When summer is in full swing and there are mounds of beautiful purple eggplants available, here’s a wonderfully refreshing salad you can make. Since the eggplant is poached rather than fried, it is a light and healthful dish. The flavors and textures of the eggplant, onion, and potato are harmonious, but you can use fewer or no potatoes and more eggplant.

　　

Ingredients

serves 6

　　2 small firm eggplants (about 1 pound total)

　　1 pound small red onions

　　1 pound russet potatoes

　　1 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar

　　2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

　　1 teaspoon kosher salt

　　1 tablespoon packed fresh mint leaves, shredded

　　1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

　　

RECOMMENDED EQUIPMENT

A wide, shallow saucepan or high-sided sauté pan, 4-quart capacity, for poaching the eggplant and onions; a large bowl for mixing and serving the salad

　　

Step 1

Trim the ends from the eggplants, and shave off some lengthwise strips of the skin with a vegetable peeler, leaving some strips on, creating a striped appearance. Slice the eggplants lengthwise into 6 or more long wedges, about 1 inch thick. Peel the red onions, and slice them lengthwise into quarter-round wedges, not cutting at the root; you want the wedges attached.

　　

Step 2

To poach the eggplants and onions: Put 1 1/2 cups of the vinegar and 2 quarts cold water in the shallow saucepan, and heat to a boil. Drop in the eggplant wedges and the split-open onions, cover the pan, and return to a boil. Set the cover ajar, and adjust the heat to maintain a steady gentle boil. Cook about 30 minutes, occasionally tumbling the vegetables over to poach evenly, until quite soft and tender.

　　

Step 3

Meanwhile, put the potatoes in another pot, with water to cover them by about 2 inches, and cook just until the potatoes are easily pierced with a fork (don’t let them get mushy). Drain the potatoes, and let them cool briefly. Peel off the skins, and cut them in half lengthwise, then crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick half-rounds. Put the potato pieces in the salad bowl, and cover to keep them warm.

　　

Step 4

When the eggplant and onions are fully cooked, gently lift them out of the poaching liquid with a spider or strainer, and lay them out on a tray or baking sheet in one layer. While the eggplant is still warm, scoop out the central clumps of seeds from the wedges, then cut them crosswise into 2-inch chunks. Separate the onion wedges, and then the layers. Put all the vegetable pieces—they should still be warm to the touch—in the bowl with the potatoes.

　　

Step 5

To dress the salad: Drizzle the olive oil and remaining 2 tablespoons vinegar over the salad, sprinkle the salt on it, scatter in the shredded mint, and crumble the dried oregano over all. Gently toss the vegetable pieces to coat them all with dressing without breaking them apart. Serve immediately.

　　Lidia Cooks from the Heart of Italy by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich and Tanya Bastianich Manuali. Copyright © 2009 Lidia Matticchio Bastianich and Tanya Bastianich Manuali. Published by Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved.Lidia Mattichio Bastianich is the author of four previous books, three of them accompanied by nationally syndicated public television series. She is the owner of the New York City restaurant Felidia (among others), and she lectures on and demonstrates Italian cooking throughout the country. She lives on Long Island, New York.Tanya Bastianich Manuali, Lidia’s daughter, received her Ph.D. in Renaissance history from Oxford University. Since 1996 she has led food/wine/art tours. She lives with her husband and children on Long Island.