Ultra soft slices of eggplant smothered in tomato sauce, with a crunchy panko-Parmesan topping. All the great vegan eggplant Parmesan flavor without the messy dipping and breading!
Why I love this easy vegan eggplant Parmesan recipe
I love eggplant just about any way you make it, from my Sweet & Spicy Grilled Eggplant to the roasted eggplant in my Farro and Roasted Veggie Salad recipe.
Eggplant is at its best when it’s soft enough to cut with a fork—even the nutritious skin. Here, roasting before baking ensures an ultra soft texture every time.
And while the eggplant roasts, you can prep your other ingredients, which helps cut down the cooking time.
But probably my favorite part of this recipe is that we skip the messy dipping, dredging and breading. All the crunchy, cheesy eggplant Parm goodness, with a lot less effort.
Vegan Eggplant Parmesan ingredients: Eggplants, tomato sauce, panic bread crumbs, vegan Parmesan, Italian Seasonings, optional fresh parsley.
How to make this deconstructed eggplant Parm casserole
Unlike traditional eggplant Parmesan where you dip, dredge and fry eggplant slices, here we layer it a bit like a lasagna.
For this recipe, I stuck with simple layers of roasted eggplant, tomato sauce and a breadcrumb-vegan Parmesan topping.
But if you’re craving a more decadent dish, feel free to add dollops of Almond Ricotta between your eggplant layers, like I did in my Zucchini Lasagna.
Here’s how we get it done, step by step (please read the recipe, too!):
Roast the eggplant slices.
Coat the bottom of a baking dish with tomato sauce.
Layer roasted eggplant slices over the tomato sauce.
Top the eggplant slices with half the remaining tomato sauce, and repeat.
For the topping, combine bread crumbs, vegan Parmesan and Italian seasonings.
Sprinkle the topping evenly over the casserole.
Bake until hot & bubbly. Serve with fresh chopped parsley if desired.
Expert Tips
- Eggplant. I like to place one sliced eggplant on each baking sheet. You’ll have approximately equal amounts of eggplant ready for each layer, and the pieces fit together well in the baking dish.
- Bread Crumbs. Some brands contain small amounts of oil or cane sugar. If you can’t find a compliant brand, make your own by toasting bread slices and pulsing in a food processor.
- Almond Ricotta. I love serving this dish with a dollop of almond ricotta on the side. Or, layer the almond ricotta between the layers of eggplant and bake it with the casserole. You may need to increase the baking time a bit.
- Nut-free Vegan Parmesan. Substitute pepita seeds or sunflower seeds for a nut-free version.
- Tomato Sauce. Jarred sauce works great in this recipe. If you don’t want to heat your sauce first, increase the baking time.
I’ve already made this dish for family and friends, and each time it’s been a big hit. If you make this deconstructed vegan eggplant Parmesan casserole, I’d love to hear how it goes!
-Elizabeth xo
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Easiest Vegan Eggplant Parmesan
Ingredients
- 2 medium eggplants trimmed and sliced into 1/2-inch discs (See notes)
- Pinch of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 3 1/2 cups 28 ounces Easy Tomato sauce (Or your favorite oil free tomato sauce)
- 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs Or regular bread crumbs, GF if desired. I used Ian's Gluten Free. See notes.
- 1/2 cup vegan Parmesan See notes for nut free
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasonings
- Optional: chopped fresh parsley for serving
- Optional: bake or serve with almond ricotta cheese See notes
Instructions
- Place a rack in the center of the oven and Preheat to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Arrange the eggplant slices evenly on the baking sheets, and sprinkle lightly with sea salt and black pepper. Roast for 30 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit, or until browned and very soft, flipping halfway through cooking.
- While the eggplant is roasting, make your tomato sauce. (If using jarred sauce, heat it in a pan first, OR increase the final baking time as needed, see notes.)
- Next, make the vegan Parmesan in a food processor.
- In a small bowl, make the topping by tossing together the bread crumbs, vegan Parmesan and Italian seasonings.
- When the eggplant is cooked, remove it from the oven and reduce the heat to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Ladle about 3/4 cup of the hot tomato sauce into a 9" x 9" square baking dish, coating the entire bottom with thin layer of sauce.
- Arrange 1/2 of the eggplant on top of the sauce in the baking dish. Cover the eggplant with 1/2 the remaining sauce, then add another layer of eggplant. Cover the eggplant with the rest of the sauce.
- Sprinkle the topping evenly over the top of the dish. Add a little more Italian seasonings, if desired.
- Cover with foil and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until hot and bubbly throughout.
- Optional: for a crispy, golden brown topping, broil under low heat for a few minutes, being careful not to burn the topping.
- Garnish with fresh chopped parsley and serve with almond ricotta, if desired.
Notes
- Eggplant. I like to place one sliced eggplant on each baking sheet. That way, when I layer the dish, I'll have approximately equal amounts of eggplant ready for each layer. Plus, the pieces just fit together well this way, with some larger and some smaller slices in each layer.
- Bread Crumbs. Some brands of store bought bread crumbs contain small amounts of oil or cane sugar. If you can't find compliant brand, you can make your own by toasting bread slices in the oven and pulsing in a food processor.
- Almond Ricotta. I love serving this dish with a dollop of almond ricotta on the side. But you can also layer the almond ricotta between the layers of eggplant and bake it with the casserole if you like. Just increase the cooking time a bit if necessary to heat everything through.
- Nut-free Vegan Parmesan. I make my vegan Parmesan with cashews or walnuts. But you can substitute pepita seeds or sunflower seeds for a nut-free version.
- Tomato Sauce. The baking time for this recipe assumes everything goes into the baking dish already warm to hot. If you don't want to pre-heat your jarred sauce, just increase the cooking time so everything heats through.
Love this recipe. I have made it several times and always great. Super Healthy snd tastes better than the fried stuff with cheese. You have created a hit and usually don’t post these comments.
Thanks so much, Gary! I really appreciate you taking the time to let me know how much you like this recipe. Simple + delicious + healthy is my happy place. 🙂 Sounds like it may be yours, too. Have a lovely day.
I was looking for an oil-free eggplant parm recipe and yours came up on the Google search! Such a clever idea! I didn’t end up exactly following the recipe, so mine ended up looking more like a lasagna with the eggplant instead of noodles. I layered the eggplant with sauteed mushrooms & onions, spinach and a tofu ricotta as well as the sauce. We loved it! Thanks for the idea! Next time I’ll have to actually make it the ‘parm’ version! LOL
Hi Nina, Love your adaptations, they sound amazing. I think that’s one of my favorite things about this dish–it’s so versatile. Thanks for your review.
Was looking for more vegan dishes and this popped up. Looks and smells delicious! Will make it a go to meal for the weekend! Simple and quick to fix. Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe.
Hi Denise, Hope it tasted as good as it looked/smelled! :))))
Easy & delicious, for non-vegans too.
Thanks so much Lori! This is one of my favorite go-to recipe for non-veg friends. So glad you like it 🙂
This looks yummy! Do you salt the eggplant and let it sit for 30 minutes like some recipes to prevent the bitter taste or does that occur when you roast it? I plan on making this Sunday! Can’t wait!
Hi Barb, You know, I don’t salt my eggplant. I find that a) that can increase the salt content, which I don’t want and b) if I buy small to medium eggplants with deep purple skins (no large or reddish ones), and eat them while they’re still relatively fresh, they’re usually not bitter. Hope you love it!
Made this Eggplant parm and it was awesome! So easy! And the vegan parm recipe is wonderful. I will definitely keep that handy to sprinkle on my food! THANKS!
Hi Jackie, thrilled to hear you liked this recipe. We make it A LOT!!! ’cause it’s so simple. Vegan Parm is a game changer, isn’t it?! 🙂
I consider myself somewhat of a carnivore, but both my wife and I LOVED this dish. The size of my eggplants allowed me to have 3 layers, so it wound up being more like lasagna. I added some vegan shredded mozzarella cheese between the layers. And the parmesan-crumb-herb topping was scrumptious.
Hey Dave, so glad this one is carnivore-approved!:)))) Your version sounds terrific.