Ingredient Spotlight: Aubergines

Ingredient Spotlight: Aubergines

L’Aquila’s delicious and versatile products are created from carefully selected fresh Mediterranean produce and our Ingredient Spotlight serves to highlight our favourite seasonal vegetables and their diverse usages.
 
We have often thought of aubergine as the underdog of common vegetables - not for a lack of use, but because they do not get nearly enough credit for their unique flavour and texture. Found in countless Mediterranean recipes but also loved in cuisine across the world, from Middle Eastern baba ganoush to Indian brindal bhaji, you can find them fried, roasted, charred, and even pickled.
Globe aubergines have a deep purple, glossy skin covering their spongy centre, which is transformed when cooked properly (with a good glug of olive oil and salt). Absorbing the flavours of their pairings, aubergines are very flexible, and as Oliver Thring quite rightly put it, 'a slick of roasted aubergine has a most tantalising savouriness.'
Soft, pulpy, thick, and meaty, aubergines are becoming more popular as a standalone ingredient and vegan meat alternative, and we will certainly continue to cheer for them. Watch this space…
Our range of Sorriso™ aubergine products comprise of roasted and chargrilled purple aubergines in various configurations including slices, rounds, dices and puree.
 
Chargrilled Aubergine Rounds
 
 
The Sorriso™ Chargrilled Aubergine Rounds are the perfect shape for inclusions in sandwiches and burgers. Cut into full or half-moons and carefully chargrilled, this product really delivers on both aesthetic and taste:
 
Crusty baguette with chargrilled aubergine rounds, roasted red pepper, black olive tapenade and fresh rocket
 
Soft, cooked aubergine offers an almost buttery texture, supporting the punchy flavours of peppery rocket, olive and tangy peppers. Vegan eating at its best!
 
Chargrilled Aubergine Slices
 
 
A particularly popular configuration is our long cut Sorriso™ Chargrilled Aubergine Slices, with beautifully scorched stripes from the cooking process. This ingredient is lightly marinated and impressively fresh tasting - why not try:
 
Vibrant short crust pie with velvety layers of aubergine, courgette, sweet potato and ricotta
 
Colourful root vegetables work perfectly together, and ricotta is easily swapped for a vegan soft cheese. Either way - a good dollop of strong chutney is imperative.
Maintaining the same texture and taste, we can bespoke our slice cut and along with most of our Sorriso™ range, these can be marinated ambient, ‘low oil’ or naked. Our ‘short cut’ slices work particularly well as toppings on pizza:
 
Smoky stone-baked pizza with butternut squash cream, fior di latte, spicy ‘nduja, chargrilled aubergine slices and tenderstem broccoli
 
The vegan influence on hero vegetable ingredients means that meat is not always the star of the show. Spicy ‘nduja is complemented by a creamy smothering of butternut squash and aubergine ties in the smoky flavour.
 
Roasted Diced Aubergine
 
 
To really offer a meaty bite, we think our Sorriso™ Roasted Diced Aubergine is best in larger pieces - ideal for use in party food (and perfect for vegetarian guests!):
 
Caponata skewers with roasted diced aubergine, Nocellara del Belice green olives, chargrilled yellow pepper dices and sun-dried tomato dip
 
A fruity, salty and luxurious mouthful filled with provenance. A memorable trip to the Mediterranean in one bite.
 
Roasted Aubergine Puree
 
 
Last but not least, we love the understated flavour purees and pastes can offer and our Sorriso™ Roasted Aubergine Puree has a particularly delicious texture. We add a small amount of Italian olive oil to preserve the sweet earthy aroma:
 
Hot gyozas filled with shredded chicken, aubergine and spring onion
 
A great food to go option - make sure to garnish with a generous scattering of sesame seeds and dark soy sauce.
 
It is important to note that given a brief, we can create many different variations of the above products, changing marinades, cooking process and configurations.
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