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This baked Eggplant Parmesan recipe (aka eggplant parmigiana) is classic Italian comfort food at its finest, with crispy eggplant rounds, savory marinara, and gooey cheese. We’ve tested our recipe over and over to make it easier than most homemade versions, and it’s a total crowd pleaser!
It’s got bubbly cheese, garlicky tomato sauce, and savory, meaty breaded eggplant: it’s Eggplant Parmesan! This Italian classic dish is hearty, filling, and one of our very favorite vegetarian dinner recipes. But if you’ve ever tried your hand at it, you’ll know it takes quite a bit of effort to make at home.
Luckily, Alex and I have done extensive research and testing to find the best way to make it at home! Most restaurants use fried eggplant, but at home it’s much simpler to bake. This baked Eggplant Parmesan recipe is faster and easier to make than most recipes and full of incredible flavor.
Featured reader comments
“This recipe was excellent! It was flavorful and easy! The sauce was unbelievably delicious!” -Debra
“I have never made it before but have eaten it in restaurants and been disappointed. Once again, delicious! I appreciated the fire roasted tomatoes hack as I didn’t have any.” -Cheryl
Ingredients in this Eggplant Parmesan recipe
Eggplant Parmesan (eggplant Parmigiana) is a classic Italian dish made with layers of breaded eggplant, cheese, and tomato sauce, then baked until bubbly. Known as parmigiana di melanzane in Italian, it comes from the Southern regions of Calabria and Sicily but is now served all over the world.
The eggplant is fried in restaurant-style versions, but it’s easiest to make baked eggplant when making it in your home kitchen. For this recipe you only need to salt the eggplant for 10 minutes, so it’s quicker than most, too. Here’s what you’ll need for homemade baked eggplant Parmesan:
- Eggplant: Look for medium globe eggplants, so that the size of the rounds fit nicely in the pan.
- All-purpose flour, eggs, grated Parmesan cheese, and panko: This mixture is used for dredging the eggplant. For gluten-free, substitute almond flour or 1-for-1 gluten-free flour and gluten-free panko, or go to Keto Eggplant Parmesan.
- Fire roasted crushed tomatoes, garlic, dried oregano, fresh basil, and olive oil: You could use a purchased marinara sauce, but the flavor is much, much better when you make your own.
- Shredded whole milk mozzarella cheese: Used for topping. For vegan, go to Vegan Eggplant Parmesan.
A few ingredient notes
As with any Italian dish, the success of this Eggplant Parmesan recipe depends on the quality of ingredients! Here’s what to look for when you’re shopping:
- Look for medium eggplants. Size matters here: massive eggplant rounds don’t look quite as nice in the dish. But sometimes the grocery only has large eggplants, so use what you can find! The key is using 2 pounds of eggplant, and you’ll get about 18 to 20 sliced rounds.
- Use fire roasted tomatoes. Fire roasted tomatoes make the best flavor: they taste sweet and smoky right out of the can. If you can’t find them, substitute best quality tomatoes with 1 teaspoon sugar and ½ teaspoon smoked paprika. Or, use 1 ½ cups best quality marinara sauce.
- Whole milk mozzarella cheese makes a difference. It melts much better than part skim and has a richer flavor. It also melts better when reheating.
How to make Eggplant Parmesan: some tips
This baked Eggplant Parmesan recipe is faster and easier than most recipes, but it still takes about 1 hour to make and bake. Keep this in mind in your meal prepping (and review the notes below on make ahead tips). Here are a few notes about the process:
- Place salt on the eggplant for just 10 minutes. This seasons them prior to baking. Many recipes require you to salt the eggplant for 1 hour, but this is not necessary. In the past, people would do this to remove a bitter flavor, but today’s eggplants are bred to be less bitter. Salting also allows the eggplant to release moisture, but that’s not as important with this baked method as with frying.
- Dredge the eggplant in flour, egg and breadcrumbs. Doing this provides the crunchy outer coating for the eggplant rounds.
- Bake the eggplant for 20 minutes at 425°F, flipping once. The hot oven makes them crispy and golden brown: like frying but with no extra oil!
- Meanwhile, make the tomato sauce. Mix crushed tomatoes, garlic, fresh basil and olive oil.
- Layer the eggplant with tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese in a baking dish. Bake for 15 minutes until the cheese is bubbly.
Storing leftovers and make-ahead tips
This Eggplant Parmesan recipe takes about 1 hour to make, making it difficult to whip up for a quick weeknight dinner. We usually make this one for entertaining or on weekends, but you can also meal prep some of the components. This recipe also freezes well, which makes it great for a quick leftover dinner. Here are a few ideas for make ahead and storage:
- Bake the eggplant slices in advance. This saves about 40 minutes off the timing of the recipe. Refrigerate the slices, then layer the dish and bake the day of making.
- Leftovers store refrigerated for up to 3 days. You can make the entire dish in advance and refrigerate, but it’s so good freshly baked that we recommend the above option for make-ahead.
- Freeze leftovers in a sealed container for up to 3 months. Place on the counter or in the refrigerator to thaw, or you can place it right into a 375 degree oven and reheat until warmed through and the cheese is melted. Drain any excess liquid before serving.
Sides to serve with Eggplant Parmesan
Traditionally, Eggplant Parmigiana is served with pasta. But you can also serve with salads, sauteed veggies and more. It makes a hearty, crowd-pleasing vegetarian dinner that’s great for parties and impressing a crowd. Here are a few ideas:
- Pasta like angel hair pasta or linguine pasta
- Salads like a chopped salad, kale Caesar salad, or arugula salad
- Bread like a crusty bread or garlic bread
- Vegetables like green beans almondine, garlic green beans, sauteed broccolini, roasted broccolini, sauteed vegetables, sauteed rainbow chard, sauteed kale, or sauteed spinach.
Dietary notes
This baked Eggplant Parmesan recipe is vegetarian. For gluten-free, use almond flour and gluten-free breadcrumbs or go to Gluten Free Eggplant Parmesan. For vegan, to to Vegan Eggplant Parmesan.
Easy Eggplant Parmesan
This baked Eggplant Parmesan recipe (aka eggplant parmigiana) is classic Italian comfort food at its finest, with crispy eggplant rounds, savory marinara, and gooey cheese. We’ve tested our recipe over and over to make it easier than most homemade versions, and it’s a total crowd pleaser!
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 6 to 8 1x
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: Italian Inspired
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 2 pounds eggplant (about 2 medium large)
- ¾ cup flour*
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese, divided
- 1 cup plain panko (or purchased or homemade breadcrumbs)
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano, divided
- 1 ¾ teaspoons kosher salt, divided
- 28 ounces fire roasted crushed tomatoes*
- 2 garlic cloves, grated
- 1 handful fresh basil, chopped, plus more to garnish
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cups (8 ounces) shredded whole milk mozzarella cheese***
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Cut off the ends of the eggplant and cut it into 1/2-inch slices (to make approximately 18 slices). Sprinkle with ¾ teaspoon salt divided between the slices, and allow them to sit for 10 minutes while you prepare the breading ingredients. (Don’t wipe off any salt or extra moisture.)
- Place the flour on a plate. Beat the eggs in a shallow bowl and set it aside. In another shallow bowl, combine the Parmesan cheese, breadcrumbs, 2 teaspoons oregano, and ½ teaspoon kosher salt and set it aside.
- Dip both sides of each eggplant slice into the flour, then the eggs, then the Parmesan cheese mixture. Place each slice onto the prepared baking sheets. (Note: This gets messy; you may need to wash or wipe your fingers off after every few slices.)
- Place the trays in the oven and bake for 10 minutes, then flip and bake 10 to 15 minutes more, until tender and golden brown.
- Meanwhile, make the sauce: In a medium bowl, mix the fire roasted tomatoes, grated garlic, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, ¾ teaspoon kosher salt, chopped fresh basil, and olive oil. Mix well until all the olive oil is incorporated.
- Remove the eggplant from the oven. Spread 1 cup of the tomato sauce in the bottom of a 9 x 13″ pan. Add half the baked eggplant in a layer (about 9 slices), then top with 1 cup tomato sauce and 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese. Add the second layer of eggplant (we like to add them right on top of the first layer to make 9 stacks). Top with another 1 cup tomato sauce and 1 cup shredded mozzarella on each stack. Top with the remaining 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese.
- Bake for 15 minutes until the cheese is melted and browned. Allow to cool for 5 minutes, then top with additional chopped basil and serve. Store leftovers refrigerated for up to 3 days (or frozen for 3 months); reheat in the oven until warm.
Notes
*You’ll have about ⅓ cup flour left over and about 1 egg, but it’s easier for the breading. There also may be some panko left over. These items are not included in the nutritional info.
**Fire roasted tomatoes make the best flavor: they taste sweet and smoky right out of the can. If you can’t find them, substitute best quality tomatoes with 1 teaspoon sugar and ½ teaspoon smoked paprika. Or, use 1 ½ cups best quality marinara sauce.
***Whole milk mozzarella cheese melts much better than part skim mozzarella, and has a richer flavor. It also melts better when reheating leftovers.
More eggplant recipes
Love working with this tasty vegetable? Here are a few more eggplant recipes you’ll love:
- Bake up stunning eggplant lasagna or eggplant rollatini.
- Try our eggplant meatballs, roasted eggplant or sauteed eggplant.
- Opt for eggplant caponata.
- Try Japanese eggplant, or grab roasted eggplant pasta.
Absolutely love this Eggplant Parmesan recipe! The detailed instructions and helpful tips make it so approachable, even for beginners. Baking the eggplant instead of frying is a game-changer—healthier and just as delicious. The homemade marinara sauce with fire-roasted tomatoes is pure magic. Can’t wait to try this out for my next family dinner. Thanks for sharing such a gem