Crispy Baked Eggplant Sticks, a quick and crunchy side dish perfect for accompanying meat and fish dishes. A tasty alternative to grilled eggplant sticks in a pan, also great to serve as an appetizer or for a cocktail. The preparation is very simple. In a few simple steps, you will create breaded and crispy eggplant sticks baked in the oven. Alternatively, they can also be fried or cooked in an air fryer. For this recipe, I used long eggplants, which are certainly more suitable for this type of preparation. These eggplant sticks are so irresistible and crunchy that they disappeared in a flash! If you are curious to find out how to prepare them, follow me in the kitchen because the crispy baked eggplant sticks will be ready in a click!
If you are interested in other eggplant recipes, also read:
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very cheap
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 4 people
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Summer
- Energy 151.96 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 16.99 (g) of which sugars 2.58 (g)
- Proteins 6.40 (g)
- Fat 6.68 (g) of which saturated 2.41 (g)of which unsaturated 1.38 (g)
- Fibers 2.30 (g)
- Sodium 570.93 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 85 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
- eggplant
- 1 egg
- 2/3 cup breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup pecorino cheese
- paprika (to taste)
- extra virgin olive oil (to taste)
Tools
- Cutting board
- Knife
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- 2 Bowls
Steps
For this recipe, I used long black eggplants. In my opinion, they are more suitable for this type of preparation and especially more practical to cut into sticks. So, wash the eggplant, remove the stem, and cut it in half and then into slices. Then cut the sticks from each slice.
In one bowl, beat the egg, and in the other, mix breadcrumbs, Pecorino cheese, and paprika. I used sweet paprika, but if you prefer, you can use smoked paprika. Obviously, due to the presence of Pecorino in the breading, I found no need to add salt. However, you can add it after cooking if desired.
Dip the eggplant sticks first in the egg and then in the breading. You can repeat this step twice. Then arrange the sticks on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and drizzle with a little olive oil.
Bake in a fan oven at 356°F (180°C) for 15 minutes or until the sticks are golden brown on the surface. Obviously, cooking times may vary depending on the type of oven you have.
Variations and Tips
The crispy baked eggplant sticks can be stored for one or two days. Instead of paprika, you can use other spices or herbs of your choice.
