Pasta Napolitana

We call this our \’vegetarian Bolognese\’. I\’m sure that\’s an oxymoron in Italian but it makes perfect sense in Australiana! Heaven forbid if an Italian actually read what my Other Half has done to create this Napoli sauce. Let\’s say it\’s \”fusion\”. Come to think of it, this is not actually vego because it has fish sauce – though there are apparently vegetarian fish sauce substitutes out there. (Can\’t imagine what.) I\’ve given this a \”vego\” tag because I\’m sure it could be easily adapted, such as by swapping out the fish sauce for salt. It\’s the nuts and haloumi that give this sauce its more substantial texture.

  • pine nuts (maybe half a cup)
  • peppitas (maybe three-quarter cup)
  • 1 onion, finely diced
  • 3 garlic cloves, finely diced
  • 1 zucchini, finely diced
  • 1 carrot, finely diced
  • 180g haloumi, finely diced
  • 1 tin (400g) chopped tomatoes or fresh equivalent
  • 140g tomato concentrate
  • light soy sauce (tamari) or kecap manis
  • fish sauce
  • sesame oil
  • honey
  • dash of red wine
  • salt and pepper
  • splash of water if necessary
  • optional: semolina to thicken
  • extra: grated Parmesan cheese

Method:

  1. Toast the pine nuts, then crush in mortar and pestle.
  2. Toast the peppitas, then crush also.
  3. In a semi-deep but wide pot, fry the garlic and onion, then add the vegetables.
  4. Add the tinned tomatoes, tomato concentrate, soy, fish sauce, sesame oil, honey, wine, salt and pepper. Sorry I can\’t offer quantities. Experiment – just don\’t go heavy on the fish sauce.
  5. Add the finely chopped haloumi.
  6. Add semolina if it needs thickening and allow to stand.
  7. Serve over pasta and sprinkle with grated Parmesan.

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