Eggplant Parmesan

I love Italian food, as many people do. Today we are going to look at a classic Italian dish, Eggplant Parmesan. Traditionally, it is made by layering eggplant, tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese, basil, and hard-boiled egg slices in a casserole dish and baking it. The earliest known recipe for eggplant Parmesan comes from 1837 Neopolitan cookbook. It calls for fried eggplant slices baked with tomato ragù and Parmesan cheese. The name “Parmesan” refers to the cheese used, not the city of Parma, as many believe to be true. Back in the 14^th century, Parmesan cheese was traded all over Italy. Because of this, it is difficult to say where exactly the Parmesan dish made its debut. However, Clifford A. Wright believes it was most likely created in the southern regions of Italy since that is where eggplant was first discovered. Southern Italy is also where eggplant Parmesan became famous.

Not only is Eggplant Parmesan the most popular Parmesan, but it is also the original Parmesan. It gave rise to other vegetable Parmesans such as artichoke, fennel, and zucchini in the 1800s. Meat Parmesans (chicken, shrimp, veal, etc.) entered the scene with the help of Italian immigrants in American who had the money to afford meat. The addition of meat made the popularity of Parmesan soar in the 1950’s.

According to Lidia Bastianich, restaurant owner and Italian immigrant, it is now common in Italy for eggplant Parmesan to consist of sautéed eggplant dressed in warm marinara and a dusting of cheese and basil. It is a very light dish compared to the American style: heavily breaded and fried eggplant alternately layered with heaping amounts of tomato sauce and cheese.

Lisa Bamonte, owner of Bamonte’s Family Restaurant in Brooklyn, contributed to the article her own secrets to making the perfect eggplant Parmesan here in America. According to Bamonte, the sequence in which you dip the eggplant to fry is very important. Ideally the eggplant is dipped in flour, then egg, and then unseasoned breadcrumbs. It is important to shake off any excess after each dip to ensure the eggplant does not get too soggy or too breaded. It is also important to not bread the eggplant until you are ready to fry it. The longer it sits breaded and not fried, the less crispy it will fry. After breading the eggplant and before frying it, generously season it with black pepper and salt.

When I visited Pema’s Family Restaurant, I was excited to try the food. I expected it to be authentic Italian food since it was run and owned by an Italian family. The food was absolutely amazing, but I was disappointed at how American the food was. The eggplant Parmesan had its essentials (eggplant, marinara, and Parmesan cheese), but it was breaded and fried rather than traditionally sautéed. Rather than coming from a casserole dish, it was neatly stacked on the plate. It also lacked basil. Don’t get me wrong, it tasted amazing, it was just more Americanized than expected. Another feature Pema’s added that is not traditional to eggplant Parmesan was a small portion of spaghetti noodles topped with tomato sauce. This addition has become more famous and expected in America thanks to big chain restaurants such as Olive Garden and Macaroni Grill. As you can see from my pictures below, the noodles were off to the side in a separate dish rather than underneath the eggplant. Overall, Pema’s had amazing food and all the Italian favorites, but it was not the best restaurant for someone looking for truly authentic Italian food. Thanks for reading!

Contributed by: Alexandra