How to Make Eggplant Parmesan Casserole

Learn how to make Eggplant Parmesan Casserole, as shown in this video by Chef John of Foodwishes.

How to Make Eggplant Parmesan Casserole Hello, this is Chef John from Foodwishes.com with eggplant parmesan or at least my version of eggplant parmesan, kind of in a casserole form. I really like this recipe. It’s really easy and it’s a lot, lot less calories than the traditional fried eggplant parmesan. So I got two eggplants, I’m going to cut off the bottom because what I want is about five slices from each. I want 10 slices total. But I want them as wide as possible. So half-inch slices from the thickest part of the eggplant, and there you go. Now, with the skinny ends, I’m not going to throw it away. I’m going to trim the skin off and I’m going to dice that and I’m going to use that in our sauce which is going to make it extra tasty. So it’s kind of eggplant parmesan with eggplant sauce. It doesn’t get any more eggplant-y than that. Alright, so I got that diced. In a hot sauté pan with just a little bit of oil, I’m going to soften these slices of eggplant with a little bit of salt about three or four minutes per side. I’m not really trying to cook them all away. I just want to kind of soften them a little bit because you’ll see what’s going to happen here and I’m only going to use a tiny, tiny bit of oil. The eggplant will soak up 17.4 times its own weight in oil. That’s why the deep fried eggplant parmesan has 40,000 calories per serving because eggplant is just like a sponge when it comes to oil. So once those are cooked on both sides, slightly browned and softened a little bit, I’m going to take those off and put them on a paper towel. Alright, so all the eggplants got done. I’m going to take my sauté pan. I’m going to add some olive oil and I’m going to throw in a couple of cloves of sliced garlic, not chopped, not minced, sliced. And because that oil is nice and hot, it's only going to take about 10 seconds here and I’m going to dump in my diced eggplant. I don’t want the garlic to burn. I’m going to throw in a big pinch of salts, little red pepper flakes, and I’m going to sauté that for about five minutes. After about five minutes, I’m going to dump in my tomato sauce, little bit of water, and give that a stir. I’m going to turn the heat down to medium low and I’m just going to cook that for about 15 or 20 minutes until that eggplant is nice and tender and everything is delicious. Now, if you need to while it’s cooking, see if starts to get thick like that, you’re going to add a little water to keep it in a nice saucy consistency. So that won’t happen if you do it on the sauce pan. But why do it on two pans? So things would operate a little quicker in a big sauté pan, so just adjust the water. Now, for my stuffing, yes, my eggplant parmesan stuffing, I'm going to take some ricotta cheese, some grated parmesan and some grated pepper jack cheese. I'm not a big mozzarella guy with this recipe. I like the pepper jack, a little more flavor, some black peppers and salts and I’m going to mix that up. So really, really basic simple delicious cheese filling, and that’s it. Now, the eggplant has cooled, I had them sitting on a paper towel so a lot of that moisture had soaked into the towel. I’m going to divide my cheese mixture between the 10 slices. These can be a couple of tablespoons each and I’m simply going to fold them like a taco. See that? Don’t worry how it looks. It’s going to look great when it’s cooked. We’re going to folds those over. Again, I have 10 pieces. In my small casserole dish, I’m going to put half that eggplant tomato sauce down on the bottom. I’m going to lie in my folded over stuffed eggplant slices, look at that. It looks so good already. Alright, I’m going to pour over the rest of my tomato mixture, top it down on all the cracks and crevices and then we need a crispy topping. So I’m going to take some bread crumbs, lots of parmesan cheese which is going to help to get it nice and crunchy and olive oil of course. We’re going to mix that up. I’m going to pour that over the top of the casserole and I’m not going to pack it. I’m just going to spread it around with the tip of my fork, so it’s kind of a regular. That’s going to go on a 375-degree oven for about 35 or 40 minutes, you could put a piece of foil on top of it if it’s getting too dark but you want to make sure it’s bubbling which means it’s going to be cooked inside and underneath. If you want the eggplant to cook, there’s nothing worst than raw eggplant. That cheese is going to bake. That delicious eggplant sauce is going to permeate everything. The crispy breadcrumb-parmesan topping is going to give it a nice crunchy texture. So you’re basically going to get the same texture and flavor as traditionally crumbed parmesan but like way less oil, because like I said earlier, when you fry breaded slices of eggplant, they soak up an unbelievable amount of oil. So here the crispiness is just on top and it’s really a nice version, I think. Give it a try and you tell me. All the ingredients are on the site and as always, enjoy.