Eggplant Parmesan

Eggplant Parmesan is one of my favorite dishes when I want to go meatless. Not convinced that a meatless meal can be a hearty meal? I would urge you to give eggplant parmesan a try.

I have to say that eggplant parmesan may not be the quickest dish to make, but I promise the results are better than most of the eggplant you get at a restaurant. Give this recipe a try, and I promise you will want to make eggplant parmesan often.

Sometimes when you order this dish from a restaurant it is soggy, but yours won’t be soggy.

We are going to slice the eggplant and then salt it and wait to let the salt pull out excess water so we will have eggplant that isn’t soggy.

After the water pools up on the eggplant, you will need to blot off the excess with a paper towel to remove the excess water and, more importantly, the excess salt.

Ingredients

Here’s a list of what you need:

• Eggplant
• Salt
• All-purpose flour
• Bread flour
• Eggs
• Olive oil
• Onion
• Garlic
• Canned stewed tomatoes
• Italian seasoning blend
• Vegetable oil
• Shredded Parmesan cheese
• Mozzarella cheese

I am using breadcrumbs for this recipe to coat the eggplant. I like to use homemade, but store-bought will also work just fine.

How to Make Eggplant Parmesan

1. Wash and slice the eggplant into 3/8-inch slices.
2. Sprinkle salt over the sliced eggplant on both sides. Place salted eggplant on a rack over a pan or paper towels.
3. Allow eggplant to rest for about an hour.
4. Pat eggplant dry with paper towels at the end of the hour to remove excess water and salt.
5. In a medium-size saucepan over medium heat, combine oil, onions, and garlic. Cook until the onions have become translucent.
6. Add stewed tomatoes and Italian seasoning and stir. Reduce heat to low and allow to simmer. 
7. Create an egg wash by whisking together 3 eggs.
8. Drop sliced eggplant into the egg wash, then flour, and place on a wire rack.
9. Drop floured eggplant into the egg wash then dredge in breadcrumbs. 
10. Place the breaded eggplant back on the wire rack.
11. Place oil in the bottom of a large skillet over medium-high heat.
12. Cook breaded eggplant for a couple of minutes on each side, until golden brown on both sides.
13. Allow cooked eggplant to drain on a wire rack.
14. Place cooked eggplant in a baking dish and top each piece with Parmesan cheese.
15. Ladle some sauce over each piece of eggplant.
16. Top with Mozzarella cheese and bake at 375 degrees until the cheese has melted.

Recipe Notes

When I cook up the eggplant, I sometimes cook a few extra pieces and allow them to cool. Then I store them without the sauce. This way when I reheat the eggplant another evening it will be crisp and less soggy when I reheat the eggplant parmesan.

After I cook the eggplant I like to let it rest on a wire rack. I think it drains of better on a wire rack than paper towels.

When you put it on paper towels, the bottom side can steam with the heat of the food. The wire rack allows the eggplant to simply drain leaving both sides crispy.

No matter how you do it, you can make a delicious eggplant Parmesan that will rival any restaurant’s recipe.

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