Crispy Oven Fried Eggplant
Great as a stand alone appetizer with a marinara sauce, or to accompany steak, chops and sautéed fish.
I’ve been making eggplant this way for so long, I’ve lost track of where I got the original recipe. But this method of cooking slices of eggplant makes it a very versatile addition to other dishes, like the Kitchen Tapestry recipe for Fillets of Beef with Mushroom Cognac Sauce. Or, it is just as delicious as a stand-alone side dish, or even as an appetizer served along side a dipping marinara sauce.
Eggplant is called an Aubergine in the UK, but it didn’t arrive in the British isles until sometime in the 16th Century. The origins of the plant are in some dispute, but it is believed to have emerged in South Asia where it grows wild to this day. There are no known names for it in ancient Greek or Latin, so Eggplant was unknown to the ancient world and it wasn’t until the early middle ages when it found its way to Spain in the 8th Century. Botanically, Eggplant is actually a berry and is related to the tomato, even though the tomato developed on an entirely different continent in the New World.
Crispy Oven Fried Eggplant
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp salt
- 1 medium eggplant, peeled and sliced to about one-inch thick for 8 slices
- 8 tbsp mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese (like, Kraft)
- 1 tbsp lemon pepper (like, Mrs. Dash)
- non-stick cooking spray (like, Pam)
Instructions
- Liberally salt each side of the eggplant slices and lay on a baking rack above paper towels. The salt will leach some of the water out of the eggplant. This is important in order to get the crispy texture you're looking for.
- Dab each side of the eggplant slices with paper towels occasionally to remove the water droplets that will appear on the surface.
- Turn over occasionally and dab the other side.
- Allow the salt to do its work for about 20 minutes, and then dust off the excess salt with a paper towel.
- Let the slices rest on a paper towel while you prepare the rest of the meal.
- Preheat the oven to 400°F degrees.
- Slather mayonnaise on each side of the eggplant slices, and then, laying out the Parmesan cheese and lemon pepper on a paper plate, thoroughly coat both sides by pressing the eggplant into the mixture.
- Spray a cookie sheet or sheet pan lined with aluminum foil with non-stick cooking spray and lay out the eggplant slices.
- Pop the eggplant in the middle rack of the oven and cook for 15 minutes. Turn the slices over, and continue cooking another 15-20 minutes.
