Today I’m sharing a recipe that means a lot to me: my grandmother’s eggplant parmesan. A very simple and delicious recipe.
Eggplants are one of those vegetables that we find especially in the summer period and allow us to cook them fried, breaded, roasted, or as I present them this time in the form of parmesan. We can also make this version in two ways: red with sauce or white filled differently. My red parmesan encapsulates all the Naples-style tradition of the original recipe, which is to prepare it only with sauce and Parmesan cheese. Because adding other ingredients means not respecting the tradition and originality. Obviously, according to your taste, you can add all the ingredients you want, it will surely be tasty in the same way.
This is a delicious side dish, but it can easily replace a second course or start a meal if served as an accompaniment to an aperitif.
To prepare an excellent parmesan, follow all the steps carefully.
- Difficulty: Medium
- Cost: Medium
- Rest time: 15 Minutes
- Preparation time: 1 Hour 30 Minutes
- Portions: 4 People
- Cooking methods: Stovetop, Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Spring, Summer
Ingredients for preparing the eggplant parmesan
- 500 g tomato puree
- 1 white onion
- to taste extra virgin olive oil
- salt
- 1 kg eggplant (Long)
- sunflower oil
- basil
- 400 g grated Parmesan cheese
- to taste all-purpose flour (For breading)
- 5 eggs (For breading)
Tools
- 1 Pot
- 1 Cutting Board
- 1 Frying Pan
- 1 Colander
- 2 Plates
Steps to prepare the eggplant parmesan
To prepare the eggplant parmesan, you need to cook the tomato puree about an hour beforehand. In a pot, add a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and sauté the finely chopped onion. Add the tomato puree, salt, and some fresh basil leaves. Let it cook for half an hour on low heat.
Now let’s prepare the eggplants. After washing and trimming them, cut the eggplants lengthwise into slices about 1/8 inch thick.
I decided not to salt the eggplants; the choice is yours. Recently, the variety of eggplants has changed, they do not have much excess water and do not leave a bitter aftertaste in the mouth.
Take two plates or bowls, place the flour in one flat plate, and the beaten eggs with a pinch of salt in the deep one. Dredge the eggplants first in the flour, then in the beaten eggs.
In a deep frying pan, pour a generous amount of oil and heat it up. Once ready, start frying the eggplants, turning them on both sides. Take a plate with frying paper and lay the eggplant slices on it. Continue like this until you finish all the eggplants.
Let the tomato puree and eggplants cool for about half an hour. Once ready, you can prepare the parmesan. Start by arranging the first layer of fried eggplants on a ladle of tomato puree at the bottom of a baking dish, add a sprinkling of grated Parmesan and fresh basil leaves.
Cover the tomato puree with the second layer of eggplants. Add a ladle of sauce, basil, and grated Parmesan.
Continue this way for the next layers, I made 5. The final layer should be covered with tomato puree and a lot of Parmesan.
Preheat the oven to 356°F in ventilated mode, bake for about 30 minutes.
Let the parmesan rest for 10 minutes, it needs to settle before being cut.
You can prepare the parmesan the day before, it’s even better reheated!
You can store your parmesan in the fridge for 3 days.
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FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
Can I add mozzarella?
Of course, you can add mozzarella or melting cheese.
Of course, you can add mozzarella or melting cheese.
