The whole family will love this classic eggplant parmesan! Slices of tender eggplant coated in breadcrumbs and then layered with melted cheeses & rich homemade marinara! Whether you’d like to bake or air fry the eggplant, this recipe has a method for both. It’s just like chicken parmigiana – but made vegetarian with eggplant instead of chicken!
There are two methods to make this dish – fried or baked. Frying the eggplant will mean using quite a bit of oil to brown the breaded eggplant. Baking the breaded eggplant on a tray in the oven or in an air fryer requires a lot less oil, and is a bit
lighter and healthier! Either way you go, the dish will be exceptionally delicious.
Ingredients
2 pounds eggplant (about 2 medium /large)
¾ cup flour*
3 eggs
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese, divided
1 cup plain panko (or purchased or homemade breadcrumbs)
1 tablespoon dried oregano, divided
1 ¾ teaspoons kosher salt, divided
28 ounces fire roasted crushed tomatoes or See Recipe for Fresh Homemade Tomato Sauce
2 garlic cloves, grated or 2 Tbsp minced garlic in jar (in a pinch)
1 handful fresh basil, chopped, plus more to garnish
2 tablespoons olive oil to air fry 2 cups (give or take) to pan fry or ¼ cup to bake in oven
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded whole milk mozzarella cheese
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper, if you want easy clean up, if you don’t have parchment paper, its fine.
How to Make Eggplant Parmesan – Step by Step
Salt the 2 large eggplants (any type eggplant will work). Cut off the ends of the eggplant and after slicing the eggplant into 1/4 to 1/2-inch thick cuts, sprinkle with coarse salt and let the salt sit for 20-60 minutes. This helps release excess moisture from the eggplant. Pat the eggplant dry. Then use paper towels to pat the eggplant dry, wiping off the additional salt as well.
We salt eggplants to help remove some of the excess moisture that’s trapped in the vegetable. Generally speaking, when we apply heat to raw ingredients—be it a vegetable, or meat—we’re hoping to get water out of something, thus concentrating its flavor. Salting the cut side of an eggplant before you cook it helps draw out water—we won’t go into the specific science, but it involves words like “osmosis” and “ions”—and jump starts that process. Not only that, it helps to season the eggplant from the inside out, which means the creamy interior will taste every bit as delicious as the browned, caramelized exterior that you sprinkled with salt right before cooking.
We used to salt eggplants because they were bitter, but over the years that bitterness has been bred out of the more modern plants. This is all to say: Salting eggplant is a good idea, but isn’t strictly necessary in the way that it once was many generations ago.
Rushing to get your eggplant recipe on the table before your friends walk through the door? We officially give you permission to go ahead and skip that step. Have a bit more time on your hands and want to go the extra mile? Just do it! Whether you’re working with slices or chunks, all you have to do is generously season the exposed areas of the eggplant with kosher salt, and place them on a plate or sheet pan lined with paper towels to help soak up the moisture that comes out. And if you really want to go the extra-extra mile, you can arrange the salted pieces on a paper towel-lined baking sheet, place another layer of paper towels over them, and place another baking sheet over top, and weigh that down with a few heavy cans from the cupboard. That’s professional caliber stuff. The extra weight will force more moisture from the eggplant, and the paper towels will absorb it quickly. Bingo. Bango. Was that too much? Moving on…
Next we bread the eggplant.
Assemble three bowls or Ziplock bags if you want less dishes: the first with ½ cup all-purpose flour 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp Italian herb blend or fresh Italian herbs, Salt & pepper. Set aside.
The second bowl or Ziplock bag 3 large farm fresh whisked eggs (or 4 smaller eggs), Set aside.
and the third bowl or Ziplock bag 1 1/2 cups breadcrumb mixture, ½ c parmesan cheese, 1 tsp Italian herb blend or fresh Italian herbs, garlic salt, salt & pepper.
Dip the eggplant slices in flour. First, coat the eggplant with flour on both sides and along the skin-side.
Dip in egg-mixture. Then transfer to the whisked eggs, and coat on both sides.
Coat in breadcrumbs. Transfer to the breadcrumb bowl and lightly pack the breadcrumbs using your hands. Shake off excess crumbs and arrange on a sheet pan. (if you are baking or air frying the eggplant and not pan frying it, make sure the sheet pan is brushed or drizzled with olive oil ahead of time).
(Note: This gets messy; you may need to wash or wipe your fingers off after every few slices.)
*Baking method: Preheat the oven to 425F, and arrange the breaded eggplant slices on a sheet pan brushed or drizzled with olive oil. Place the trays in the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes, then flip and bake 10 to 15 minutes more, or until tender and golden brown.
*Pan fry method: in a skillet with 2 cups of oil at a time, brown breaded eggplant for 2-3 minutes on each side. Repeat until all of the eggplant is finished and golden brown. Place on paper towels after browning to absorb the extra oils.
*Air fry method: on pan drizzled with olive oil at 425F for approximately 8 minutes or until golden brown on each side.
Layer a baking dish with sauce. In a large baking dish, spread a layer of marinara or Fresh Homemade Tomato Sauce on the bottom.
Add browned eggplant slices on top of sauce. Then on top of the breaded and browned eggplant slices that were either baked or fried, layer
with slices of fresh mozzarella cheese. Top each of the mozzarella cheese slices with another dollop of sauce followed by another slice of browned eggplant then another dollop of sauce and another slice of fresh mozzarella cheese.
Layer with sauce. Top with a spoonful of marinara sauce or Fresh Homemade Tomato Sauce.
Bake for 15-25 minutes until cheese & sauce is bubbly and mozzarella is melted.
Sprinkle with parmesan, fresh basil and oregano before serving.
How to Freeze and Store Eggplant Parmesan
An ideal make-ahead dish, eggplant Parmesan can be prepared 2 days before you plan to serve it. Let it cool, then wrap the pan tightly with foil. Reheat, covered in foil, for approximately 30 minutes in a 350 degrees F oven. Remove the foil for the last 10 minutes.
If you want to freeze this eggplant Parmesan recipe to cook and serve down the road, assemble it through the final step but don’t put the pan in the oven. Tightly wrap the uncooked eggplant Parmesan in plastic wrap then cover it in aluminum foil and freeze for 2 to 3 months. Thaw completely then bake as directed.
What to Serve it With
Pasta. Noodles of any shape are a classic pairing with eggplant parmesan! We love serving this with whole wheat or regular pasta such as rigatoni, radiatori, fusilli, rotini, penne, or spaghetti. You can also use gluten-free or vegetable noodles too!
Salad. We always love pairing eggplant parmesan with a Mediterranean or Italian-style salad.
Bread. A crusty Italian bread, French banquette, or homemade sourdough loaf makes for the perfect vessel for scooping up any tomato sauce that gets left behind!
Vegetables. To add some color, we love to serve this with roasted, sauteed, or grilled vegetables! Whether sauteed Brussels sprouts, zucchini, roasted asparagus, or a medley of your favorite seasonal vegetables.
Pairs Perfect with Fresh Homemade Tomato Sauce