Pulled Aubergine and Roasted Almond Ragu with ‘Almesan’
This one is genuinely special to us. We came up with it when we wanted something that felt properly hearty and impressive but was completely plant-based, and honestly it blew us away first time we made it. The pulled aubergine goes silky and rich in the ragu, the roasted almonds add this incredible crunch and depth, and the 'almesan' on top is one of our all-time favourite tricks. It's the kind of dinner you make for people who reckon vegan food can't be satisfying, and then watch their faces when they take the first bite. Make this tonight, trust us.
Before You Start
- Preheat oven to 200°C
- Large baking tray
- Powerful blender
- Large pan
Ingredients
- 2 large aubergines
- 60g almonds
- 1 red onion
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 x 400g can chopped tomatoes
- 1 tbsp harissa paste
- 1 veggie stock pot mixed with 200ml boiling water
- 1 tbsp thick balsamic vinegar
- small amount of rapeseed oil
- 60g almonds
- 5 tbsp nutritional yeast
- little pinch of Salt & pepper
- 4 portions of rigatoni pasta
- handful of whole almonds
- handful of parsley
Method
Roast all of the almonds
- Place the almonds into a pan over a medium heat and dry roast for 10 minutes until golden, constantly stirring.
- Once cooked, spoon half of the almonds onto a chopping board and roughly chop - place to one side until needed.
Make the ‘almesan’ - Spoon the remaining almonds into a powerful blender.
- Add the nutritional yeast and a pinch of salt and pepper.
- Blend until the mixture comes together.
Roast the aubergines
- Cut the aubergines in half lengthways and place onto a baking tray.
- Drizzle with olive oil and cook for 30 minutes, until soft.
- After 30 minutes, remove from the oven, let cool briefly and pull the middle from the skin with forks to create a pulled-like consistency.
While the aubergines cook, make the sauce
- Peel and dice the onions and garlic.
- Place a large pan over a medium heat and add a drizzle of olive oil.
- Once warm, add the diced onions, garlic and a pinch of salt.
- Mix well and cook for 5-10 minutes, or until soft.
- At this point, mix through paprika and cook for a couple of seconds before mixing through the chopped tomatoes, harissa paste, veggie stock, balsamic vinegar and roughly chopped almonds.
- Mix really well until everything comes together and leave to simmer for 10 minutes.
While the stew simmers, cook the pasta
- Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the packet, cooking for 1 less minute than stated.
- Once cooked, drain (saving some of the pasta water).
Bring the dish together
- Stir the pulled aubergine through the sauce and cook for a few minutes to heat everything through.
- Mix the drained pasta through the sauce and add a dash of pasta water if needed to loosen the sauce.
Time to serve - Spoon the pasta into serving bowls and top with a good sprinkle of ‘almesan’, a crack of pepper, some whole almonds and a sprinkle of fresh parsley.
Tips & Variations
- Don't rush the aubergine: Give it enough time in the oven to really soften and caramelise. If it's not collapsing and pulling apart easily, it needs a bit longer. That texture is everything in this dish.
- Make extra almesan: Seriously, blend up a bigger batch and keep it in a jar in the fridge. It lasts a week and we end up putting it on pasta, salads, soups, basically everything.
- Serve it right: We love this on top of fresh pasta or creamy polenta. Either one turns it into a proper centrepiece meal that feels like real Sunday dinner energy.
Why This Works
The trick here is roasting the almonds properly before doing anything else. That dry roasting step unlocks a deep, nutty flavour that runs through the whole dish, and when you blend half of them with nutritional yeast for the almesan, you get this salty, cheesy, savoury topping that genuinely rivals parmesan. The aubergine does the rest of the heavy lifting by soaking up all those ragu flavours and pulling apart into these gorgeous meaty strands.