Baked Eggplant Parmesan Recipe (2024)

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Baked Eggplant Parmesan with plenty of cheesy goodness!

Baked Eggplant Parmesan is filling and flavorful, Italian comfort food; and leftovers reheat very well in the microwave!

This is one of my husband’s favorite meals. He loves it so much, he frequently orders eggplant Parmesan from our best local Italian restaurant. However, he says my lightened up version is way better than the fried eggplant he usually eats. How about that? Better than restaurant quality!

If you love eggplant, you’re going to love this recipe.

Is baked Eggplant Parmesan hard to make?

There’s nothing difficult about making this Italian-styled favorite. However, it requires several steps and a good bit of hands-on time. If you have a favorite sous chef in the house, an extra set of hands makes quick work of this dish.

First, sweat the eggplant:

Place the eggplant rounds on a paper towel lined baking sheet and salt both sides with kosher salt. Add another layer of paper towels, more eggplant, more salt, etc. Once all the eggplant is seasoned, place another baking sheet on top. Set a heavy pot on the top pan to add weight. Leave the eggplant to “sweat” out the excess moisture and to remove any bitterness. This will take about 45 minutes.

Prepare the breading:

In the bowl of a food processor, combine Panko bread crumbs, oregano, red pepper flakes, fresh grated Parmesan and black pepper. Pulse until ground, then pour into a shallow bowl or pie plate.In another separate bowl, add 1 cup of flour, and whisk the eggs in a third bowl.

Dredge and bake the eggplant:

Dip the sliced eggplant in the flour, then the egg, and then coat in the bread crumb mixture. Once all eggplant rounds are coated, bake on a hot, preheated, oiled baking pan. The key to making great baked eggplant, is to preheat the baking pans. The eggplant rounds sizzle the minute they hit the pan and creating a nice crispy crust.

Prepare the sauce:

This sauce is so easy to put together, it’s like opening a jar of store-bought marinara. You’ll need good quality San Marzano Style canned crushed tomatoes and a few herbs.

Combine the sauce ingredients and heat on medium-low while baking the eggplant. This recipe makes about 8 cups of thick marinara. You won’t need the entire 8 cups for the eggplant casserole. Use the extra sauce for serving with spaghetti or as an extra dollop on top, if desired.

Assemble the Eggplant Parmesan:

Pour a cup of tomato sauce in the bottom of a lightly greased 13×9-inch casserole pan. Layer half the eggplant, more sauce, and then half the mozzarella. Repeat with the remaining eggplant, sauce, Parmesan and the remaining mozzarella. Bake uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes.

The eggplant is already cooked through so it doesn’t need long. Once the sauce is bubbly and the cheese melted and browned, it’s ready to serve!

Does eggplant need to be salted to remove excess moisture?

There’s plenty of debate about whether or not eggplant needs to be salted to remove excess moisture. If you want to skip that step, I won’t tell. However, I can’t guarantee the breading will be crisp, and the eggplant soft and tender.

I’m normally very salt sensitive, but this dish does not bother me. Our homemade marinara sauce used in this recipe is not salty, like some you might find in a restaurant dish or on a pizza.

If you use jarred marinara sauce instead of our easy recipe, check the sodium content on the label.

We recommend using a coarse kosher salt to sweat the eggplant for several reasons. Larger coarse salt kernels won’t dissolve completely on the flesh of the eggplant, so it will be less salty.

Also, kosher salt is easier to wipe away before breading the eggplant. This process has always worked well for me, but feel free to use your best judgment.

Can Eggplant Parmesan be made ahead of time?

Yes indeed! Baked Eggplant Parmesan can be made up to 2 days in advance. Once baked, cool completely, cover with foil, and refrigerate. To reheat, pop the pan in a preheated oven and reheat for 15 minutes. Remove the foil and bake until bubbling around the edges, about 10 minutes more.

I know leftovers don’t normally sound as appealing as a dish fresh out of the oven. But this eggplant Parmesan recipes doesn’t loose a thing by being made ahead. Eggplant is like a flavor sponge, soaking up all the amazing deliciousness built into this dish.

Feel free to under-bake the casserole a little first time around. Reserve some shredded mozzarella to add during the last few minutes of reheating. The eggplant stays intact and maintains its nice silky texture. And, the flavor almost seems to bloom even more after it sits a while. Leftovers are amazing!

This Italian staple has been around for centuries.

Eggplant Parmesan probably didn’t start out like this with crispy breading and all, but aren’t glad it evolved? According to a history of Eggplant Parmesan, this dish may have come from the southern regions of Italy, near Naples and Sicily. Variations of this dish have beenaround for hundreds of years. It may have become popular around the time tomatoes moved in to stay in Italy.

Which is the best kind of eggplant to use in this Eggplant Parmesan recipe?

For this recipe we use 2 medium globe eggplants. If possible, select smaller eggplants, as the really large vegetables have tough skin. We like to use those about 3-inches in diameter at their widest spot. Globe eggplants are among the most inexpensive and are typically easy to find.

What’s good to serve with Eggplant Parmesan?

Crusty bread, a nice green tossed salad and hot spaghetti are our favorite sides to serve with eggplant Parmesan. A bottle of wine wouldn’t hurt, either.Buon Appetito!

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