20 layers of cheesy, thinly sliced eggplant, that will melt on your tongue. It’s a mouthful!
I gravitated toward Eggplant Parmesan as soon as I became a vegetarian. The eggplant parm that I enjoyed back then was the familiar deep fried eggplant smothered in tomato sauce and cheese. This isn’t that. This recipe was inspired by the Eggplant Marino I had an Anthony’s Coal Fire Pizza. It was one of those moments when I first tasted it, I get very quiet (unusual for me) as I try to deconstruct it in my mind so I can make it. There were two techniques in the Eggplant Marino that made it so different, the very thinly sliced eggplant. Thin like deli meat. Second, was the egg coating on the outside–not breadcrumbs. Revolutionary! It completely transforms the flavor. I would of never figured that out if it wasn’t for one of my friends who happens to be Anthony’s niece. I put my own spin on it and the result is the 20 layer eggplant (documented by my friend Taryn). The texture is amazing. The Parmesan is salty and nutty, the mozzarella is creamy, and the sauce is light and acidic. I don’t call it eggplant Parmesan because it’s not. The cheese is the backdrop. This eggplant is the start of the show.
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Ingredients
1 Italian Eggplant
(make it a big firm one)1/2 Cup all purpose flour
3 Eggs
Course salt
1 Cup neutral oil for frying
1/2 Cup Parmigiano-Reggiano
*Don’t be cheap1/4 pound fresh buffalo mozzarella
Tomato sauce (recipe)
Directions
- Prepare sauce as instructed (recipe)
- Thinly slice eggplant using a kitchen mandoline. A mandoline is the only way to get it thin enough. 20 slices is both beautiful, dramatic, and provides a great texture. You can use fewer slices if you don’t dig drama and beauty.
- Salting the eggplant is important for both flavor and texture. Lay out a few layers of paper towels and place the eggplant in single rows (see video clip). Sprinkle with course salt and cover with another lay of paper towels. Roll over the top of the eggplant with a heavy object to squeeze out water. I use a bottle of champagne because that’s more fun than a rolling pin and then you get the drink it. Let sit 30 minutes to 1 hour.
- Create an assembly line: Flour, Egg, Oil (heated to 375 degrees F), and a sheet tray lined with paper towels. Add flour and egg into separate shallow containers. I use glass baking dishes as you can see in the photo. I like to sift the flour into the baking dish to make it light an airy. Then you want to beat the eggs so the yolk and whites are combined.
- This is where it helps to have four hands. You want to very lightly dredge eggplant in the flour on both sides, coat with egg on both sides, then fry in oil until lightly brown (~1 minute/side). Video
- Drain on paper towels.
- Re-stack the eggplant. I like to keep the eggplant in the order in which they were originally sliced. This can be easily accomplished by slicing them in one stack, then flouring->egging->frying->draining in that same order. It should look like this.
- On a baking sheet, add a few spoonfuls of tomato sauce where you will start to stack the eggplant.
- Alternate each layer with a a small amount of sauce and a sprinkling of cheese. I alternate each layer with parmesan and mozzarella. When adding another slice of eggplant, gently tap it down to make sure it sticks. You want this to be structurally sound so take your time.
- Stack them 20 layers high and then top with cheese.
- Bake at 400 degrees F until golden brown on top and around the edges (~30 minutes).
- Let it cool for 10-15 minutes. Then slice down the middle. Serve over pasta with more sauce. Top with fresh basil. Enjoy!
