Aubergine Parmigiana or simply Parmigiana, is a classic primo piatto rooted in three of the regions of Southern Italy as Campania, Calabria and Sicily.

This is the Campania version, precisely the Neapolitan one in which aubergine slices are coated with flour and beaten egg, deep fried then layered up with a flavoursome tomato and basil sauce and cheese. If you want to cut down on the fat, grill the slices instead.

There is also a sweet version of it aubergine-chocolate-pie!

Serves: 4 | Preparation time: 20 mins | Cooking time approx: 60 mins

  • 4 Aubergines
  • 500gm fresh mozzarella, shredded mozzarella, scamorza or provola
  • Grated Parmigiano cheese: 100 g
  • 800 ml of Passata such as from : italian-tomato
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 onion
  • 1 garlic clove
  • A bunch of fresh basil
  • Plain flour: to taste
  • Salt and pepper: to taste
  • 1 lt of EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil or Peanut Seed Oil for deep-frying 

Method

Parmigiana should never be too watery, so if you are using whole mozzarella balls, remove them from their liquid a day early and let them dry out a bit in the fridge. Shredded mozzarella contains less water and should not be a problem.

Dice mozzarella, scamorza, or provola and set aside.

Cut the aubergines into slices about 0.5cm thick, generally lengthwise though  round slices are fine too.

Beat the eggs in a bowl and season. Sprinkle some flour over a dinner plate and lightly coat each aubergine slice, then dip into the beaten egg.

Deep-fry the slices a few at a time. Once cooked, place them on kitchen paper to absorb any excess oil.

Pre-heat oven to 200°C /400 F / Gas 6.

Peel the garlic and crush it with the flat of a large kitchen knife and finely chop the onion. Fry them in a little EVOO,  adding the passata once the onion has turned golden. Add 3 or 4 basil leaves, season and cook 20 mins. Remove the crushed garlic at the end.

Spread a thin layer of tomato sauce on the bottom of the oven dish, then add the fried aubergine slices, cheese, tomato sauce and some of the Parmigiano. Repeat the process until all the ingredients are used up.

In the preheated for 30 min. Allow to cool a bit, then serve.

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