This heirloom family Italian eggplant parmesan recipe came stateside with my grandmother when she immigrated from Italy. Growing up in a house with Italian sauce made every Sunday, this eggplant dish was always a favorite. Using good quality ingredients is critical for this recipe. It is very time-consuming and laborious. It would be a shame to invest all of this time and effort with inferior ingredients only to be let down when you eat it later.
Ingredients
- medium Italian eggplants, peeled and: 2 piece (cut into 1/4 inch slices)
- all-purpose flour, sifted: 2 cups
- sea salt: 3 Tbsp (to taste)
- ground black pepper: 1 Tbsp (to taste)
- eggs, room temperature: 5 piece
- water, room temperature: 3 Tbsp
- extra-virgin olive oil: 0.5 cup (or as needed)
- freshly grated Pecorino-Romano cheese: 2 cups (divided)
- ounces Italian-style tomato sauce: 40 piece
- freshly grated Parmesan cheese: 2 cups
- ounces freshly grated mozzarella cheese: 30 piece
Metric Conversion
Stages of cooking
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Lay eggplant slices on top of paper towels and sprinkle with sea salt to draw out moisture. Cover with additional paper towels. Let sit, 8 hours to overnight.
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Place flour into a 1-gallon resealable plastic bag. Add salt and pepper; shake the bag to mix. Place 6 eggplant slices into the bag, seal, and shake to coat.
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Beat eggs and water together using a fork in a small bowl. Season with salt and pepper.
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Heat 2 inches of oil over medium-high heat in a 10-inch cast iron skillet. Line baking sheets with paper towels to drain eggplants after frying.
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Shake excess flour from eggplant slices and place into egg mixture, turning to ensure both sides are coated. Allow excess egg mixture to drip off.
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Fry in hot oil until slightly golden, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer to the paper towel-lined baking sheets. Sprinkle each slice with 1 tablespoon Pecorino Romano cheese. Repeat process until all eggplant slices are fried. Let cool slightly, about 5 minutes.
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Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
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Pour a small amount of tomato sauce into the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking pan to cover.
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Place 1/3 of the eggplant slices over sauce, slightly overlapping them. Sprinkle 1/3 of the remaining Pecorino-Romano cheese and Parmesan cheese evenly on top. Cover with a light layer of sauce. Sprinkle 1/3 of the mozzarella cheese over sauce. Repeat for a total of 3 layers.
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Bake in the preheated oven until bubbly, about 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes to set.
