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It’s been one of my favorite things the last couple of years to share recipes with you all that are my personal family favorites in my Ian Era! Being as obsessed with food as I am, it has been so much fun to be living with an actual Chef, and somebody who loves flavor profiles as much as I do. It’s been especially fun to introduce him to some of our most favorite family recipes. When I crave comfort food, I always crave an Italian flavor palette, and in the last couple of months, I’ve been wanting Eggplant Parm SO much. Since we had our own amazing eggplants this year from our family garden, it was the perfect time to test out an Eggplant Parm recipe! Today I’m sharing with you our perfected Eggplant Parm.
I love that this has cheese, but isn’t overly heavy and that it can be cooked in a skillet for a beautiful presentation. I hope you love this as much as we do!
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Ingredients…
- 1 jar Tomato Sauce
- 1 bunch basil
- 1 bunch parsley
- Black pepper
- Salt
- Kosher salt (for salting, see below)
- Course salt (for garnish)
- Good Olive Oil (we like Frankies 365)
- 1 cup Cooking Olive Oil
- 2 cups Canola Oil
- 1 tub of Crumbled goat cheese
- 1 large ball (6-8oz) ball Buffalo Mozzarella (drained)
- 1 tub parmesan cheese (grated)
- 1 small 5 lb bag of All Purpose Flour (you’ll only use about half but this is the best increment to buy)
- 8 whole eggs
- 1 tub/tube 24oz Italian breadcrumbs
- 6-8 eggplant depending on size* (They should be about the thickness of a soda can and 10-12 inches long ideally)
Step 1:
Slice Eggplant
Slice your eggplant into coins about 1/4 of an inch thick. When you slice it’s okay if they’re thicker but not thinner! We want good texture and minimize oil absorption so this step is crucial—TAKE YOUR TIME!
Step 2:
Salt, Stack, Sit
Once the eggplant is all cut season each slice with a little bit of salt on both sides and place on one of your sheet pans with a cookie rack and paper towel in a single layer. When you run out of room (because you will!) place more paper towels on top of the slices and add more eggplant slices to the top repeat until you’re done. Add a paper towel to the top of this layered arrangement and place a plate on top. Let this sit for a minimum of 20-30 minutes to remove moisture. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees while you wait.
Step 3:
Prep and setup for breading
Beat the 8 eggs with a fork and place them in the bowl. Put 2-3 Cups flour on your second half-sheet tray and all the breadcrumbs on the third sheet tray. Put a fork on each of the trays containing flour and breadcrumbs and one in the eggs (this will keep your hands clean as you work).
Step 4:
Remove from paper towel and stack
Remove the eggplant from the paper towels and throw out the paper towels. Separate them into small, medium, and large stacks. This might seem crazy but will help immensely with the next steps of frying and building the dish. I promise!!!
Step 5:
Bread Eggplant
Standard breading procedure: take a bunch of slices and place them on the flour tray. Flip them all over and tap them lightly with the fork before transferring them to the eggs. Dip them in the eggs one at a time and transfer them to the bread crumbs coating both sides. Place the slices on the wrack you used to drain the salted eggplant. It’s okay to stack the eggplant on top of one another for this step.
Step 6:
Fry Eggplant
Once you’re done add 2 cups of canola oil and 1 cup of cooking olive oil (or 3 canola oil) to a pan and heat until it shimmers. You can test the temp by dropping a little bit of breadcrumb in—it should start sizzling immediately. Don’t let the oil smoke! Fry the eggplant until golden brown and transfer to paper towels.
Step 7:
Assemble and Bake
Season with a bit of salt when they come out. Work in layers like before once you’ve completed a layer add paper towels to the top and place more fried eggplant slices on the top and season with salt. Repeat until done.
To assemble:
Put half a cup of tomato sauce in the bottom of the pan and smear it around. Place your largest eggplant coins on the bottom. Ideally one in the middle and 5-7 around that. Place 1 torn-leaf basil, tomato sauce, a little crumbled goat cheese, and a few torn pieces of Mozzarella (if the cheese is still wet pat it dry). Season with a little salt and pepper and repeat until you’ve got 3-4 slices in each column.
Finish by sprinkling 1 cup of grated parmesan cheese and good olive oil over the whole thing. Bake @ 350f for 15-18 minutes. Turn on your broiler and finish for 3-5 minutes. KEEP AN EYE ON IT CAUSE IT WILL BURN. If it’s browning unevenly rotate the pan in the oven. If you don’t have a broiler feature crank the oven to 450f and add a few extra minutes 5-7 minutes. Remove from the oven once the cheese is golden brown and delicious. If you’ve got a cake you can poke one of the stacks. There should be some resistance but not a lot. The eggplant will continue to cook while it rests. Let the eggplant parm rest for 10-12 minutes and serve. This also freezes well and will keep in the fridge for 5-7 days.
Step 8:
Garnish and Serve
Chop or tear the remaining basil and 1 small bunch of parsley and sprinkle over the top. Season with a little coarse salt, good olive oil, and pepper. Enjoy!
Eggplant Parm
Equipment
- 1 Frying Pan 12-16inch pan with 3in sides
- 3 Baking Sheet Half sheets
- 2 Cooling racks
- 1 Paper Towel Roll
- 1 Spatula
- 1 Measuring Cups
- 3 Forks
- 1 Mixing Bowl
- 1 Pan shallow dish or pan for baking/presentaion of your Eggplant Parm
Ingredients
- 1 jar Tomato Sauce
- 1 bunch Basil
- 1 bunch Parsley
- Black Pepper
- Salt
- Kosher Salt
- Coarse Salt, For Garnish
- Olive Oil, A good one for taste
- 1 cup Olive Oil, For cooking
- 2 cups Canola Oil
- 1 tub Goat Cheese, Crumbled
- 1 tub Buffalo Mozzarella, Drained, 6-8 oz.
- 1 tub Parmesan Cheese, Grated
- 1 bag Flour, 5lb bag - you will use half
- 8 eggs
- 24 ounces Breadcrumbs, Italian
- 6-8 Eggplants, Thickness of a soda can and 10-12 inches long
Instructions
- Slice your eggplant into coins about 1/4 of an inch thick. When you slice it’s okay if they’re thicker but not thinner! We want good texture and minimize oil absorption so this step is crucial—TAKE YOUR TIME!
- Once the eggplant is all cut season each slice with a little bit of salt on both sides and place on one of your sheet pans with a cookie rack and paper towel in a single layer. When you run out of room (because you will!) place more paper towels on top of the slices and add more eggplant slices to the top repeat until you’re done. Add a paper towel to the top of this layered arrangement and place a plate on top. Let this sit for a minimum of 20-30 minutes to remove moisture. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees while you wait.
- Beat the 8 eggs with a fork and place them in the bowl. Put 2-3 Cups flour on your second half-sheet tray and all the breadcrumbs on the third sheet tray. Put a fork on each of the trays containing flour and breadcrumbs and one in the eggs (this will keep your hands clean as you work).
- Remove the eggplant from the paper towels and throw out the paper towels. Separate them into small, medium, and large stacks. This might seem crazy but will help immensely with the next steps of frying and building the dish. I promise!!!
- Standard breading procedure: take a bunch of slices and place them on the flour tray. Flip them all over and tap them lightly with the fork before transferring them to the eggs. Dip them in the eggs one at a time and transfer them to the bread crumbs coating both sides. Place the slices on the wrack you used to drain the salted eggplant. It’s okay to stack the eggplant on top of one another for this step.
- Once you’re done add 2 cups of canola oil and 1 cup of cooking olive oil (or 3 canola oil) to a pan and heat until it shimmers. You can test the temp by dropping a little bit of breadcrumb in—it should start sizzling immediately. Don’t let the oil smoke! Fry the eggplant until golden brown and transfer to paper towels.
- Season with a bit of salt when they come out. Work in layers like before once you’ve completed a layer add paper towels to the top and place more fried eggplant slices on the top and season with salt. Repeat until done. To assemble: Put half a cup of tomato sauce in the bottom of the pan and smear it around. Place your largest eggplant coins on the bottom. Ideally one in the middle and 5-7 around that. Place 1 torn-leaf basil, tomato sauce, a little crumbled goat cheese, and a few torn pieces of Mozzarella (if the cheese is still wet pat it dry). Season with a little salt and pepper and repeat until you’ve got 3-4 slices in each column.Finish by sprinkling 1 cup of grated parmesan cheese and good olive oil over the whole thing. Bake @ 350f for 15-18 minutes. Turn on your broiler and finish for 3-5 minutes. KEEP AN EYE ON IT CAUSE IT WILL BURN. If it’s browning unevenly rotate the pan in the oven. If you don’t have a broiler feature crank the oven to 450f and add a few extra minutes 5-7 minutes. Remove from the oven once the cheese is golden brown and delicious. If you’ve got a cake you can poke one of the stacks. There should be some resistance but not a lot. The eggplant will continue to cook while it rests. Let the eggplant parm rest for 10-12 minutes and serve. This also freezes well and will keep in the fridge for 5-7 days.
- Chop or tear the remaining basil and 1 small bunch of parsley and sprinkle over the top. Season with a little coarse salt, good olive oil, and pepper. Enjoy!
Nutrition
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This is last meal on earth worthy.
Can we get more details on the layering? I don’t see what to do with the goat cheese and mozzarella. I read it a few times. Looking forward to making this.
Hi! I’m so excited to make this! Am I missing something, because I’m a little unclear about the order of the layers and where the mozzarella and goat cheese and sauce come in to play. I’m already at the frying stage so I’m just going to wing it but I think maybe there are a few details missing?
Love your blog and recipes. We make your tomato soup almost weekly and our baby LOVES it.