Zucchini Stacks in the Style of Eggplant Parmesan Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How do you keep eggplant parmesan from getting soggy? ›

1. Salt the Eggplant to Remove Excess Moisture. This is key to crispy results. Eggplants are 92% water.

With its mild flavor and tender texture, zucchini makes an excellent alternative to eggplant, adding a delightful twist to your favorite dishes.

The peel of an eggplant is completely edible. However, as the eggplant grows bigger and matures, the peel may become tough and bitter. People often prefer to peel larger eggplants because of this, but smaller eggplants do just fine unpeeled. It ends up being a matter of personal preference.

Eggplant has a flavor similar to summer squash or zucchini: tender, mild, and sweet with a slight vegetal bitterness. Eggplant will absorb the flavor of whatever it's cooked with. Its texture is firm and spongy when raw, and meltingly tender when cooked (especially fried, smoked, or braised).

What Does Zucchini Replace in Baking? Zucchini acts as a wet ingredient in baking. It doesn't necessarily replace a fat like oil or a binding ingredient like eggs, but it does add moisture and volume.

While Zucchini is an excellent source of vitamin C and beta carotene which is good for eye health, eggplant only has trace amounts of these vitamins. Eggplant beats out the cucurbita pepo (zucchini) for antioxidants, including the hard to find nasunin. It is also richer in dietary fibre and vitamin E than zucchini.

Bad eggplant looks wrinkly and dull-colored. Squishy texture and a rotten odor are other common signs of bad eggplant. Fresh eggplant lasts 2-3 days at room temperature, 5 days in the refrigerator, and 8-12 months in the freezer. Eggplant that turns brown after you slice it is okay to eat.

Modern eggplant has had bitterness nearly bred out of it, so many cooks have given up the practice. Salting the slices for eggplant Parmesan is not to prevent bitter flavors, but to season the eggplant itself and, at least in my experience, keep the eggplant from sucking up too much of the olive oil from frying.

Can eggplant parmesan be made ahead and/or frozen? Yes! This dish can be assembled up to 2 days before baking; it can also be frozen, baked, or unbaked, for up to 3 months. (If freezing, defrost in the refrigerator overnight prior to reheating/baking.)

What's healthier eggplant or zucchini? ›

Yet, zucchini is a bit healthier than the eggplant. By consuming 100 grams of zucchini you'll' receive 16kcal, while when you eat eggplant in the same amount, you will get 24 kcal. However, vitamin C is on the side of zucchini.

If your raw zucchini tastes bitter (test by licking an otherwise fresh-looking slice of zucchini), it has likely gone bad.

Both of these diet-friendly veggies are low in calories, making them excellent guilt-free options for when you need to munch on a snack at work.

A useful tip to prevent sogginess and greasiness is to salt sliced or diced eggplant and let it sit for an hour. This helps to draw out moisture. Next, rinse and drain any liquid from the sliced eggplant, then pat dry before cooking.

Try sprinkling slices of your eggplant with plenty of salt on both sides and let rest for about fifteen minutes. The salt will draw out a lot of water from the vegetable, making it less spongy. Then, dry off the slices before adding them to very hot oil in a frying pan.

You can store eggplant at room temperature if you plan on using it within about two days, according to Sweetwater Organic Farm. To store eggplant at room temperature, simply place it on your counter. Just don't keep your eggplant near any fruits or veggies that release ethylene gas—such as apples, bananas, etc.