Eggplant Parmigiana Parmigiana Di Melanzane Food

ITALIAN BAKED EGGPLANT WITH PARMESAN (PARMIGIANA DI MELANZANE)

Steps:

• Place a single layer of eggplant slices in a colander sitting on a plate and sprinkle with coarse salt. Cover with a second layer and sprinkle with salt. Repeat with remaining eggplant. Place a plate on top and add a weight to put pressure on the eggplant slices. Let stand at room temperature for about 1 hour.
• Rinse eggplant slices under running cold water to wash off all the salt. Pat dry on all sides with paper towels.
• Heat oil in a deep skillet over medium-high heat. Dredge eggplant slices in flour on both sides and add to the hot oil, working in batches. Deep fry eggplant until golden, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Drain on paper towels.
• Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat; cook garlic and onion until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add tomato puree, 4 basil leaves, and salt. Cook, stirring often, until sauce starts to thicken, about 20 minutes. Remove sauce from heat. Discard garlic and stir in remaining 4 leaves basil.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Spread a layer of tomato sauce over the bottom of a baking dish. Cover with a single layer of eggplant slices. Top with more sauce, mozzarella slices, and Parmesan cheese. Continue making layers, a total of 3 to 5, finishing with tomato sauce and grated Parmesan cheese.
• Bake in the preheated oven until heated through and bubbling, 30 to 40 minutes. Remove from oven and let stand for 20 minutes before serving.

EGGPLANT PARMESAN: PARMIGIANA DI MELANZANE (MARIO BATALI)

Steps:

• Make the Tomato Sauce:.
• In a 3-quart saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until soft and light golden brown, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add the thyme and carrot and cook 5 minutes more, until the carrot is quite soft. Add the tomatoes and juice and bring to a boil, stirring often. Lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes until as thick as hot cereal. Season with salt and serve.
• This sauce holds 1 week in the refrigerator or up to 6 months in the freezer.
• Put Together the Eggplant Parmigiana:.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Wash and towel dry the eggplant. Slice the eggplant horizontally about 1/4-inch thick. Place the slices in a large colander, sprinkle with salt and set aside to rest about 30 minutes. Drain and rinse the eggplant and dry on towels.
• In a saute pan, heat the extra-virgin olive oil until just smoking. Press the drained eggplant pieces into the seasoned bread crumb mixture and saute until light golden brown on both sides. Repeat with all of the pieces. On a cookie sheet lay out the 4 largest pieces of eggplant. Place 2 tablespoons of tomato sauce over each piece and place a thin slice of mozzarella on top of each. Sprinkle with Parmigiano and top each with the next smallest piece of eggplant, then sauce then mozzarella. Repeat the layering process until all the ingredients have been used, finishing again with the Parmigiano. Place the pan in the oven and bake until the top of each little stack is golden brown and bubbly, about 15 minutes.

PARMIGIANA DI MELANZANE AKA EGGPLANT PARMESAN

Steps:

• wash (but do not peel) eggplant. slice laterally into pieces a half inch thick.
• put the eggplant in a colander and salt it generously. let the eggplant sit and "weep" half an hour--you can omit this step, if you're worried about sodium, but the eggplant will be bitter. don't say i didn't warn you.
• wash off the eggplant slices, and pat dry.
• preheat oven to 350 degrees farenheit.
• set up two bowls, one with a beaten egg, the other with the breadcrumbs. dip the slices in the egg, making sure to get both sides of the slice. take the egged-slices, and dredge them gently in the breadcrumbs.
• heat a few tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil in a pan. when the oil almost smokes--and other than the flavor, this is why you have to use e.v.o.o: normal olive oil or other oils smoke at a higher temperature--place a few slices off eggplant into the pan at a time. cook for two or three minutes, periodically checking the color on the pan-side of the slice.
• when the slices are golden-brown on the pan-side, flip, and cook again. place on paper towels to dry.
• repeat until all the eggplant is cooked. add more oil and let the oil reheat as necessary.
• give a cookie sheet a shot of the non-stick cooking spray. place the four largest eggplant slices close to each other (but not touching) on the sheet. put two tablespoons of sauce and some cheese on top of each slice. put the four next-largest slices on top of each, and put sauce and cheese on top again, building the towers until all the eggplant is used up.
• put the cookie sheet in the oven, and cook the eggplant until the cheese melts and browns slightly.
• season, and eat!