Air fried crispy eggplant coated in almond flour and layered with melty cheese and marinara for the perfect low carb comfort food you can easily make any night of the week!

Air fried crispy eggplant layered with melty cheese and marinara for the perfect low carb comfort food you can easily make any night of the week!

I love a good comfort food meal and this eggplant parmesan takes me back to growing up with my Grandma’s home-cooking.  Not only does this recipe tastes just as great as what I ate growing up, but this eggplant is made in the air fryer with zero oil and is coated in a delicious mixture of almond flour, parmesan cheese, herbs and seasonings making this dish low carb and grain-free as well!

You may be wondering why after air frying the eggplant slices I layered them in a casserole dish and popped them in the oven rather than just cooking everything in the air fryer.  Well you certainly can!  However depending on the size of your air fryer, you may have to cook them eggplant in batches and I really like having all those layers of melty cheese and marinara ready to serve at the same time.  So why even use the air fryer?  Because it really gets the eggplant slices nice and CRISPY, more so than baking in the oven!  Trust me, using the air fryer is so worth it.  I’ll share below both ways you can make this though, especially if you’re just cooking for two people!

Air fried crispy eggplant layered with melty cheese and marinara for the perfect low carb comfort food you can easily make any night of the week!

Here’s What You’ll Need

  • Eggplant – you’ll need one large ripe eggplant or two smaller ones
  • Eggs – this coats the eggplant slices and acts as a binder to hold the almond flour “breading”
  • Almond flour – this acts as the coating in place of classic breadcrumbs to keep these lower in carbs and grain-free.  Feel free to use regular breadcrumbs though if you’d like!
  • Flaxseed meal – this adds a boost of nutrition and extra fiber to this dish
  • Parmesan cheese – I like to mix this in with the almond flour to help coat the breadcrumbs and add flavor, you could also sprinkle extra parmesan cheese over top along with the mozzarella
  • Mozzarella cheese – I used thick slices of mozzarella cheese that perfectly melt on top of the eggplant slices that just tastes SO good!  You could also use shredded mozzarella cheese if you’d like
  • Seasonings – combination of oregano, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper
  • Marinara – you can either make my delicious homemade marinara sauce or use your favorite store-bought jar of marinara!
  • Fresh basil – top this cheesy eggplant parmesan with fresh basil at the end, trust me it tastes amazing!
Air fried crispy eggplant layered with melty cheese and marinara for the perfect low carb comfort food you can easily make any night of the week!

How to Make Eggplant Parmesan

  1. Prep eggplant.  Preheat your air fryer to 375 degrees F and slice the eggplant into 1/4-inch rounds.  Lay the eggplant slices out onto paper towels and sprinkle liberally with salt.  Similar to zucchini, eggplant contains a lot of water so the salt will help draw that out so the eggplant won’t be mushy when we cook it.  Let the eggplant sit for about 30 minutes then soak up any excess water that comes out by patting them with paper towels.
  2. Coat eggplant.  Using two shallow bowls, add eggs to one (mixing them together) and in the other combine almond flour, grated parmesan cheese, flaxseed meal, and seasonings.  Dip an eggplant slice in the egg until fully coated then dip in the almond flour mixture making sure to coat both sides.  Repeat this until all your eggplant slices are coated in the almond flour “breading”.
  3. Air fry eggplant.  Spray the basket of your air fryer with nonstick spray and place eggplant slices in an even layer in the basket.  Depending on the size of your air fryer, you may need to do this in a few batches.  Air fry for 5 minutes, flip the slices over and air fry again for another 4 minutes, until golden and crispy.
  4. Layer the eggplant.  Coat the bottom of a casserole dish with about a 1/2 cup of marinara sauce and layer with eggplant slices.  Top those slices with more marinara and mozzarella cheese, and then repeat with another layer of eggplant, marinara and mozzarella cheese.  Pop in the oven and turn the broiler on high and cook for about 3 to 5 minutes, until cheese is melted and starts to brown.  Make sure to watch closely so the cheese doesn’t burn.
  5. Enjoy!  Remove from the oven, serve and enjoy!
Air fried crispy eggplant coated in almond flour and layered with melty cheese and marinara for the perfect low carb comfort food you can easily make any night of the week!

Can I Bake (Instead of Air Fry) the Eggplant?

Of course!  I tested this recipe both using the air fryer and the oven and found that the air fryer just gets the eggplant the most crispy.  Depending on the size of your air fryer, you may have to cook them in batches as opposed to just throwing a whole pan of breaded eggplant rounds in the oven, but I think it’s 100% worth it!  Either way this tastes absolutely delicious and is a MUST to make your family!

To bake the eggplant slices in the oven, simply arrange them on a baking sheet coated with nonstick spray and bake at 425 degrees F for about 25 minutes, flipping the slices halfway through.  Then just assemble the eggplant parmesan in a casserole dish as directed and pop it under the broiler until the cheese is nice and melty!

Tips, Tricks and Substitutions

  • Feel free to swap out the almond flour for whole wheat panko breadcrumbs if you’re not gluten-free or trying to keep this lower in carbs.
  • Season egg mixture to add even more flavor!
  • To make this entire meal in the air fryer and skip layering the eggplant in a casserole dish, after flipping the eggplant slices in the air fryer after the first 5 minutes, top each slice with marinara sauce, top with mozzarella cheese and air fry for another 4 to 5 minutes, until cheese is melted.  You may have to do this in batches however which is why I like to use a casserole dish and serve the whole meat at the same time.
  • You’ll love my homemade marinara sauce with this, definitely give it a try!
  • Serve over zucchini noodles for even more veggies!
Air fried crispy eggplant coated in almond flour and layered with melty cheese and marinara for the perfect low carb comfort food you can easily make any night of the week!

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Air Fryer Eggplant Parmesan

Air fried crispy eggplant layered with melty cheese and marinara for the perfect low carb comfort food you can easily make any night of the week!
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Servings: 6

Ingredients 

  • 1 medium to large eggplant, sliced into 1/4-inch rounds
  • 2 tsp kosher salt
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 1 cup almond flour, or breadcrumbs
  • 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
  • 2 Tbsp flaxseed meal
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/4 tsp onion powder
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper
  • 2 cups marinara
  • 8 oz mozzarella cheese, sliced
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Instructions 

  • Preheat air fryer to 375 degrees F and slice the eggplant into 1/4-inch rounds.  Lay the eggplant slices out onto paper towels and sprinkle liberally with salt.  Let the eggplant sit for about 30 minutes then pat them dry with paper towels so soak up any excess water.
  • Using two shallow bowls, add eggs to one (mixing them together) and in the other combine almond flour, grated parmesan cheese, flaxseed meal, and seasonings.  Dip the eggplant slice in the egg until fully coated then dip in the almond flour mixture making sure both sides are coated.  Repeat this until all your eggplant slices are coated in the almond flour “breading”.
  • To crisp in the air fryer: Spray the basket of your air fryer with nonstick spray and place eggplant slices in an even layer in the basket.  Depending on the size of your air fryer, you may need to do this in a few batches.  Air fry for 5 minutes, flip the slices over and air fry again for another 4 minutes, until golden and crispy.
  • To crisp in the oven: Arrange eggplant slices on a baking sheet coated with nonstick spray and bake at 425 degrees F for about 25 minutes, flipping the slices halfway through.
  • To make in a casserole dish, coat the bottom of the dish with about a 1/2 cup of marinara sauce and layer with eggplant slices.  Top those slices with more marinara and mozzarella cheese, and then repeat with another layer of eggplant, marinara and mozzarella cheese.  Place the casserole dish in the oven and turn the broiler on high and cook for about 3 to 5 minutes, until cheese is melted and starts to brown.  Make sure to watch closely so the cheese doesn’t burn (this is so you can serve the entire dish at the same time).
  • To skip layering in a casserole dish, after flipping the eggplant slices in the air fryer after the first 5 minutes, top each slice with marinara sauce and then with mozzarella cheese and air fry for another 4 to 5 minutes, until cheese is melted.  Repeat until all the eggplant slices have been cooked and enjoy!

Notes

*Eggplant parmesan will last in the fridge in a sealed, airtight container for up to 5 days.

Nutrition

Serving: 1/6th of recipe | Calories: 222kcal | Carbohydrates: 11.2g | Protein: 13g | Fat: 14.2g | Saturated Fat: 5.3g | Sodium: 426mg | Fiber: 5.2g | Sugar: 4.9g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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As a self-proclaimed foodie and fitness enthusiast, I have a passion for cooking and a huge desire to show that living a healthy lifestyle can actually be easy and fun!  Feel free to use the meal guide above to find your new favorite meal ideas or the dietary guides to the right to narrow things down even more!

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