Nonna’s Melanzane Grigliate (Grilled Eggplant)
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Nonna’s Melanzane Grigliate, grilled eggplant, is a simple summertime favorite I grew up with. My mom would char slices of eggplant on a hot grill and then top it with oregano, garlic, and balsamic vinegar. This recipe is so easy, incredibly flavorful, and versatile.
Melanzane Grigliate: Recipe Snapshot
- What It Is: Charred grilled eggplant dressed with olive oil, garlic, oregano, and balsamic
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10–12 minutes
- Total Time: 20–25 minutes
- Serves: 4–6 as a side
- Skill Level: Easy
- Why You’ll Love It: Light, garlicky, perfect for summer, great make-ahead antipasto
Growing up in a Sicilian house, eggplants were often part of our family meals. Whether they were layered with chicken in Eggplant Sorrentino, served as a primo like Pasta alla Norma, or as an antipasto like caponata, they always seemed to make an appearance at family gatherings.
This recipe for melanza grigliate is a rustic dish that uses the simplest ingredients and combines them without any fussy process to create a tasty, mouth-watering dish. The Eggplant is simply sliced, brushed with a good olive oil, and cooked over a hot grill. It is then dressed with fresh garlic, oregano, and balsamic. Each ingredient stands out, and the grilled eggplant acts as a luscious and creamy base for all those flavors.
Melanzane grigliate is a fabulously versatile dish that you can serve as a side dish, contorno, as part of an antipasto, or even layered in a sandwich. My mother would make this grilled eggplant for lunch on Saturdays. Oh my gosh, it is so good with some Italian salumi and fresh-baked bread!
However you plan to serve it, it is easy to prepare on an outdoor grill or an indoor grill pan. Both methods achieve nice charred grill marks that produce a delicious smoky flavor. So, as long as you can find good eggplant in the grocery store, there is no need to wait for summer to make this meaty vegetable.
Melanzane grigliate have a flavor profile similar to my Stuffed Grilled Chicken Breast, so they pair well together. You can cook them side by side on the grill so they’re ready at the same time. It also makes a great side dish for my Lemon and Herb Chicken or even my Top Round Roast Beef.
Nonna’s Melanzane Grigliate Ingredients
Whole Eggplant: Be sure to pick out a good one! Ripe eggplant should be firm but not hard, and it should have shiny skin. Small to medium-sized bulbs will be the least bitter. Larger eggplants will have more seeds, and the seeds are where most of the bitterness lies.
Kosher salt: This is used to draw out some of the bitterness before cooking the eggplant.
Garlic: Use fresh garlic and dice it very finely. Since the garlic will be eaten raw, you want to make sure that it is distributed evenly over the eggplant in very small portions.
Dried Oregano: I like the robust flavor that dried oregano adds to this dish, but you can also use fresh if you have it. You may need to use a little more than a teaspoon of fresh oregano because the flavor of fresh herbs is not as concentrated as it is in dry herbs.
Balsamic Vinegar: I would recommend using plain balsamic vinegar. Although I love many of the flavor varieties, I think that the original works best here.
Variations
This easy eggplant recipe is a great starting point for enjoying this vegetable. Here are some variations you might like:
- For the eggplant lover who likes things spicy, sprinkle the eggplant slices with some red pepper flakes.
- The addition of crumbled feta cheese is a great way to add salty Mediterranean flavor.
- If you don’t want to use balsamic vinegar, try some freshly squeezed lemon juice instead.
- Experiment with your favorite seasonings, spice blend, or other herbs.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Cut the eggplant into uniform slices and salt each slice on both sides.
- Put it in a colander to drain for 30 minutes. Pat dry with paper towels.
- Brush olive oil on both sides of the eggplant slices and place them on a preheated grill or grill pan set to medium-high heat.
- Transfer the slices of eggplant to a serving plate and top them with black pepper, garlic, oregano, and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar.
Cooking Tip:
Make sure to cook the eggplant all the way through; in fact, err on the side of overcooking rather than undercooking it. Undercooked eggplant will have an unpleasant spongy texture, while thoroughly cooked eggplant will be tender and creamy.
Serving Suggestions
One of the things I love about this recipe is its versatility. Grilled eggplant is amazing when stacked in a sandwich, served as an appetizer on its own, or as part of an antipasto tray. It’s also a delicious side dish that pairs well with fish, pork, beef, or chicken. I love it as a side to Grilled Chicken Legs, Mediterranean Lollipop Lamb Chops, Roasted Pork Tenderloin, or juicy Grilled Lamb Burgers.
This savory eggplant dish also fits perfectly into a low-carb or vegetarian diet.
This recipe can be prepared ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator. It is just as delicious at room temperature or warmed up just before serving.
Melanzane Grigliate Frequently Asked Questions
You don’t have to peel eggplant before preparing it. I like the texture of the peel and how it holds the eggplant together. However, if you don’t like it or have trouble digesting it, you can remove the peel.
Salting eggplant slices before cooking does two things:
1) It helps to mellow the flavor and remove any bitterness that may be in the plant. Although the eggplants we get at the market today have been bred to be less bitter, it has not been totally eliminated.
2) The salt makes the eggplant sweat, thus drawing out some of the water trapped in the vegetable. This results in a less spongy, creamier eggplant. This also keeps it from getting soggy during cooking.
Many recipes will have you rinse it and then apply salt when you cook it. You don’t have to rinse it for this recipe. Because we are not adding any more salt to the eggplant as we cook it, there is no reason to rinse off the salt. You will remove some of it when you pat it dry. Also, if you rinse it, you are adding water back into the eggplant that you just spent an hour removing the excess moisture from.
Leftovers should be placed in an airtight container and stored in the refrigerator to maintain their freshness. They will stay fresh for several days. Remove them from the refrigerator about an hour before you plan to eat if you want to serve them at room temperature, or you can easily reheat them in the microwave.
Some of the different types of eggplant you might see are:
Globe Eggplant is the most common type of eggplant in the US. They are dark purple and have a meaty texture.
Asian eggplants, such as the long, thin Japanese eggplant,
White eggplant,
Purple-stripped Sicilian eggplant and Italian eggplant, which resembles the globe eggplant but is smaller and sweeter in taste.
All Recipes has more information on the types and uses of each of these varieties.
I love to get your feedback, so if you’ve tried this Grilled Eggplant or any other recipes on this website, please leave me a comment below. I hope you enjoy my recipes and look forward to hearing from you!
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Nonna’s Melanzane Grigliate (Easy Grilled Eggplant)
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Ingredients
- 2 Eggplants small to medium
- 3 tbsp Olive oil
- 2 tsp Oregano Dried
- 2 cloves Garlic fine diced
- 1 tbsp Salt kosher
- 1 tsp Black pepper ground
- 2 tbsp Balsamic vinegar
Instructions
- Cut the eggplant into ¼"-½" thick slices. Salt on both sides and place in a colander set over a plate or in a sink. Set the eggplant aside for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
- Pre-heat your grill or grill pan. Pat the eggplant slices dry with a paper towel.
- Brush each slice with olive oil and lay on the grill oil side down. Brush the top of the eggplant with olive oil. Cook for about 5 minutes or until there are dark grill marks on the eggplant. Turn over and grill for another 5 minutes. The eggplant should be tender, not be spongy, when pierced with a fork.
- Transfer the eggplant to a platter or baking sheet. Drizzle with additional olive oil if you like. Sprinkle the pepper, oregano and garlic over the eggplant. Finish with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Great taste from such a simple dish.