 ounces / 85g), plus more for serving
- 1 tablespoon white (shiro) miso
- 2 teaspoons coarsely ground black pepper, divided, plus more for serving
Instructions
- Toss the eggplant with the 1 1/2 teaspoons salt in a colander set over a bowl and let it sit for 20 to 30 minutes, until beads of moisture have surfaced and the cubes look slightly slumped. Spread on a towel and press dry with a second towel. Transfer to a bowl, sprinkle with the cornstarch, and toss until every piece looks matte with no visible white patches.
- Heat the olive oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high until it shimmers and a test cube sizzles on contact. Add half the eggplant in a single layer and let it sit undisturbed for 3 to 4 minutes, until the undersides are golden. Stir, then continue cooking, stirring every couple of minutes, until the cubes have shrunk by about a third, turned deep mahogany with glassy edges, and feel custardy in the center when pressed with a spoon, 10 to 12 minutes total. Transfer paper towel-lined plate and sprinkle with kosher salt immediately. Add a tablespoon or two more oil if the pan looks dry and repeat with the remaining eggplant.
- Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it generously. Cook the rigatoni until just shy of al dente, about 2 minutes less than the package directs. Before draining, scoop out 2 cups of the pasta water and set aside.
- While the pasta cooks, whisk the egg yolks, whole egg, pecorino, miso and 1 teaspoon of the pepper in a large bowl until it forms a thick, grainy paste. Whisk in 2 tablespoons of the hot pasta water to loosen it to a pourable custard.
- Dry out the pasta pot and return to medium heat with 1 tablespoon of avocado oil. Add half the fried eggplant, the garlic and the remaining 1 teaspoon pepper. Cook for about a minute, until the garlic smells toasty and the pepper is fragrant. Add the drained pasta and 1/4 cup of the pasta water and toss.
- Reduce the heat to the lowest setting. Pour the egg mixture over the pasta and toss constantly and quickly, adding pasta water a splash at a time, for 1 to 2 minutes, until the sauce turns glossy and clings to the rigatoni like a thin crème anglaise. Pull the pan off the heat the moment it looks right; residual heat will finish it. If it looks tight, add more water. If it looks thin, keep tossing off the heat and it will come together.
- Divide among bowls and top with the remaining crispy eggplant, more pecorino and a few grinds of black pepper. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Salt: the salted eggplant, pecorino and miso season the dish fully. It should not need added salt at the end. Adjust with pepper and cheese instead.
- Cheese: Parmesan works in place of pecorino and melts a bit more smoothly, though the dish will be milder.
- Eggplant: Japanese or Chinese eggplant are a good swap.
- Leftovers: best eaten immediately.
FAQ
Is this vegetarian?
It has no meat. Pecorino Romano is traditionally made with animal rennet, so if that matters to you, look for a vegetarian-rennet pecorino or Parmesan-style cheese.
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Why did my sauce scramble?
The pan was too hot when the eggs went in. Lowest possible heat, constant tossing, and pull it early. If you are nervous, sauce it fully off the heat and return to low only if it has not thickened.
Can I make it ahead?
No, it is best made and consumer immediately.
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