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My grandmother’s easy baked eggplant Parmesan recipe is a delicious vegetarian dinner with just 15 minutes of prep! This recipe simplifies the classic Italian dish for a quick-prep, family-friendly weeknight meal. Serve it with a side of spaghetti, a simple green salad, and a basket of garlic bread.
Table of Contents
If you love Italian recipes, be sure to try these popular stuffed shells with meat, this 20-minute linguine with clam sauce, and this sheet pan Italian shrimp, too!
How to Make this Baked Eggplant Parmesan Recipe | Video
Certain recipes just taste like home, and this is definitely one of them. It’s an instant transport back to my childhood table. When my aunt recently passed along my grandmother’s old recipe box, I spent hours pouring over all of her recipes. One that instantly jumped out at me was this handwritten baked eggplant parmesan recipe on a weathered piece of yellow legal paper. It’s a dish that I grew up on, and I’ve continued to serve the flavorful meal to my own family as well!
Mouthwatering. I love eggplant and have made this weekly since coming across your recipe a few months back. So easy to make and the best eggplant recipe by far. Thanks for sharing.
– Yvonne
Before You Get Started
- Eggplant Parmesan is a traditional Italian meal comprised of shallow- or deep-fried slices of eggplant, layered with cheese and tomato sauce, and then baked in the oven. The popular dinner has been adapted over generations, and Americanized by families like ours. This particular recipe is an easy version for busy folks. Instead of frying the eggplant in a skillet, we let the oven do the work! It’s baked — not fried — but you don’t lose any of that delicious flavor.
- When shopping for an eggplant, look for a vegetable with smooth, shiny skin that’s uniform in color and heavy for its size. To test for ripeness, lightly press a finger against the skin. If it leaves an imprint, the eggplant is ripe. Smaller eggplants tend to be sweeter, less bitter, and have thinner skin and fewer seeds.
- You do not need to salt the eggplant before cooking it. Salting raw eggplant helps to achieve smooth and creamy eggplant, so feel free to do so if you’d like. By not salting the vegetable, however, it retains its shape and has a slightly firmer texture. That works for me!
- Corn Flakes cereal is the “secret” ingredient helps to give the eggplant that crispy, flavorful fried taste and texture. You can crush your own cereal at home or purchase a box of Corn Flakes crumbs. While some readers have reported success substituting with panko breadcrumbs, I find that Corn Flakes have a unique sweet-and-savory flavor, as well as a super-crunchy texture, that yields the best results.
- This dish serves 2-3 people as an entrée. You might be able to stretch it to serve 4 people if you’re also offering a heartier side dish like pasta. For a bigger family, use 2 eggplants, double all of the other ingredients, and bake the eggplant in a 9 x 13-inch dish or on a larger rimmed baking sheet.
Directions
The oven does all of the work here, but the outside of the eggplant is still crispy and flavorful. No soggy vegetables allowed! I’ve included detailed directions for this easy eggplant parmesan recipe below, but here’s the overview:
- Pour melted butter into a baking dish. This gives the eggplant that fried taste and crispy, golden brown texture — without actually frying on the stovetop.
- Prepare egg in one shallow bowl and Corn Flake breading mixture in a separate shallow bowl. A can of pre-grated Parmesan is a great shortcut, or feel free to grate your own from a wedge if you prefer.
- Peel the eggplant. The vegetable’s skin is completely edible and tends to soften as it cooks, so in many recipes it’s fine to leave the skin on. That said, I recommend peeling the eggplant for eggplant parmesan. As an eggplant grows larger, the skin can become tough and bitter — something that I prefer to avoid.
- Slice the vegetable cross-wise into ¾-inch thick rounds. The rounds will vary in diameter since the eggplant is not a uniform cylinder, but try to keep the thickness of each slice uniform so that they cook in the same amount of time.
- Dip each slice of eggplant in the egg, and then coat with the crumb mixture.
- Arrange the breaded eggplant slices in the buttered pan.
- Bake the eggplant slices, flipping after the first 20 minutes.
- Add marinara sauce on top, sprinkle with mozzarella, and bake for 3-5 more minutes (until the cheese melts). A jar of store-bought marinara sauce (such as Rao’s brand) works well, or you can make homemade marinara sauce.
- Garnish with chopped fresh parsley or fresh basil leaves, if desired.
Serving Suggestions
This Italian-inspired dish is best when served with a side of pasta and extra marinara sauce. Don’t forget the garlic bread, breadsticks, or focaccia, too!
Looking to add some more veggies to the meal? Try a simple green salad with red wine vinegar salad, a Caesar salad, roasted yellow squash, sauteed spinach with garlic, garlic and Parmesan cauliflower mash, garlic roasted broccoli, or sauteed zucchini.
Storage Tips
This dish is best when served warm, immediately from the oven. Leftovers will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days, but the eggplant will get soggy as it sits. I love to reheat the leftover eggplant in the microwave or in a 350°F oven for 5-10 minutes, and then add it to a hoagie roll to make an eggplant Parmesan sandwich. Delicious!
I do not recommend freezing baked eggplant parmesan, as the high water content in the vegetable yields a mushy, soggy dish when thawed.
This is my go-to eggplant Parmesan recipe! Its simply delicious! When I add the cheese at the end I turn on the oven’s broiler and keep a close watch so the cheese gets just slightly browned…yum. Thanks so much for sharing. My 3 year old loves it too!!
– Cathy L.
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Did you make this recipe?
If you enjoyed this recipe, please leave a comment with a 5-star review at the bottom of the post. Thank you!
Watch How to Make It
Grandma’s Baked Eggplant Parmesan
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons salted butter, melted
- ½ cup Corn Flakes cereal crumbs
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- Dash of ground black pepper
- 1 small eggplant
- 1 large egg, beaten
- 1 cup marinara sauce
- 2 ounces (½ cup) shredded mozzarella cheese (or use sliced fresh mozzarella if you prefer)
- Optional garnish: chopped fresh parsley, basil, or other herbs
- Optional for serving: cooked spaghetti with additional marinara sauce
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Pour melted butter into an 11 x 7-inch baking dish. Set aside.
- Place egg in a shallow dish. Set aside. In a separate shallow dish, combine Corn Flakes crumbs, Parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper. Set aside. Peel eggplant and cut into ¾-inch thick slices. Dip each slice in egg and coat with crumb mixture.
- Place in a single layer in the prepared baking dish.
- Bake for 20 minutes; flip the slices over, and bake for an additional 15 minutes. Pour marinara sauce over eggplant and top with mozzarella cheese.
- Bake for 3-5 more minutes, or until the cheese melts.
Notes
- Look for a small eggplant, which tends to have the sweetest flavor.
- This dish serves 2-3 people as an entrée. You might be able to stretch it to serve 4 people if you’re also offering a heartier side dish like pasta. If you’re feeding a bigger family, I recommend using 2 eggplants, doubling all of the other ingredients, and baking the eggplant in a 9 x 13-inch dish or on a larger rimmed baking sheet.
- Corn Flakes are the best option for breaded eggplant. You can substitute with panko breadcrumbs, but they are definitely not as crispy and they’re lacking the flavor that you get from the crushed cereal.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally published in June, 2017. It was updated in August, 2024.
I would make a thinner sauce , buy some tomatoes put in a blender drain the excess liquid and sautรฉ
With dice Onions and a little tomato paste add a teaspoon or salt (taste before you add another , If the sauce taste good when cold it will taste good
When done ( Donโt forget fresh Basil )
Thank you for the feedback, Al! We hope you enjoy the recipe.
Thank you for your grandma’s eggplant parmesan recipe. I’ll use it every time I make eggplant
You’re very welcome, Mildred. We hope you enjoy it!
Wow! I have been looking for a quick and easy eggplant parm for ages! I love it! Thanks so much for sharing!! Absolutely delicious! Thanks to your Grandma!!
Thank you, Maggie! We’re so glad you enjoyed it.
Very rich and delicious. Would recommend a larger pan. Made homemade meatballs, salad and garlic bread to go with and it was plenty for leftovers. My family recipe calls for frying each piece of eggplant then layering them with other ingredients. This was so much easier and less mess!
Thank you for the feedback, Katie! We’re so glad you enjoyed the recipe.
So great! The best and easy!
Thank you, Linda!
First attempt at making eggplant
My husband said it was just as good as any restaurants.
He said it was excellent!
Thank you for the detailed instructions.
Well keep the recipe and make it again.
We’re so glad it turned out well for you, Pat! Thank you for trying it out.
This was amazing. I wasnโt sure when I flipped it but it crisped up so beautifully. Super easy and very good!
Wonderful! Thanks for letting me know, Ali!
I made your Grandmaโs baked aubergine parmesan today and it was really delicious – thank you so much! Our neighbours also really appreciated the delivery we sent as a sample! I look forward to trying out more of your recipes!
Oh, yay! I’m so happy to hear that it was well enjoyed. Thanks for letting me know, Joan. Have a great week!
Fast vegetables.
We hope you enjoy them, Nedra!
Best eggplant parm Iโve had!
Thank you so much, Paul!
AMAZING!!! Would have great growing up in Grandma’s house.
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Gerald!
This was SO delicious, thank you for sharing!! I didnโt have the cornflakes on hand so I went with the panko option, added some seasoning to the panko, double dredged and got some good crispiness that way. Canโt wait to try this again with cornflakes.
I’m glad that you enjoyed it with the panko, Rachel. Hopefully you love the corn flakes even more! ๐ Thanks for taking the time to leave a note!
Wow! This recipe is fantastic!! We doubled the recipe and made it just as the recipe notes (using panko as we didn’t have corn flakes), although we used less sauce on top. This recipe is even better than the laborious eggplant parmesan we made in years past, frying each slice individually. The flavor was DELICIOUS and the the baked panko got just crispy enough. I actually based a few slices of eggplant without sauce and cheese, and it was SO good, too! Thank you for such a delicious, EASY and healthier eggplant parmesan recipe, Blair. This one will certainly be in our regular rotation! ๐
Thank you for such a kind review, Sheila! We’re so happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe!
This was super easy to make but I used the breadcrumbs – then I read the comments:( it’s in the oven now. At least I know for next time. I’m crossing my fingers that I get a little crunch on mine.
We hope you enjoy it, JoAnne! We’d love to know how it turned out.
Love this recipe! I used Chinese eggplant so the “coins” were much smaller than normal but it still turned out great. Served over spaghetti noodles.
Thanks, Jenn!
I did make this recipe, but used olive oil instead of the butter due to my heart disease limitations on fat and it turned out perfect! I did use just a bit less than 3 tablespoons and it was tasty. I am so glad I found this recipe and I thank you for your quick response to my usage of butter question. Easy to prepare, sure to be one of my favorites!
Thanks for following up to let us know, Jane. I’m so glad that you enjoyed the meal and made it work for you!
I did make this recipe, but used olive oil instead of the butter due to my heart disease limitations on fat and it turned out perfect! I did use just a bit less than 3 tablespoons and it was tasty. I am so glad I found this recipe and I thank you for your quick response to my usage of butter question. Easy to prepare, sure to be one of my favorites!
Love it. My mother Always used corn flakes for breading something. Always wondered why we never ate them for breakfast
Thank you, Lisa! It’s such a great breading! ๐ We ate them for breakfast too, though. Hah!
This was the first recipe I decided to go with and try. There are a few picky people in the family. When I made this dish, I was told everyone was up talking about it that night. I was told the next morning that this recipe is a keeper! They’ve had this at several large name restaurants… and they said this is up there with them… if not better then theirs! Thank you and your grandma for such a wonderful, easy and very delicious recipe!
This made our day, Ruby! We’re so glad it was such a hit. Thank you for trying it out and taking the time to leave a review.