Melanzane ripiene alla calabrese are Calabria's stuffed aubergines—small, round violet aubergines halved, scooped, and filled with a mixture of their own flesh, stale bread, capers, olives, anchovies, peperoncino, and pecorino, then baked until the tops are golden and the filling is savoury, tangy, and gently spicy. This is one of Calabria's great vegetable dishes—a preparation that transforms the aubergine from a side dish into a substantial course through a stuffing that draws on the region's pantry staples. The aubergines used are ideally the small, round Calabrian variety (violetta di Calabria)—about the size of a fist, with dense flesh and few seeds. They are halved, the flesh is scooped out leaving a sturdy shell, and the flesh is chopped and combined with soaked stale bread (squeezed dry), capers (salt-packed, rinsed), black olives (Calabria's small, wrinkled oil-cured variety), anchovy fillets, minced garlic, fresh parsley, a pinch of dried oregano, grated pecorino, a generous amount of peperoncino, and enough olive oil to bind. The halves are mounded with filling, arranged in a baking dish, drizzled with olive oil, and baked at 180°C for 30-40 minutes until the aubergine shell is soft and the top is crusty and golden. The stuffed halves are served at room temperature—this is emphatically not a hot dish. Like all great Calabrian vegetable preparations, the flavours develop and meld as the dish cools, and the olive oil, anchovy, and caper notes emerge more clearly at room temperature.
Small round Calabrian aubergines, halved and scooped. Stuffing: aubergine flesh, bread, capers, olives, anchovies, pecorino, peperoncino. Bake until golden on top. Serve at room temperature—flavours are better cool. Olive oil as binder and finisher.
Salt the scooped aubergine shells for 20 minutes before filling—they release moisture and become more flavourful. A single anchovy fillet per aubergine half is enough—it adds depth without fishiness. The breadcrumb crust on top should be made with coarse, hand-torn bread, not fine crumbs. These improve overnight in the fridge and are excellent picnic food.
Using large globe aubergines (too watery, wrong proportion of skin to flesh). Serving hot (the flavours need to settle at room temperature). Under-seasoning the filling (should be assertive—capers, anchovies, chilli all contribute). Making the filling too wet (bread must be squeezed dry).
Touring Club Italiano, Calabria in Cucina; Academia Barilla, Regional Italian Cooking