Crispy oven baked eggplant cutlets are the perfect Italian side dish. Sliced eggplant is coated in a breadcrumb and parmesan cheese mixture and crisped to perfection.
Baked Eggplant Cutlets
I have eaten far too many sloppy and mushy eggplant parmesan dishes to have sworn off eggplant forever. The breading gets soggy, it falls off the eggplant, and you’re left with a mushy, seedy piece of eggplant that just flops off your fork. Gross.
Here’s the thing- eggplant is in season and I actually enjoy eating a wide variety of produce, so I had no choice but to get over it. I set out to make baked eggplant cutlets that would be tender on the inside, crunchy on the outside, and have breading that actually sticks.
Now that I have perfected this recipe, gone are the days that the eggplant will never see the light of day outside of my fridge. There are no more rotting eggplants that serve as kitchen decor. Dramatic, I know.
In all seriousness, this recipe really just gave me an excuse to whip up my all time favorite recipe- Red Wine Pasta Sauce. I grabbed my own bowl of sauce so I could double dip these extra crispy eggplant slices however much I liked. Top with a little (or a lot) of parmesan cheese and you have yourself a whole dish- eggplant parmesan. These bad boys didn’t make it to become a eggplant parmesan because they were being eaten right off the baking tray. *slaps hands creeping up on my counter with spatula*
Healthy Baked Eggplant
Ingredients for oven baked eggplant slices:
- 1 large eggplant
- 1 egg
- Italian breadcrumbs
- parmesan cheese
- Italian seasoning
Tips for baked eggplant recipe:
- Slice the eggplant into 1/4 inch slices. This is a perfect size to easily bake them and allow them to expel water evenly.
- Slice, salt, and rest. Slice the eggplant, then put them in a single layer on a cooling rack. Salt the eggplant slices, then let them rest for 15 minutes. This allows the eggplant to expel some water which makes the breadcrumb mixture stick better.
- Flip the eggplant slices, salt, and rest again. Allow the other side to expel water for 15 minutes.
- Dab the eggplant slices with a paper towel. Soak up all the excess water with a paper towel.
Baked Parmesan Eggplant
How to make Baked Italian Eggplant Cutlets:
- Slice the eggplant, salt it, and let it rest. Allow each side to rest for 15 minutes to help expel excess water. Dab the water off the eggplant slices.
- Whisk the egg. Set to the side.
- Combine the breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, and Italian seasoning.
- Preheat the oven to 400 ° F.
- Dunk the eggplant slice in the egg, then into the breadcrumb mixture. Press the breadcrumb mixture onto the eggplant slices to help it stick.
- Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 15 minutes, then flip the eggplant slices and bake for 7 more minutes.
- Remove from the oven. Eat it up!
More Delicious Vegetable Dishes
Carrot Top Pesto Over Roasted Carrots 
Honey Balsamic Roasted Beets 
Oven Roasted Vegetables with Thyme 
Beer and Bacon Brussels Sprouts 
Cheesy Green Beans
More Backyard Bohemian Classics
- Easy Olive and Herb Focaccia
- Authentic Key Lime Pie Recipe
- Frijol Con Puerco (Mexican Pork and Beans)
- Deep Fried Neapolitan Pizza
- Banana Foster French Toast
Crispy Baked Parmesan Eggplant
Follow me on Pinterest to see what other ideas I recommend!
Crispy Baked Italian Eggplant
Crispy oven baked eggplant cutlets are the perfect Italian side dish. Sliced eggplant is coated in a breadcrumb and parmesan cheese mixture and crisped to perfection.
Ingredients
- 1 eggplant sliced into 1/4 inch disks
- 1 egg whisked
- 1/2 cup Italian breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese finely shredded
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 400°F. Slice the eggplant into 1/4 inch disks. Lay the eggplant out in a single layer on a cooling rack. Sprinkle with salt, and let sit for 15 minutes. Dab with a paper towel to absorb the expelled water, then flip to the other side. Salt the other side, let sit for 15 minutes, then dab again to remove excess water.
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In a small bowl, whisk an egg. Set to the side. In another bowl, mix the Italian breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, and Italian seasoning.
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Dip the eggplant in the egg first, then hover over the eggplant over the bowl to let the excess egg drip off. Dunk in the breadcrumb mixture, and lightly apply pressure so the breadcrumbs adhere better.
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Arrange breaded eggplant in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes. Flip the eggplant, then bake for another 5-7 minutes. Remove from the oven and mangia!
First time making eggplant and it was a hit! Great recipe, baked mine on a wire rack which alleviated the flipping- worked great!
I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe! Thanks for the tip! I will put that in my blog for readers to try, as well!