An oven-fry method creates this crispy Baked Eggplant Parmesan that rivals any fried version. This is an easy, updated take on the classic Italian dish.
More wholesome recipes we love include my Italian Stuffed Zucchini Boats and Italian Stuffed Peppers.
Aaahhh, cheesy Baked Eggplant Parmesan. One of my husband’s favorites. I remember making it for the first time ages ago and wondering how my kids would perceive it. I mean, there’s no meat in it! Not necessarily an easy selling point to four teenage boys.
Because it resembles lasagna they dove right in without even asking what it was… and it was love at first bite. So, there you go!
I find this oven-fry method is easier to prepare than the traditional fried version and it’s definitely a little easier on the waistline without forfeiting any of the delicious flavor or texture. Try it and you’ll see.
Table of contents
Ingredient Notes
- Eggplant – You’ll need a couple of good sized eggplant with a total weight of about 2¼ pounds.
- Salt – For sweating the eggplant.
- Eggs – Three large eggs, beaten.
- Italian seasoned panko bread crumbs – Buying pre-seasoned bread crumbs is a great way to limit the number of ingredients and steps needed.
- Marinara sauce – A 24 to 26 ounce jar of your favorite store-bought marinara sauce.
- Cheese – You could mix things up by using different varieties of Italian cheese but for this recipe I always go with sliced fresh mozzarella and a little Parmesan. Fresh mozzarella has such a luscious, creamy quality and layers nicely on the eggplant stacks.
- Basil – Garnish the Baked Eggplant Parmesan with some sliced fresh basil. If you don’t have any on hand, just sprinkle the top with a little dried basil.
Should I Peel the Eggplant?
Whether you peel eggplant is a personal preference. I love the deep purple color not to mention that there are vitamins and additional flavor in the skin so I prefer unpeeled eggplant for this recipe.
I’ve made this Baked Eggplant Parmesan recipe with both peeled and unpeeled eggplant with a good result.
Do I Need to Sweat Eggplant?
Don’t sweat the small stuff, but definitely sweat your eggplant! Sweating is the process of salting your eggplant slices and allowing them to rest for about an hour or more. The salt will pull some of the potentially bitter liquid from the eggplant.
Less moisture in the eggplant slices also helps them to crisp up nicely in the “oven-fry” method in this recipe. Once they’ve sweat, just be sure to rinse them well with cool water to remove the excess salt and blot them dry before breading them.
How to Sweat Eggplant
- Sprinkle some salt on both sides of each slice of eggplant.
- Layer the slices in a colander and place the colander in your sink. Set a heavy dish or pan over the top to weigh them down.
- Allow the eggplant to sweat for 30 to 45 minutes.
- Rinse the slices well with cold water to remove any excess salt and blot them dry with paper towels.
How to Make Baked Eggplant Parmesan
- Bread the eggplant – Lightly whisk the eggs in a shallow dish, like a pie plate. Add the bread crumbs to another shallow dish. Dip the eggplant slices in egg, then in the bread crumbs, pressing the crumbs down with fingers to cover them evenly. Place them in a single layer on the greased baking sheet and lightly spray the tops of the breaded eggplant with nonstick cooking spray.
- Oven-fry the eggplant – Bake at 425 degree F for 10 minutes then carefully flip each slice over and cook for an additional 5 to 10 minutes, or until nicely browned. Remove from the oven and reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.
- Assemble – In a 9- x 13-inch baking dish, spread just enough marinara to cover the bottom of the dish. Place a layer of breaded eggplant slices over the sauce. Cover each slice with a spoon full of marinara, a slice or two of mozzarella, and then sprinkle with Parmesan cheese (reserve half of the cheeses for top layer). Repeat layering one more time, ending with the remaining cheese. If using dried basil, sprinkle it evenly over the top. If using fresh basil, reserve it for later.
- Bake – Transfer the baking dish to the oven and bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Garnish with fresh basil (f using) before serving.
This is one of our favorite Italian-inspired meals in this house. I’ve made it countless times and it remains at the top of the list!
More Eggplant Recipes You’ll Love
Julia Child’s Eggplant Pizzas | Kayln’s Kitchen
Eggplant Fries with Marinara Sauce | A Family Feast
Garlic and Roasted Eggplant Hummus | Melanie Makes
Stuffed Eggplant | The Little Kitchen
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Baked Eggplant Parmesan
Ingredients
- 2 eggplant (about 2¼ pounds), sliced ¼-inch thick (you'll need 12 slices)
- salt, as needed
- 3 eggs, beaten
- 8 ounces Italian seasoned panko bread crumbs
- 24 ounces marinara sauce
- 16 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced
- ½ cup grated parmesan cheese
- ¼ cup torn fresh basil, or 1 teaspoon dried basil
- cooking spray
Instructions
- Sprinkle some salt on both sides of each slice of eggplant. Layer the slices in a colander and place the colander in your sink. Place a heavy dish or pan over the top to press them down. Allow the eggplant to sweat for 30 to 45 minutes. Rinse the slices well with cold water to remove salt and blot them dry with paper towels.
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Spray a rimmed baking sheet generously with nonstick cooking spray.
- Dip the eggplant slices in egg, then in the bread crumbs, pressing the crumbs down with fingers to cover them evenly. Place them in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet and lightly spray the tops of the breaded eggplant with nonstick cooking spray. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes then carefully flip each slice over and cook for an additional 5 to 10 minutes, or until nicely browned. Remove from the oven and reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.
- In a 9- x 13-inch baking dish, spread just enough marinara to cover the bottom of the dish. Place a layer of eggplant slices over the sauce. Cover each slice with a spoon full of marinara, a slice or two of mozzarella, and then sprinkle with Parmesan cheese (reserve half of the cheeses for top layer). Layer the remaining eggplant slices over the top and add another spoon full of marinara on top of each. Spoon any remaining marinara around the edges of the eggplant stacks then top each stack with the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. If using dried basil, sprinkle it evenly over the top. If using fresh basil, reserve it for later.
- Bake, uncovered, in preheated oven for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and garnish with fresh basil, if using.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated using generic ingredients, and is an estimate not a guarantee. For more accurate results, please refer to the labels on your ingredients at home.
More Italian Recipes
Slightly adapted from Allrecipes.com
This post was originally published on September 11, 2011. It has been updated with new photos and an instructional video.
Thank you for the recipe! I have been experimenting with baked eggplant and so far I have not nailed it. This version is inspiring. Let’s see how I do! 🙂
I’m glad you’ll be trying it, Fernanda! Be sure to come back and let me know how it works out for you 🙂
Thank you for this great recipe! I love eggplant but hate all the frying (it’s messy and takes forever). Why did I never think of baking them with the breadcrumbs? I will definitely try this recipe. You just made my day!
Thanks Carol! I hope it works well for you. I love the baking method.
I have made eggplant parmigiana for many years the old way ??♀️ So happy to come across this recipe baking it!! Saved me a ton of time. Put it in the oven an just waiting. Thank you!! All Italian from Brooklyn N.Y
Hope you loved it, Joan! 🙂
How come in my oven the eggplant takes forever to turn brown , i had in in there longer than 25 min and it did not turn brown almost at all. Finally i took it out because it took too long. I did everything like in the recepie.
Hello Jowita. In my oven, 20 minutes at 425 degrees is plenty to brown the breaded eggplant slices. Your oven may be different. You can try increasing the oven temp a little or leaving it in longer.
FYI, your recipe has 400 degrees shown. So you would reccomend 425?
Hi Kathy. I recommend starting it at 400 degrees F but if you find the eggplant is not crisping up to your liking, go ahead and up the oven temp to 425.
this looks really yummy and how i am looking to make it. thanks for sharing!
It looks super yummy! I am a huge eggplant fan but hearing that your kids liked it entices me even more to make it. I have a very, very picky ten year old daughter who is not fond of many vegetables. Luckily, she loves just about anything that has a tomato sauce so I will definitely try this. I’m always on the lookout to boost her vegetable consumption! Did your children realize that it was a vegetable they were eating? Thanks again for the recipe!
Making this for a friend tonight, looks delicious, can’t wait to try it..
Yes, I like to bake mine too! Much healthier that way! Great post and pics!
Hi Valerie! What a simple and delicious recipe for one of my favorites! I also like that they retain a better individual serving portion that most “layered” methods. Thanks for a pretty and yummy new non meat entree! =)
Valerie … just discovered your wonderful blog through a friend, and can’t tell you how much I enjoyed the eggplant recipe and cannot wait to try it. However, if at all possible, could you PLEASE include nutirtional values for those of us who are diabetic??? Thank you so very much and God Bless !!!
Thank you so much Mildred. I hope that you enjoy the Eggplant Parm. I have not looked into what is involved in providing nutritional break downs of my recipes and it is definitely something worth looking into. Thank you for the suggestion 🙂
At what temp do you bake the assembled dish?
When you remove the breaded eggplant slices from the oven, you will reduce the oven temp down to 350. Then the assembled dish goes back into the oven and bakes at 350 degrees. Good catch Laura! Thank you and enjoy!
It said to reduce oven temperature to 350
This sounds great, we’ll try it soon. Your blog is wonderful.
Thanks Bill 🙂 Have a great weekend!
What a great idea for eggplant. Will use this tip for other dishes as well. We lived at Morgan Hill for for 16 months back in 2001-2002. We miss the great freinds we met there. God bless you and thanks for your blog. David
Thanks for stopping by David. We were just in Morgan Hill over the weekend! Small world. Enjoy 🙂
This is one of the worst food websites I have come across. There is no focus on the recipe it’s all ads.
I can understand your frustration, Ann, but without the ads there would be no web site at all. Running a site like this takes a huge amount of time and effort and there are costs involved with recipe development, testing, photography equipment and editing tools, web hosting, and a long list of other items. Ad revenue is the main income stream for most food bloggers and it is how we cover these costs. This is also how we earn our living so of course we have to run ads to make it possible to provide our recipes to our readers at no cost.
It’s no big deal to scroll by the ads, and sometimes I actually see one I’m interested in – thanks for a great recipe!
How can you complain when the food bloggers are doing all of the work for you for free? Yeez!