Grilled Eggplant Parmesan
This is a healthier version of the traditional Italian dish “Melanzane alla Parmigiana”: I personally do not like fried foods although I do like eggplants cooked “alla parmigiana”. The only issue I have is that every time I eat them in the traditional version it takes me forever to digest them and I do feel stuffed, probably because I’m not used to fried foods.
A few notes before you start with this recipe: I tend to cook with less olive oil and salt than most people do, I usually just go by eye when I use them, so feel free to put as much as you wish. I used real Parmigiano Reggiano (that my mom brought me from Italy) and not “parmesan cheese”, which is cheaper but of a lower quality … when it comes to parmigiano I have to stick to the authentic stuff Mozzarelle a ciliegina literally means “mozzarella cherries”: these are small mozzarellas usually packed in a plastic container inside water. You can find them at Whole Foods and most other stores. I personally prefer them to the “dry” style of mozzarella that you mostly find here in the US.
Therefore, I came up with this lighter and healthier version of a dish that has been part of countless lunches or dinners with my family growing up.
This recipe makes a small batch, just 2 servings, so feel free to adjust the doses to your needs.
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Ingredients
- 1 medium-large eggplant
- 2 large tomatoes (heirloom are the best but I used the on-the-vine cluster tomatoes since I didn’t have heirloom)
- cup ½grated Parmigiano Reggiano
- 8 small mozzarelle a ciliegina
- cup ¾tomato sauce
- to your taste Extra virgin olive oil
- to your taste Pinch Himalayan salt
- Oregano
- 5-6 leaves basil
Ingredients
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Instructions
- Wash the eggplant, remove top and bottom part with a knife and then slice it horizontally into ¼’’ slices. Place the slices in a strainer, spread some Himalayan salt all over (do not exaggerate with salt) and let them sit for a couple hours in the strainer: the eggplants will start producing water and this process makes them get rid of the sour taste they have.
- While the eggplants “make water” (that’s how we say in Italian!), prepare all other ingredients: - cut the tomatoes into round slices (to match the eggplant slices), - chop the mozzarellas to desired size, - grate the parmigiano (if not already grated), - make your own tomato sauce, if you wish
- After a couple hours, squeeze the eggplants to remove all excess water and grill them: for grilling, I used a frying pan that I greased with a little bit of extra-virgin olive oil. You can use grapeseed oil or any other that has a better oxidation point than olive oil. You can alternatively use a cooking brush to rub each eggplant with oil prior to grilling it.
- Once all eggplant slices are grilled, take a glass or ceramic dish and start assembling the ingredients: spread some tomato sauce on the bottom of the baking dish, then add a layer of eggplants, some tomato sauce on top on them, tomato slices, chopped mozzarella, grated parmigiano, chopped basil leaves, little bit of extra-virgin olive oil, salt (if you need it, I didn’t add it), oregano.
- Continue in this order with as many layers as you want (or have the ingredients for!).
- Bake in the oven at 350F until the mozzarella on top is melted (about 15-20 minutes, but it all depends on the size of your dish and, most times, the oven…not all ovens work the same!). Remove from the oven, add some extra fresh basil leaves (if you love basil like I do), cool down and serve.
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