Eggplant Parmesan
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If you’re going to make eggplant parmesan, go all in. This version has golden fried eggplant, creamy béchamel, marinara, and just the right amount of melty cheese. It’s cozy, comforting, and exactly what you want eggplant parm to be.
This is my go-to eggplant Parmesan recipe: golden, crispy slices of fried eggplant layered with marinara, mozzarella, and a rich béchamel sauce. Adding béchamel is a little trick I picked up from one of my favorite Italian restaurants, and it’s what really sets this version apart. It adds richness, balances the acidity of the tomato sauce, and keeps the mozzarella from turning rubbery.
Making classic eggplant Parmesan is definitely a bit of a project—there’s salting, breading, and frying involved—but the end result is well worth it, and much of the work can be done ahead. Salting the eggplant helps keep it silky rather than greasy, while frying gives it a crisp, golden exterior that baked or broiled versions just can’t match. It makes an impressive vegetarian main paired with a big Italian salad and garlic bread, but it’s just as delicious served alongside turkey meatballs or or Italian sausage.
“I must admit this is better than my Italian momma’s!”
What You’ll Need To Make Eggplant Parmesan
- Eggplant: Thinly sliced rounds form the foundation of the dish. There’s no need to peel the eggplant for eggplant Parmesan. The skin is completely edible and softens as the eggplant cooks, while also helping the slices hold their shape.
- Flour, Eggs, and Seasoned Italian Breadcrumbs: Key to the three-step breading process—flour first, then beaten eggs, and finally seasoned breadcrumbs for a crispy, flavorful coating.
- Vegetable Oil: Used for pan-frying the eggplant to achieve a satisfying crunch and golden color.
- Marinara Sauce: A rich and flavorful marinara sauce is essential for eggplant parmesan. A good-quality store-bought sauce, such as Rao’s or Victoria, works well and saves time.
- Shredded Whole Milk Mozzarella Cheese & Parmigiano-Reggiano: Mozzarella brings that gooey, melty comfort we all love, while Parmigiano adds depth and sharpness.
- Fresh Basil Leaves: Added as a garnish just before serving.
- Butter, Flour, Milk: Used to make the béchamel sauce. While not included in all eggplant parm recipes, this sauce adds a luscious, creamy layer to the dish. It also balances the acidity of the marinara sauce and prevents the melted mozzarella cheese from turning rubbery when melted.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
How To Make Eggplant Parmesan
Step 1: Salt the eggplant: Sprinkle the eggplant slices with salt, arrange between layers of paper towels, and let them sit until they release some of their moisture. Blot them well to drain out any excess moisture. Salting and draining the slices before breading helps draw out excess moisture and bitterness, and also keeps them from soaking up too much oil.
Step 2: Make the béchamel sauce. Cook the butter and flour together, then gradually whisk in the milk until smooth. Continue cooking until the sauce is thick and creamy, then whisk in the Parmigiano Reggiano and seasonings.
Step 3: Bread the eggplant. Set up three shallow dishes with flour, beaten egg, and breadcrumbs. Coat each slice first in flour, then egg, and finally breadcrumbs, pressing gently so the crumbs adhere. Shake off the excess flour and let the excess egg drip off so the breading stays light and crisp.
Step 4: Fry the eggplant. Heat the oil until a breaded edge dipped into it sizzles immediately, then fry the eggplant in batches until crisp and deeply golden on both sides. Avoid crowding the pan, which lowers the oil temperature and can make the eggplant greasy. Transfer to paper towels to drain.
Step 5: Assemble. pread marinara in the baking dish, then layer in the fried eggplant, more marinara, mozzarella, and béchamel. Repeat the layers, leaving some of the eggplant exposed on top so the edges crisp up rather than becoming completely covered in sauce. Finish with Parmigiano Reggiano.
Step 6: Bake until bubbling and golden. Let the finished eggplant Parmesan rest before slicing so the layers have time to settle and it’s easier to serve neatly. You can assemble it up to 2 days ahead, or freeze—baked or unbaked—for longer storage.
Video Tutorial
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Eggplant Parmesan
Ingredients
For the Eggplant Parmesan
- 2½ pounds eggplant (2 to 3 medium), trimmed and cut crosswise into ¼-inch (6 mm) thick slices
- 2½ teaspoons salt, divided
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- 3 large eggs
- 2 cups seasoned Italian bread crumbs
- Vegetable oil, for deep-frying (about 3 cups)
- 1 (24 oz) jar good-quality marinara sauce, such as Rao's or Victoria
- 3 cups (12 oz) shredded whole milk mozzarella cheese
- 2 tablespoons finely grated Parmigianno-Reggiano
- Fresh chopped basil, for serving (optional)
For the Béchamel Sauce
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1½ cups milk
- ½ cup finely grated Parmigiano Reggiano
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Salt the eggplant: In a large bowl, on a baking sheet, or directly on a cutting board, sprinkle 1 teaspoon of salt evenly all over the eggplant slices. Lay out a few layers of paper towels on a large cutting board or baking sheet. Arrange about one-third of the eggplant slices in a single layer and cover with more paper towels. Continue stacking the eggplant and paper towels, finishing with a final layer of paper towels. Let sit for 1½ to 2 hours. Press on the paper towels to absorb any excess liquid before proceeding.
- Make the béchamel sauce: Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and cook, whisking constantly, for 2 minutes. Add the milk and whisk until evenly combined. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, whisking constantly, for 2 minutes, until the mixture thickens. Whisk in the Parmigiano Reggiano, salt, and pepper. Set aside.
- Combine the flour and ¾ teaspoon salt on a large plate. Whisk the eggs with 2 tablespoons cold water in a wide bowl. Mix the breadcrumbs with ¾ teaspoon salt on a large plate.
- Lightly coat each slice of eggplant in the flour, shaking off excess. Dip in egg mixture, letting any excess drip off, then dredge in the breadcrumbs, pressing with your fingertips so the crumbs adhere. (Use one hand for the dry ingredients – the flour and breadcrumbs – and one for the egg mixture - it's much neater this way!) Set the breaded eggplant slices on a baking sheet.
- Line another baking sheet with a few layers of paper towels. Pour enough oil into a large (12-inch/30-cm) skillet to measure about ¼ inch (6 mm) deep and heat over medium heat until hot (if you dip a piece of eggplant into the oil, it will sizzle immediately). Working in batches, add as much eggplant as will fit in a single layer and fry, flipping once, until golden brown, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer to the paper towel-lined baking sheet. Repeat, frying the remaining eggplant and layering it between sheets of paper towels to drain.
- Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C) and set an oven rack in the middle position.
- Spread ¾ cup (170 g) of the marinara sauce over the bottom of a 9x13-inch (22x33-cm) baking dish. Layer in one-third of the eggplant slices, overlapping the slices to fit. Cover the eggplant with another ¾ cup (170 g) of marinara sauce. Sprinkle with 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese, then spoon about one-third of the béchamel sauce over the cheese (if the béchamel has solidified a bit, it's fine to add it in dollops; no need to spread it around). Repeat two more layers, leaving the edges of the eggplant exposed on the top layer to create crispy edges. Sprinkle with the Parmigiano Reggiano. Bake until bubbling and golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes. Cool, loosely covered with foil, for about 20 minutes. Scatter the basil over top (if using), cut into slices, and serve.
Notes
- Nutritional information was calculated assuming that approximately ½ teaspoon of the salt sprinkled onto the eggplant was absorbed and ¼ cup of the oil is absorbed into the eggplant when frying.
- Make-Ahead/Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The eggplant parmesan can be assembled up to 2 days before baking; it can also be frozen, baked or unbaked, for up to 3 months. (If freezing, defrost in the refrigerator overnight prior to reheating/baking.)
Pair with
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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As Always Jen Segal, hit another home run🎯 this recipe was SO delicious. My daughter bought her cookbook for me for Christmas, and I’ve been enjoying making her outstanding recipes. Thanks again, Jen.
It is a sad story, but I have become an Eggplant Parmesan snob. I love Eggplant Parmesan but I often order it when I am at Italian restaurants and I get terribly disappointed. I have both of your cookbooks and looked in there for an Eggplant recipe; I couldn’t find one. Then I was searching online and saw that you do have an Eggplant Parmesan recipe. I was determined to try to make it myself. It was a bit of a commitment, but boy was it worth it. I will never order it out again. The Bechamel was a brilliant addition. It was the best I have ever tasted. The recipe was wonderful and you broke it all down perfectly. Simply Perfection! Thank you
This was absolutely incredible!!! Neither hubby nor I like eggplant but this was next level. A lot of work with the dunking/breading of all the eggplant slices. But worth it!
CHANGES MADE: after reading reviews on here, I decided NOT to deep fry the eggplant slices. I used the exact same breading preparation but I baked them instead (30 mins, 425 C, flipped slices halfway through). I would definitely recommend doing that, it’s really not necessary to deep fry since everything gets smothered in sauce anyways. Only some of the top edges of the eggplant remain crisp after baking the whole dish. I also made a bit more bechamel sauce than called for (did 4 tbsp butter, and about 2 C-ish milk). I kid you not this was absolutely freaking phenomenal. Trust me. I’ll be printing this one because I never want to lose it. Thank you so much Jenn, I love all your recipes, but this one is something special!!
Vivien,
I so appreciate you putting how you baked the eggplant instead of frying it.
Thanks!
I have made your Chicken Parmesan before and it’s a favorite of mine! First time trying this. Definitely more work. Made the recipe exactly as written but I did not top it with any basil. I did top mine with some giardiniera though. But even without that it was Fabulous! The wife said it was Excellent (no giardiniera on hers). “Excellent” is a word usually she refrains from using unless it’s regarding some dessert! So high praise indeed.
This was a delicious recipe. The bechamel is the secret ingredient that sets this apart from any other eggplant parm I’ve ever prepared. I made it for dinner tonight and am going to make it again for company next week. This is now my go-to eggplant parm.
Very, very good recipe. Family who doesn’t even like eggplant they say, really liked the recipe. I didn’t have any breadcrumbs so I crushed Crunchmaster avocado toast crackers t I bread the eggplant. I sliced the eggplant lengthwise. It was sooooo delicious. I used Newman’s own sockarooni sauce. Definitely will make again using the same crackers I used.
This is only my second time ever using eggplant in a recipe (the first time being a complete disaster because I had no idea about the salting process) and I’m sure glad I tried again. The recipe was foolproof, and my husband said it was the best eggplant Parmesan he’s ever had! Quite the compliment on food, which he’s rare to give to me… and only because I’m not the best cook in the world. I will definitely be trying more recipes on this website soon!
Had to adjust matters to get closer to our dietary constraints: be ovo-vegetarian, have 15 grams protein per serving, and have less than 20 carbs per serving. got pretty close by cutting breadcrumbs to 1 cup, adding 2 eggs, and reducing the serving size to 12 servings per recipe.
Served six people including two inlaws and their two (13 to 15) girls. My wife and I consumed our allotted portions, the remaining 10 servings went down seemingly in one gulp! No, that is zero, leftovers, many cudos.
Needless to say, this recipe is super in flavor, texture, and eye appeal. Bravo, Jenn!
Not my favorite Jenn recipe. I should have stopped at one layer. I don’t think any other recipe would be better though. The lower layers were just too mushy.
I’ve made this twice and it is just superb. The bechamel sauce puts it over the top! Worth the extra time.