The cold eggplant parmesan is a summer recipe prepared without an oven, one of the many traditional variants of the classic eggplant parmesan. Very common especially in the Messina area, the cold eggplant parmesan shares all the ingredients with the traditional one: the substantial difference is that it is not baked, but served cold or at room temperature: just what you need during these scorching days!
So to prepare the cold eggplant parmesan you only need to fry the eggplants and cook the tomato and basil sauce: you can then decide whether to plate this summer parmesan in individual dishes – aesthetically it is the best solution – or in a single serving plate (a more practical alternative if you have many guests). Cold eggplant parmesan is excellent as soon as it’s ready, but if you let it rest overnight in the refrigerator, it will gain even more flavor!
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- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Very economical
- Rest time: 30 Minutes
- Preparation time: 5 Minutes
- Portions: 2 people
- Cooking methods: Frying
- Cuisine: Regional Italian
- Seasonality: Spring, Summer
- Energy 417.83 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 32.59 (g) of which sugars 10.92 (g)
- Proteins 13.84 (g)
- Fat 29.30 (g) of which saturated 8.05 (g)of which unsaturated 3.26 (g)
- Fibers 11.97 (g)
- Sodium 573.98 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 333 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 for 2 servings of cold eggplant parmesan
- 2 lbs eggplants
- 14 oz tomato puree
- 1 clove onion
- to taste Parmigiano Reggiano DOP (grated, about 1/2 cup)
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- to taste salt
- to taste extra virgin olive oil (plenty, for frying)
- 1 sprig basil
Tools
- 1 Cutting Board
- 1 Knife
- 1 Colander
- 1 Pot or another weight, to drain the eggplants
- 1 Cloth
- 1 Pan
- 1 Saucepan
- 1 Spoon
- 2 Plates flat, to serve the parmesan
- Paper towel
How to prepare cold parmesan on a plate
For the English version of this recipe click here!
To prepare the cold eggplant parmesan, start by preparing and cooking the eggplants: wash them, dry them, and remove the stem. Then cut them into slices about a quarter of an inch thick (1). As always when you need to fry eggplants, it’s good to put them under salt and drain them.
This method helps not only to eliminate any bitter aftertaste, but also ensures they don’t absorb too much oil during cooking. Take a colander and place the eggplants in layers, sprinkling each layer with a good amount of fine salt (2).
Then take a weight – for instance, a pot full of water – and position it inside the colander so it presses down all the eggplants. Let them drain for at least 30 minutes, then remove the pot, rinse and squeeze the eggplant slices, and dry them thoroughly with a clean cloth (3).
Now proceed to fry the eggplants: because they naturally absorb a bit of oil, I use extra virgin olive oil for frying the eggplants. To avoid wasting too much, you can use a not-too-large pan and fry a few slices at a time. Pour plenty of oil and heat it very well.
Then fry the eggplant slices for 3-4 minutes (4), turning them occasionally, until they are lightly golden (5). Drain them and pat them well with kitchen paper.
Now prepare the tomato sauce: finely chop the onion and sauté it in a saucepan with 2 tablespoons of oil (6). Add the tomato puree (7) – if it’s very thick, dilute it with a little water – salt, and cook covered for about 20 minutes.
At the end of cooking, when the sauce has thickened, turn off the heat and add a few fresh basil leaves (8).
Now that the ingredients are ready, you can proceed to plate your cold eggplant parmesan: if there are few of you, I recommend plating it directly in individual dishes, so you won’t have to portion it and it will also be more visually appealing.
Smear the bottom of the plate with some tomato sauce (9). Form a first layer of eggplants, placing them close without overlapping (10). Season with some more sauce (11).
Then add plenty of grated parmesan (12). Overlap another layer of eggplants, season with sauce and parmesan, adding also two or three basil leaves (13).
Proceed in this way until you run out of ingredients (14). You can serve the cold parmesan immediately, or leave it to rest overnight in the refrigerator so it absorbs all the flavors.
I recommend not serving it cold from the refrigerator, but taking it out about twenty minutes earlier to fully savor all its aromas.
Storage
You can store the cold eggplant parmesan in the refrigerator for 3 days.
Tips and Variations
If you want a light version of this summer parmesan, you can avoid frying as per the original recipe and grill the eggplant slices on a non-stick griddle; alternatively, you can bake them in the oven, after brushing them with oil and slightly salting, for about 20 minutes at 350°F. If you don’t fry the eggplants, you can also skip salting them.
If you love Sicilian cuisine, don’t miss the section of the blog dedicated to it, which you can find here.
