You don’t have to be vegetarian to enjoy this delicious lasagna-style dish. No meat necessary!
Eggplant parmigiana
Serves 4 – 6
Ingredients:
- 2 large eggplants (cut into ½” thick rounds)
- 6 cups homemade tomato sauce or store-bought sauce
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 5 large eggs
- 4 cups Italian style breadcrumbs
- 1 ½ lbs fresh mozzarella (cut into 1/8” thick slices)
- ½ cup Parmigiano-Reggiano
- 1 cup provolone (shredded, smoked is optional)
- 1 tbsp red chili flakes
- 1 cup fresh basil leaves
- 1 tbsp oregano
- 1 tbsp fresh thyme
- sea salt
- fresh cracked black pepper
- olive oil
- 1 x 9 x 13 baking dish
- 3 medium bowls
Method:
Line a baking tray with a kitchen towel. Sprinkle a pinch of salt on each slice of eggplant and lay down on tray for an hour so that the salt will remove some of the bitterness.
Preheat oven to 450°F.
In a medium bowl, add flour and combine with 2 tsp salt and 2 tsp fresh cracked black pepper.
In a medium bowl, beat eggs and combine with oregano and thyme. In a medium bowl, add bread crumbs.
Lay down each eggplant slice in the flour, shake excess off, submerge in egg, then firmly coat with breadcrumbs and set aside.
Preheat a large non-stick skillet to medium high, add 3 tbsp vegetable oil and fry eggplant until golden brown, approximately 2 minutes per side. Set aside in a baking tray lined with a kitchen towel to absorb excess oil, and season with salt.
Lay down a layer of tomato sauce in your baking dish to just coat the bottom, then cover with eggplant slices, then mozzarella slices, one thin layer of provolone cheese, torn basil leaves then add sauce. Repeat these steps until ingredients are used up.
For the top layer, add all the Parmigiano.
Place in the oven for 25-30 minutes and reduce heat to 350°F. Allow to cool for 10-15 minutes before serving.
Courtesy Devan Rajkumar