Vegan Eggplant Tomato and Onion Stew + Instant Pot

Name: Healthy Vegan Eggplant Onion and Tomato Stew
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 3 1/2 cups organic eggplant ((cubed)); 2 cups organic tomatoes ((diced)); 1 cup organic white onion ((diced)); 1 cup organic tomato sauce; 1/2 cup water ((filtered/purified)); 1 teaspoon organic ground cumin powder; 1 pinch organic ground cayenne pepper; 1 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt

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My plant-based Healthy Vegan Eggplant Onion and Tomato Stew recipe is an easy one-pot meal using fresh summer produce that's ready in about 30 minutes + Instant Pot instructions to make it even quicker in only 5 minutes! It's made with 8 clean, real food ingredients, is perfect for Meatless Monday and everyone will love it!

Overhead horizontal image of Vegan Eggplant Onion and Tomato Stew in a black skillet on a white surface

"Eggplant Onion and Tomato Stew" was originally created, photographed, and published on January 2, 2014 by Karielyn Tillman of The Healthy Family and Home™ and not OneGreenPlanet.

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Estimated reading time: 8 minutes

Here's Why This Recipe Works
Ingredients
How To Make This Recipe: Step-by-Step Instructions
Instant Pot Instructions
Frequently Asked Questions
Karielyn's Expert Tips + Ingredient Substitutions
More Healthy Vegan Tomato Recipes

Here's Why This Recipe Works

My top 3 favorite reasons:

It Can Be Made in a Skillet or Instant Pot
Ready In Under 30 Minutes
Made With Clean, Real Food Ingredients

If you love a quick + easy dinner with minimal cleanup, then you'll LOVE this Eggplant Tomato and Onion Stew.

It has a minimal ingredient list and fresh veggies - the hardest part is just prepping the veggies!

While visiting my parents, my dad wanted me to make something for dinner with the eggplant he had just bought, so decided to make this dish since they had the rest of the simple ingredient list on hand.

Not only did I make it for him that night, but he asked if I would make it again a couple of nights later!

So after making a grocery trip for more eggplant, I made it a second time for him before we left our visit and because he liked it so much we had it twice in one week...it was that good!

This healthy plant-based dish is not only perfect for "Meatless Mondays', but is also vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, nut-free, paleo-friendly, low-fat, oil-free, and Medical Medium® Compliant.

"Feel good about what you eat..."

- Karielyn Tillman

Ingredients

Here are the clean, real food ingredients I used to make this recipe. Try to use organic if possible.

Eggplant
Tomatoes
Onion
Tomato Sauce
Filtered Water
Ground Cumin Powder
Ground Cayenne Powder
Himalayan Pink Salt

That's it! My Vegan Eggplant, Onion, and Tomato Stew is super easy to make!

How To Make This Recipe: Step-by-Step Instructions

This is an easy, one-pot recipe (that you can even make in 5 minutes with an Instant Pot) and I'll show you how to make it step-by-step!

Step 1: Prep Your Veggies:

The hardest part of this recipe is getting your veggies ready.

You'll need to cut the eggplant into cubes and dice the tomatoes and onions.

I like to leave the skins on the eggplant, but you can cut the skins off before cutting them into cubes if you prefer.

Overhead view of the ingredients used to make Vegan Eggplant Onion and Tomato Stew

Step 2: Add Everything Together

Once you've got the veggies ready, all you need to do next is add them to a skillet (or an Instant Pot), along with the seasonings and water.

Mix everything together until all the ingredients and seasonings are evenly distributed.

When you add the water, start with ½ cup and if you find you prefer your stew to have a more liquid consistency, add a little more water.

Step 3: Prepare the Eggplant Stew

Stovetop Instructions:

Add the prepped veggies and all remaining ingredients to a skillet, then stir to make sure everything is evenly distributed.
Cover the skillet and let it simmer on low-medium heat for about 20-25 minutes, or until the eggplant is soft.
Remove the lid, stir the contents and adjust the water and/or seasonings if you prefer.

Overhead view of Vegan Eggplant Onion and Tomato Stew in a black skillet

Instant Pot Instructions

Add the prepped veggies and all remaining ingredients to an Instant Pot.
After adding all the ingredients to the Instant Pot, stir to make sure everything is evenly distributed.
Close the lid and turn the vent to the "SEALED" position.
Set the settings on "PRESSURE COOK" --> "HIGH" --> "5 MINUTES".
When the timer goes off, carefully "QUICK RELEASE" the steam.
Remove the lid, stir the contents and adjust the seasonings if preferred.

Dual image of Vegan Eggplant Onion and Tomato Stew ingredients in an Instant Pot and the dashboard of the Instant Pot showing the settings

You can serve it as is or make a hearty meal by adding it over organic rice, organic cauliflower rice, or even gluten-free pasta.

Overhead vertical image of Vegan Eggplant Onion and Tomato Stew in a black skillet on a white surface

Frequently Asked Questions

Should I Use a Skillet or Instant Pot?

Either one will work!

1. Stovetop with Non-Toxic Skillet: Ready in about 30 minutes

2. Instant Pot: Ready in about 5 minutes

What Can I Serve This With?

Although it's great just by itself, here are some other options to make it more filling:

White Rice
Brown Rice
Cauliflower Rice
Quinoa
Gluten-Free/Grain-Free Pasta

Do I Need to Peel the Eggplant?

It's completely optional! I like to leave the eggplant skin on when I make it, but you could also peel it before dicing it if you prefer.

What If I Don't Have Fresh Tomatoes?

Not to worry! This has happened to me plenty of times as well as when I was in a hurry to get dinner ready.

You can also use canned or jarred diced tomatoes for this recipe!

If you use canned, try to buy a brand that has a BPA-free can and no added preservatives or salt.

Why Did I See This Recipe on Another Website?

My photos and complete recipe also appear on OneGreenPlanet, who unfortunately uses bloggers content to generate profit for their website by using bloggers content in their recipe app, cookbooks and by charging readers to print a recipe.

Prior to August 1, 2025, they did not link back to the original author's content and photos for credit or attribution. Their links either went to dead links or to an author page on their website but never back to the original author's website URL.

For this reason, I do not recommend their website and would ask that you visit and support the original author's website for recipe content instead of recycled and duplicate content on the OneGreenPlanet website.

In regard to this recipe, if you see my photos and exact recipe (word for word) from January 2, 2014, on another site, primarily OneGreenPlanet, mine was the original and was posted first.

Karielyn's Expert Tips + Ingredient Substitutions

Here are some of my expert tips to make this recipe perfectly:

Water. You can adjust the amount of water in the recipe to make it the consistency you prefer. Start with ½ cup water as listed in the recipe and add an extra ½ cup water if you like a thinner stew.

Seasonings. Adjust the salt and cayenne pepper to your preference (or omit) if you are serving to children or don't like spicy food.

Tomatoes. I like to use the "Roma" tomato variety because they are easy to cut and don't have a lot of flesh to them, but any type of tomato variety would work. If you are in a hurry or don't have fresh tomatoes on hand, you can use organic diced tomatoes in a jar (to avoid BPA-free lined cans) and it will work just fine.

Tomato Sauce. Try to buy tomato sauce in a glass jar or BPA-free can, if possible, to avoid BPA lining.

Onions. I've used both white onions and red onions and both work fine. Just use your favorite variety or whatever you have on hand.

Eggplant. I like to leave the skin on the eggplant but feel free to peel the skin off the eggplant before cutting it into cubes if you prefer.

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Healthy Vegan Eggplant Onion and Tomato Stew

My plant-based Vegan Eggplant Onion and Tomato Stew recipe is an easy and healthy one-pot meal using fresh summer produce that's ready in about 30 minutes + Instant Pot instructions to make it even quicker in only 5 minutes! It's made with only 8 clean, real food ingredients, is perfect for Meatless Monday and everyone will love it!

4.83 from 35 votes

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Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 20

Total Time: 30

Yields: 4 servings

Calories : 64

Equipment

Ingredients

▢ 3 ½ cups organic eggplant (cubed)
▢ 2 cups organic tomatoes (diced)
▢ 1 cup organic white onion (diced)
▢ 1 cup organic tomato sauce
▢ ½ cup water (filtered/purified)
▢ 1 teaspoon organic ground cumin powder
▢ 1 pinch organic ground cayenne pepper
▢ 1 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Prepare the veggies:

Cut the eggplant into cubes, dice the tomatoes and onions, then set aside.

Prepare the stew:

Add the tomato sauce, water, ground cumin, salt, and cayenne pepper to a non-toxic skillet and stir together.
Add the veggies and bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat to a low-medium simmer.
Cover the skillet and cook for 20-25 minutes, or until the eggplant is soft.
Add additional water if you prefer a thinner consistency.
Store in an air-tight BPA-free container.

Instant Pot Instructions:

Prep the veggies the same as in Step 1 above.
Add the prepped veggies and all other ingredients to an Instant Pot and stir everything together so the ingredients are evenly distributed.
Close the lid and turn the vent to the "SEALED" position.
Set the settings on "PRESSURE COOK" --> "HIGH" --> "5 MINUTES".
When the timer goes off, carefully "QUICK RELEASE" the steam.
Remove the lid, stir the contents and adjust seasonings if preferred.

Recipe Notes

Seasonings. Adjust the salt and cayenne pepper to your preference (or omit) if you are serving to children or don't like spicy food.

Tomato Sauce. Try to buy tomato sauce in a glass jar or BPA-free can, if possible, to avoid BPA lining.

Onions. I've used both white onions and red onions and both work fine. Just use your favorite variety or whatever you have on hand.

Eggplant. I like to leave the skin on the eggplant but feel free to peel the skin off the eggplant before cutting it into cubes if you prefer.

Serving Size: This recipe will make approximately (4) cups. Nutritional information is for (1) cup which is (1) serving.

Recipe Source: Stovetop version was given to me by my dad (ILY).

Nutrition Information

Course:Main Course,Recipes

Cuisine:American

Recipe Author: Karielyn Tillman

Copyright Notice

The instructions, notes, and photographs for this recipe by Karielyn Tillman of The Healthy Family and Home™ website are copyrighted material. This copyrighted work is protected and licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives 4.0 International License and the Digital Millenium Copyright Act (DMCA) and cannot be legally used without my written permission.

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