An eggplant parm steak recipe where slices of crispy pan-fried eggplant are breaded in a healthier, gluten-free coating and stacked together to make steaks.
Eggplant is a love or hate kind of vegetable. For me, it’s love. I think we have these strong feelings about the vegetable because of its unique texture. Eggplant’s best - or worst depending on your point of view - attribute is its sponge-like nature. I think this is a good thing because just like a sponge, eggplant absorbs the flavors you put on it.
why you should give eggplant another chance
In some ways, it reminds me a lot of tofu. I’ll be the first to admit that neither eggplant nor tofu is great without flavoring and proper cooking. Luckily, they are easy to impart flavor, and there are many ways to prepare them. You absolutely can make them interesting, despite what people seem to think.
I believe people may not like eggplant because they once had it cooked poorly and blandly. Yet when done well, eggplant becomes tender and creamy. When you bite into it, it should almost melt in your mouth and meld into the other flavors you pair with it, such as a freshly made tomato sauce.
Eggplant is a perfect pairing for tomatoes and other summer vegetables. In the past, I’ve shared recipes for eggplant in ratatouille and eggplant pizza. But one of my favorites is eggplant parmesan.
how this eggplant parm stacks up
This recipe is essentially a rift on traditional Italian eggplant parm. You bread and fry eggplant slices in a similar method, but then stack them together with tomato sauce and cheese to make a steak of sorts. On the outside, the eggplant is crisp while the insides are soft, with both textures going beautifully with the depth of the quick tomato sauce.
The coating is slightly different from the usual breadcrumbs and cheese, and I think it works well, especially if you’re looking to make this a gluten-free dish. The sunflower seeds add crunch while the nutritional yeast boosts the cheesy flavor. It’s also a healthier option that doesn’t produce a greasy result. I winged this breading when I was out of breadcrumbs and used what I had in my pantry. It turns out it was delicious. I love it when that happens.
how to prevent soggy eggplant parm
The secret to keeping that coating as crisp as possible is to place the browned eggplant slices on a wire rack after cooking them in the pan. That way, there’s airflow on both the top and the bottom of the slices, and any liquid can drip off to the pan below.
If you have fresh tomatoes and want to use them for the sauce, go for it. Just pulse roughly chopped tomatoes in the food processor to make your own crushed tomatoes. I pulled the last of my tomatoes out of the garden in anticipation of frost this week, so I had those ready to use up. Otherwise, a couple of large cans of crushed tomatoes work great.
Serve these eggplant parm steaks with a side of the sauce and your favorite pasta.
Print📖 Recipe
Eggplant Parm Steaks
- Total Time: 1 hour 40 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
An eggplant parm recipe where slices of crispy pan-fried eggplant are breaded in a healthier, gluten-free coating and stacked together to make tasty eggplant steaks.
Ingredients
For the sauce:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2-28 ounce cans of crushed tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
- 1 lb of your favorite pasta
For the eggplant:
- 2 medium-sized eggplant
- 2 eggs
- 1-ounce milk
- ½ cup nutritional yeast
- ¾ cup sunflower seeds
- ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ cup olive oil
- ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Start with the sauce. In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the red pepper and garlic and cook for about a minute. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for another minute.
- Pour in the tomatoes, salt, and vinegar and bring them to a simmer. Let this simmer for at least 20 minutes over low heat while you prepare the eggplant. When a sauce-like consistency has formed, then stir in the parsley and basil. Taste and adjust the seasoning as needed.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Thinly slice off the top and bottom of each eggplant, as well as the skin on two of the sides. Then slice through the eggplant lengthwise to create ½-inch thick pieces. You should have about 10 in total.
- In a shallow dish, beat together the eggs and milk. In a food processor combine the nutritional yeast, sunflower seeds, parmesan, salt, and oregano. Pulse several times until the seeds are chopped small and everything is well combined. This is your breading. Pour this out into a second dish. Arrange the eggplant, beaten eggs, and breading near the stove, as well as a baking sheet with a wire rack set inside of it. Meanwhile, start a large pot of water to boil for the pasta.
- Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large pan. Dip each slice of eggplant into the egg mixture, dripping off any excess, then coat in the breading. Place the piece of coated eggplant in the pan then repeat with as many slices as you can fit at one time. Cook until the bottoms are lightly browned, about 3-4 minutes. Flip and cook another few minutes on the other side until browned.
- Transfer the browned slices to the wire rack and repeat the coating and cooking process with the remaining slices. You may need to lower the heat a little and add more oil as you go.
- When all of the eggplant slices are browned, spoon some sauce onto each of the slices. Then top each evenly with the cheese. Stack five of the slices onto the other five to create your steaks.
- Place the sheet in the oven and bake for 15 minutes. While the eggplant bakes, salt your pasta water and cook according to the package directions. After 15 minutes, switch the oven to the low broil setting. Put the baking sheet directly under the broiler and cook another couple of minutes or until the cheese is gooey. Serve hot with pasta and the remaining sauce.
Notes
Only have large eggplants? For more reasonable sized portions, halve the slices before breading and cooking.
If you don't have nutritional yeast you could sub more grated Parmesan.
Try other seeds or nuts in place of sunflower seeds.
- Prep Time: 45
- Cook Time: 55
- Category: Dinners
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Italian
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