I often think that I am lucky. My son likes almost everything and he eats everything. However, he tends to dislike eggplant, whether it's grilled, roasted, or caviar. Maybe that's the case with you too?
But I have a foolproof trick to get him to eat them, and since you read me as much as I give you, Parmigiana!
It's foolproof, so much so that he asks me to cook it. Another advantage is that the recipe is simple and quick to prepare.
Come on, I'll explain it all in more detail.
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Parmigiana
Let's start by eliminating a common misconception: there is no Parmesan cheese in the original recipe.
Parmigiana refers to the way vegetables are prepared in layers. Just like you do with lasagna.
The recipe originated in southern Italy, with Naples and Sicily being the cradles often cited for its birth. The dish itself is a gratin of eggplant with cheese and often tomato.
And as is often the case, there are as many recipes as there are Mammas in Italy.
Some exclude the tomato; others include it or use the ragù.
Ingredients
As in all the recipes, the ingredients are essential.
So you need to:
- three firm eggplants: the perfect eggplants for this recipe are large, oval, dark purple in color and shiny, and should be firm to the touch - neither too hard nor too soft.
- four tablespoons of Italian olive oil preferably
- a white onion, personally, I use Roscoff onions, but it is not an obligation
- a clove of garlic
- a handful of fresh basil leaf
- five hundred grams of Polpa di Pomodoro, the Italian tomato pulp
- a pinch of fleur de sel
- two towers of black pepper mill
- five hundred grams of mozzarella di bufala
Optional:
- one hundred and fifty grams of freshly grated Parmesan
What to eat them with?
Although I find that they are self-sufficient, you can eat them with grilled beef, veal, chicken, fish, or pork. And an arugula salad. And don't forget to dress your plate and the dish with focaccia with herbs.
What to put as cheese?
In addition to mozzarella di Bufala, you can use mozzarella fior di latte; Scarmoza, to add a smoky taste; Pecorino Romano for its sheep's milk flavor.
As with lasagna, you can also use ricotta or mascarpone cheese for their creaminess and parmesan cheese, as I did to brown the dish.
How to twist the recipe?
As you saw earlier, you can twist the recipe to your liking by changing some of the ingredients.
You can use other vegetables, replacing all or part of them with white eggplant, green or yellow zucchini.
You can also choose to fry the vegetables instead of grilling them.
It is possible to use Ragù instead of tomato sauce.
And of course, you can change the cheese, or even use a mixture, by more than three, of those I mentioned before.
Conservation
You can keep the eggplant parmigiana in the refrigerator, covered with cling film, for 1 or 2 days. It can be frozen after cooking, divided or not in portions, that you will just have to defrost in the refrigerator and then reheat in the oven.
Closing Words
I hope you like this recipe and that you will enjoy it at home. Getting adults to eat vegetables is not always easy. But Eggplant Parmigiana has the merit of reassuring them. And your gourmands will not be mistaken and I am sure they will ask you for more.
📖 Recipe
Parmigiana, Will You Make This Simple And Authentic Recipe
I often think that I am lucky. My son likes almost everything and he eats everything. However, he tends to dislike eggplant, whether it's grilled, roasted, or caviar. Maybe that's the case with you too?
But I have a foolproof trick to get him to eat them, and since you read me as much as I give you, Eggplant Parmigiana!
It's foolproof, so much so that he asks me to cook it. Another advantage is that the recipe is simple and quick to prepare.
- Prep Time: 30
- Cook Time: 30
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 4 peoples 1x
- Category: Vegie Gratin
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 3 firm eggplants,
- 4 tablespoons of Italian olive oil
- 1 white onion,
- 1 clove of garlic,
- 1 handful of fresh basil leaves,
- 500 g of Polpa di Pomodoro,
- 1 pinch of fleur de sel,
- 2 turns of black pepper mill,
- 500 g mozzarella di buffala
- 150 g freshly grated Parmesan cheese, optional
Instructions
The tomato sauce
- Clean and chop the onion,
- Pour it into a frying pan where you have heated a little olive oil,
- Let it brown for a few minutes, stirring often to prevent it from burning,
- then add the tomato puree,
- Salt and add ⅓ of the basil leaves,
- Rinse the cans with a little water and pour it into the pan,
- Let it cook on low heat for 20 minutes.
The mozzarella
- Meanwhile, cut the mozzarella into cubes,
- Drain the cubes in a colander covered with cling film, over a bowl. This is to drain off the whey.
- Reserve in a cool place.
The eggplants
- Turn on your oven at 190°C
- Line an ovenproof baking sheet with parchment paper,
- Clean the eggplants and remove the stalk
- Cut them lengthwise into slices about 5 mm thick
- Using a brush, oil each side of the slices with olive oil and salt them,
- Spread the slices on the parchment paper
- Bake for 20 minutes
- The eggplants must be golden but not burnt.
The assembly
- In an ovenproof dish, start by pouring a little tomato sauce,
- Make the first layer by placing the eggplant slices,
- Pour a little tomato sauce, spread it out
- spread a few cubes of mozzarella,
- Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese if you wish,
- Add some basil leaves,
- Repeat steps 2 to 6, placing the eggplants perpendicular to the first layer.
- Finish with a layer of tomato sauce, on top of which you add the mozzarella and if you wish some grated parmesan.
Baking
- Preheat the oven to 190°C in static heat or 180°C in revolving heat.
- Bake the Parmigiana for 30 minutes.
Notes
- The perfect eggplants for this recipe are large, oval, dark purple and shiny, and should be firm to the touch - not too hard or soft.
- You can grill the eggplant slices on a hot barbecue. This will add a smoky note to the gratin.
- Once the cooking time is up, let the parmigiana rest for 15-20 minutes before serving.
- You can store the eggplant parmigiana in the refrigerator, covered with plastic wrap, for 1 to 2 days. It can be frozen after cooking, divided or not in portions, which you will only have to defrost in the refrigerator and then reheat in the oven.
Keywords: eggplant, parmigiana, italy, parmesan, mozzarella
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