Eggplant Parmigiana

Eggplant Parmigiana can be thought of as a vegetarian Lasagna without pasta. It is composed of thin eggplant slices stacked with tomato sauce, fresh basil, and lots of melted cheese. It’s a low-carb dream come true, known as Eggplant Parmesan in the US and Parmigiana di Melanzane in Italy!

Due to reader demand, this recipe was added to my first cookbook, “Dinner.”

Eggplant Parmigiana

If Greek moussaka is the Italian equivalent of lasagna, then eggplant Parmigiana is Italy’s resurgence. And what a triumph it is!

This southern Italian classic is one of those amazing vegetarian dinners that is so delicious that even carnivores with credit cards won’t stop to ask, “Where’s the meat??” For everyone, this is comfort food.If Greek moussaka is the Italian equivalent of lasagna, then eggplant Parmigiana is Italy’s resurgence. And what a triumph it is!Eggplant Parmigiana

With melted mozzarella on top and the savory hum of parmesan inside, it is dripping with cheesy delight. Fresh tomato sauce gives it a glossy, vibrant appearance. Similar to a delicious margherita pizza, it is peppered with enticing bursts of fresh basil leaves. You also receive a mouthful of the soft, moist layers of eggplant with each bite.

This meal requires several stages to prepare. But it’s worth every second since it’s one of the best low-carb, vegetarian dinners you’ll ever find!

The three parts of Eggplant Parmigiana

The three components of eggplant Parmigiana are as follows:

1. Thin slices of eggplant –Instead of using the conventional technique of deep-frying in a lot of oil, I choose to bake. Your hips will appreciate the oil, but I promise you won’t miss it as much as fried eggplant tastes!
2. Tomato sauce (sugo) –To develop flavor, cook out the tomato, and thicken it so it’s not watery, we simmer it for 30 minutes in a semi-quick method.
3. Fresh basil and cheese –For the layers.

What you need to make Eggplant Parmigiana

1 Eggplant slices

To begin, gather the following ingredients for the eggplant slices:

• Eggplants / aubergines –For this recipe, four to five eggplants of a respectable size are required. 1.8 kilograms, or 3.6 lbs, total. Although this may seem like a lot, we must have them! We need enough eggplant to cover three layers of a full-size casserole dish because it shrinks while cooking. We also need more because the eggplant is sliced roughly three times thicker than it is for Greek moussaka.
• Olive oil –for brushing before to baking. Oil keeps the slices wet and helps them fry.

2. Tomato sauce (“sugo”)

Eggplant Parmigiana’s sauce is a traditional tomato sugo, or “sauce” in Italian. In order to prevent water from leaking out of the sauce while the eggplant Parmigiana cooks and creating a “split” sauce, it is thicker than spaghetti. Additionally, it will be impossible to serve the eggplant Parmigiana in (relatively!) tidy slices because it is too messy.

What you need is as follows:

• Tomato passata –In the US, pureed, strained tomatoes are sometimes referred to as “tomato puree” (see this picture of Mutti tomato passata from Walmart). These days, it’s easily found in Australian stores next to spaghetti sauces. It’s great for creating smooth, thick sauces with passata. Here’s more about tomato passata:
• Crushed or finely diced tomato –Since we prefer some texture and chunkiness over a flawlessly smooth sugo, we also add some finely diced tomato. Your sauce will taste better the higher the quality of your tinned tomato! Cheap canned tomatoes are sometimes acidic and don’t taste like tomatoes at all!
• Oregano –Alternatively, basil will work wonders here;
• Garlic –Lots of stuff! Tomatoes and garlic are like Adam and Eve together.
• Sugar –Just enough to balance the sourness and highlight the tomato’s inherent sweetness. You can omit the sugar if you have the time to boil the tomato sauce for 1 1/2 hours.

3. Cheese and basil for layers

We use basil and parmesan cheese in between the eggplant layers to create the layers. Lastly, we sprinkle the top with mozzarella:

• Parmesan –It’s all in the name: the key seasoning and flavoring for eggplant Parmigiana is parmesan! To ensure that its cheese, savory flavor permeates every bite, we finely grate it and sprinkle it on top of each layer;
• Mozzarella –As I mentioned up front, eggplant Parmigiana has a ton of molten cheesy goodness! Hey, this is a low-carb recipe, so we can afford the calories!
• Fresh basil –Basil is the perfect accompaniment to tomatoes! We use leaves as a garnish for the final dish and on all of the layers.

How to make Eggplant Parmigiana

Steps:

Slices of eggplant are baked, then sauce is made. Put together and bake!

1. Eggplant slices:Cut the eggplant lengthwise into slices that are 8 mm (⅓”) thick. Spread olive oil on each side of each slice after placing them on three prepared pans.
2. BakeBake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the eggplant is lightly browned, at 220°C (430°F).
3. No salt?Yes, without salt. Recipes frequently call for salt to be sprinkled over raw eggplant in order to extract water, which softens the flesh and reduces the amount of oil the eggplant absorbs during cooking. It’s also common knowledge that salt eliminates eggplant’s bitter flavor. In actuality, though, modern eggplants have had any bitterness bred out of them, so this procedure is no longer required.
4. In our experience, adding salt to eggplant for Eggplant Parmigiana results in an overly salty dish once the parmesan is added (even after the moisture has been patted off) and the tomato sauce is already seasoned. The eggplant meat is exquisitely moist and tender thanks to the tomato sauce in this dish as well. Don’t use salt, then!

A raw eggplant slice that has been coated with olive oil and prepared for baking in Eggplant Parmigiana.

2. Tomato sauce (“sugo”)

3 Sauté Add the oil, onion, and garlic, followed by the crushed tomato, tomato passata, oregano or basil, salt, and pepper.

4 Simmer as shown in the picture below, for 30 minutes, or until it reduces to a pretty thick sauce. You should be able to sketch a line that stays visible for a short while along the pot’s base.

The sauce must be quite thick to avoid a messy, “split”-looking eggplant Parmigiana that is difficult to slice carefully.

3. Assembling and baking Eggplant Parmigiana

1. Smear Put some tomato sauce on a baking dish’s bottom. This prevents the eggplant’s first layer from moving;
2. Eggplant layer:Top with a layer of eggplant, using 1/3 of the eggplant;
3. Tomato sauce:Apply one-third of the tomato sauce on the eggplant.
4. Olive oil:Pour some olive oil over it;
5. Basil: Add one-third of the basil leaves;
6. Parmesan: Add one-third of the parmesan cheese;
7. Repeat:For a total of three eggplant layers, repeat the layering process twice more. Add everything to the topmost layer (a) except the basil, which we’ll keep for a later fresh garnish; (b) then top with all of the mozzarella for our melted cheese garnish.
8. Bake Bake at 180°C (350°F) for 25 minutes, or until the mozzarella is golden and bubbling and the aromas coming from your oven are unbelievably delicious Just before serving, sprinkle with the remaining fresh basil leaves.

Before slicing to serve, let the eggplant Parmigiana rest for five to ten minutes. This allows it to cool and solidify a bit, making it easier to cut clean (approximately) slices, such as this: