Parmigiana di Melanzane (Layered Fried Aubergine with Tomato and Mozzarella)
Inspired by techniques from Serious Eats.
Aubergine slices salted, blotted and fried until browned, then layered with garlic and basil tomato sauce, mozzarella and oregano and baked at 200 °C until bubbling. Rested 10 min before cutting.
Always check the labels of the products you use.
Method
- 1
Salt the aubergine. Lay the slices on the racks, sprinkle both sides lightly with salt and leave for 20 min, then blot very dry.
- 2
Make the sauce. Meanwhile, warm the oil and garlic in the saucepan over medium heat until the garlic sizzles. Add the tomatoes and half the basil and simmer for 20-25 min until thick, then season with the salt.
- 3
Fry. Heat 1 cm oil in the frying pan to about 180 °C. Fry the slices in batches for 2-3 min per side until browned, and drain on kitchen paper. Heat the oven to 200 °C.
- 4
Layer and bake. Spread a thin layer of sauce in the dish, then layer aubergine, sauce, mozzarella, oregano and the rest of the basil, repeating and finishing with sauce and cheese. Bake for 25-30 min until bubbling and browned. Rest for 10 min before cutting and serve topped with basil.
Storage
Refrigerate up to 3 days. Reheat covered at 180 °C until piping hot (74 °C). Cool leftovers in a shallow container and refrigerate within 2 hours (within 1 hour on a day above 32°C).
EU nutrition claims
- Source of protein: 3.7 g protein per 100 kcal, about 15% of energy (needs ≥ 12%)
- Source of fibre: 1.7 g fibre per 100 kcal (needs ≥ 1.5 g)
Per 100 g of the finished dish, worked out from the nutrition per serving and the lowest likely cooked weight (about 189 g a serving), so the true values are, if anything, lower. Thresholds from the Annex to EU Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006. How we decide
Free sugars
0 g per serving
0 % of the 50 g daily maximum · 0 % of the ideal 25 g
Free sugars under 50 g a day, ideally about 25 g, based on WHO free-sugar guidance (not endorsed by WHO). The share shown is the share of one serving. WHO
Equipment
- 2 wire racks set over trays
- kitchen paper
- heavy cast-iron or deep frying pan
- saucepan
- 20 x 25 cm baking dish (about 1500 ml)
Nutrition per serving (estimated values)
| Per serving | Amount |
|---|---|
| Energy | 435 kcal |
| Protein | 16 g |
| Carbohydrate | 20.4 g |
| of which sugars | 11.8 g |
| of which free sugars | 0 g |
| Fat | 34.1 g |
| of which saturates | 10.7 g |
| Fibre | 7.2 g |
| Salt | 2.36 g |
Protein per 100 kcal
3.7 g High Protein needs ≥ 5 g (20% of energy)
Calculated from USDA FoodData Central ingredient values
