Baked Eggplant Parmesan Recipe – no mess, no fuss eggplant Parmesan with crispy breaded eggplant baked in the oven, not fried.
If you love eggplant, you will really enjoy this dish. You may also like my One-Pot Chicken Ratatouille! It’s packed with flavor and vegetables.
EGGPLANT PARMESAN
This Baked Eggplant Parmesan is an easy vegetarian dish for meatless Monday or when you want something meat-free, yet delicious and easy to make. Baking the breaded eggplant in the oven makes this version a no-mess and no-fuss dish. It’s super tasty too! You are also reducing calories by half since on average fried eggplant Parmesan is around 850 calories and this baked version has about 480 calories per serving.
Eggplant Parmesan Ingredients:
- 2 eggplants
- butter
- breadcrumbs
- Parmesan cheese
- paprika
- Italian seasoning
- garlic powder
- crushed tomatoes
- salt and pepper
- mozzarella cheese
How to make Baked Eggplant Parmesan?
- Start by slicing the eggplant into disks, salt them and let them sit in a colander to sweat. Prepared a breading station and coat each eggplant slice in butter, then breadcrumbs.
- Bake in the oven until crispy.
- Next, spread a generous layer of crushed tomatoes (or your favorite pasta sauce) on the bottom of the baking casserole dish. Season with Italian seasoning.
- Layer baked eggplant over the sauce and if needed, repeat layers.
- Top everything with a cheesy mix of mozzarella and Parmesan and baked until bubbly on the edges and the cheese is melted. Serve garnished with chopped basil or parsley.
Do I have to peel the eggplant for this dish?
Large eggplants can have thicker and more bitter skin so you may want to peel them. Otherwise, the peel is completely edible and as long as you don’t mind it, feel free to leave it on.
Can you freeze Eggplant Parmesan?
I do not recommend freezing this casserole as the breading on the eggplant will become soggy. If you want to make it and freeze it, skip the breading step, roast eggplant disks, then assemble the dish and freeze. Make sure to wrap tightly to preserve flavor and quality.
Can you make ahead Eggplant Parmesan?
The breading won’t be as crispy anymore but the dish is in fact very tasty reheated the next day. Leftovers have even deeper flavors.
Baked Eggplant Parmesan Variations:
- low-carb: skip the breading and roast eggplant disks in 400 degrees F oven for 15 minutes or more, if needed.
- gluten-free: same as above, skip the breading step and roast eggplant disks before using in the recipe.
- super time-saver: skip breading the eggplant and roast in the oven as mentioned above. Mix breadcrumbs with melted butter and sprinkle over eggplant layered in the casserole dish, then top with cheese.
More Delicious Vegetable Casseroles:
- One-Pot Chicken Ratatouille
- Cheesy Broccoli and Corn Casserole
- Mashed Potato Casserole
- Hashbrown Casserole
If you like this recipe and make it, snap a photo and share it on INSTAGRAM! Tag me @crunchycreamysweet so I can check it out and leave a comment! 😀
Baked Eggplant Parmesan
Ingredients
- 2 medium eggplants
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
- 1.5 cup breadcrumbs
- 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1.5 cups crushed tomatoes see notes
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1.5 cup grated mozzarella cheese
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Wash eggplants and trim off the green end. You can peel the skin if you like. Slice eggplant into 1/2" disks. Place in colander, sprinkle with salt and let sit for at least 20 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Melt butter in a small bowl. Mix breadcrumbs, spices and Parmesan cheese in another bowl.
- Dip eggplant into butter, then breading mixture. Place on baking sheet.
- Bake for 15 minutes, then flip onto the other side and baked for 7 more minutes.
- Lower oven temperature to 375 degrees F. Butter a casserole dish (2-quart or 13"x9").
- Spread half of crushed tomatoes on the bottom of the casserole dish. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Layer baked eggplant over the sauce. It's okay if the slices overlap each other a little bit. Pour remaining amount of crushed tomatoes on top. Layer remaining eggplant slices. Top with mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.
- Bake for 15 minutes or until you see bubbles on the edges and cheese is melted. Serve cooled and garnished with chopped parsley.
Daisy says
Thank you for including the low carb option!
Krista says
What a great use of eggplant! This will be a hit at my house for sure!
Erin says
This is such an awesome idea! A new favorite in my house!
Katerina says
This looks incredibly delicious!! I LOVE it!!
Michelle says
Perfect time to happen upon this recipe. We grew eggplant for the first time this year and have several we must use up soon.
Kristyn Merkley says
This is one of my family’s favorites! Super delicious!
Chrissie Baker says
What a great idea! Love this. I’m sure this is incredibly delicious!
Melanie Bauer says
I love it! So flavorful crispy and delicious appetizer or side dish it is, yum!
Kimberly says
Now THAT’S the way to eat eggplant, deeeelicious!
Anna@CrunchyCreamySweet says
Yay! Thank you, Kimberly!
Emily Hill says
This looks like the yummiest baked eggplant parmesan I’ve seen!
Anna@CrunchyCreamySweet says
Thanks, Emily!
Jessica says
Okay this sounds amazing! Thank you!
Anna@CrunchyCreamySweet says
You are very welcome, Jessica!