I’ve recently downloaded a few cookbooks for Spain along with some other different cultural cookbooks. Spain’s foods are not too differing from what I experienced growing up in a Cuban household. There are so many likenesses in many different bean potages, foods incorporating chorizo, ham, and a wide array of bases with sofrito. My sister recently told me that my dad made his own version of of pisto manchego when they were younger. Of course that led me to this recipe, which sounded very much like the French’s ratatouille but with a fried egg on top.
This specific recipe came from Curate by Katie Button, which I highly recommend checking out. This recipe yields quite a bit of food so you could divide the produce in half and freeze the other half for another meal down the road. A fried egg on top of anything is undoubtedly a cure to any ailment, real or exaggerated, in so many cultures. You can make this ahead and enjoy it for a week, while making sure to fry your eggs fresh as served of course.
Stay tuned for more goodies for Spain!
Pisto Manchego
Ingredients
1 large tomato (8½ ounces), cut in half crosswise
¼ cup blended oil
2 green bell peppers, stemmed, seeded, and cut into ½-inch dice (3 cups)
2 red bell peppers, stemmed, seeded, and cut into ½-inch dice (3 cups)
2 small yellow onions, cut into ½-inch dice (1½ cups)
1 packed tablespoon minced garlic (from about 4 large cloves)
1 large (1¼ pound) eggplant, peeled and cut into ½-inch dice
⅓ cup tomato paste
2 sprigs thyme
1 rosemary sprig
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
eggs, fried, as needed for each dish
Manchego cheese, shredded, for topping
Prepare
- First, get a box grater over a medium bowl and grate the tomato from the cut sides until all you have left is skin. You should have 1 cup tomato puree.
2. Next, combine the oil, green peppers, and red peppers in a large stockpot. Set over medium heat and cook, stirring frequently, until softened, about 15 minutes.
3. Then add the onions and garlic. Stir well and continue cooking, stirring frequently, until the onions have softened and become translucent, about 7 minutes.
4. In addition, stir in the eggplant, tomato paste, thyme, rosemary, and tomato puree. Stir well until everything is evenly mixed. Cook until sizzling, stirring occasionally, then reduce the heat to low, and continue cooking until very soft, about 1 hour. As you get toward the end of cooking, you have to stir more frequently because the vegetables are losing their moisture, so they tend to stick a little more. Lower the heat if needed.
5. Season with 1¼ teaspoons salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Discard the rosemary and thyme.
6. Finally, fry your eggs and top each plate of pisto with your eggs. Grate fresh Manchego cheese as desired over your dish. Taste and add more salt and pepper if you’d like.
