This super simple recipe for our Air Fryer Eggplant is just so good! Air Fryer Eggplant Parmesan has all of that traditional crispy eggplant parmesan flavor, but it is just so much easier to make.
Our Air Fried Eggplant recipe is a delicious and healthy vegetarian recipe that you can even make vegan by replacing the cheese and eggs with plant based substitutes!
Air Fryer Eggplant
While growing up, my mom loved Eggplant Parmesan, but it never seemed appetizing to me. I think that I was just one of those kids who didn't have a very well developed palate. Once I got a little older and began experimenting with different vegetables - like HELLO!!! Brussels Sprouts! YUM! - I realized that Eggplant was actually completely delicious!
I can vaguely remember my mom getting ready to cook eggplant. However it wasn't until I reached adulthood that I ever even thought to fry eggplant myself. Now I am going try to experiment with making roasted eggplant and of course, I will be trying a bunch of other eggplant recipes too!
I love using an air fryer to make easy dinners - as well as appetizers! Air frying is such a simple way to cook the most delicious of meals! Even if you do not want to make Air Fryer Eggplant Parmesan, you can still makes a bunch of eggplant recipes in air fryer. Even a plain fried eggplant in air fryer will be easier than heating up oil in a skillet - and the clean up is a breeze!
Instead of spending hours trying to learn how to fry eggplant on the stove, just grab your air fryer and get nice air fryer eggplant slices without that hot, sizzling oil!
If you love our Air Fryer Eggplant Parmesan Recipe, you should try our recipe for Grilled Chicken Parmesan Sandwiches!
Are you looking for more Recipes like our Air Fryer Eggplant?
With summer temperatures rising every day, let's skip the BBQ this weekend and cook up these tasty Air Fryer Garlic Parmesan Chicken Wings as an appetizer!
I mean, really! Who doesn't love air fryer chicken wings?! You can even make an entire air fryer dinner with air fryer zucchini and air fryer cauliflower as sides.
If you love easy Air Fryer recipes like this Air Fryer Eggplant, you might also want to check out our Air Fryer Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms Recipe and our Air Fryer Teriyaki Pork Skewers Recipe. We love making air fryer appetizers and I am slowly becoming somewhat of an air fryer cook in my home!
If you love this Fried Eggplant in Air Fryer, then you should totally check out these crock pot, slow cooker and instant pot recipes that I have shared over the years. Like our Slow Cooker Beef with Broccoli recipe!
I think you will love all of our recipes like this fried eggplant air fryer idea, especially our Slow Cooker Sweet & Sour Chicken Recipe!
Of course, this is just a small selection of quick and easy dinner recipes like our easy air fry eggplant. But we have LOTS and lots of recipes on the blog that are perfect for those nights when you don't want to spend a lot of time cooking.
Just click the Instant Pot and Ninja Foodi tab in our FOOD INDEX and they will pop up for you!
Instant Pot & Ninja Foodi Recipes
- Instant Pot Chicken Drumsticks
- 16 Instant Pot Recipes for Summer
- Spaghetti Chicken Crockpot
- Recipe for Macaroni and Tomatoes
Where can I find the recipe card?
If you’d rather skip all of my cooking tips and similar recipe ideas, hit the Jump to Recipe button for the printable recipe card.
Jump to Recipe
Here are the ingredients that you will need to make our recipe for Air Fryer Eggplant
This Air Fryer Eggplant recipe is quite simple to make, but requires a few different seasonings. Make sure that you have all of the spices you will need in order to make our eggplant air fryer recipe ahead of time so that you are not tempted to leave anything out!
Even omitting one of the spices we used in our eggplant in the air fryer will totally change the flavor of your dinner!
- Italian style bread crumbs - Savory herb, medium ground bread crumbs with an authentic Italian taste
- Grated parmesan cheese - Mondo Vecchio parmesan cheese provides gourmet Italian flavor. Tastes great as a topping for soup, salad, pizza, pasta dishes, meatball subs, and more!
- Italian seasoning - Classic blend of basil, rosemary, thyme, marjoram, sage and oregano
- Dried basil - Simply Organic Sweet Basil Leaf is naturally grown and processed in Egypt. It is 100% organic, kosher certified, and non-irradiated from start to finish.
- Garlic powder - A Rich, Sharp And Aromatic Flavor. Garlic Powder is made from 100% dehydrated and crushed raw materials.
- Onion powder - Works in most recipes that calls for dried or fresh onions
- Salt
- Ground black pepper
- All purpose flour - We like this Gold Medal all purpose flour in a resealable 3 lb bag!
- Eggs
- Eggplant - cut into slices
- Marinara sauce - Italian pasta sauce, tomato sauce, red sauce, cream sauces, dressings, and classic Italian condiments from Rao's are made from the finest natural ingredients, like pure olive oil and fresh basil.
- Shredded cheddar cheese
- chopped fresh parsley, optional for serving
Keep in mind that all of the specific amounts for each ingredient needed for air frying eggplant are listed in the printable recipe card at the end of this post! You can print the recipe card for our crispy eggplant air fryer recipe before doing your grocery shopping, or even email it to yourself.
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As I have mentioned in many of my slow cooker, pressure cooker and air fryer recipe posts, I absolutely LOVE my Ninja Foodi Pro! The Ninja FD401 Foodi 12-in-1 Deluxe XL 8 qt. Pressure Cooker & Air Fryer that Steams, Slow Cooks, Sears, Sautés, Dehydrates & More, with 5 qt. Crisper Basket, Deluxe Reversible Rack & Recipe Book can be found for under $180 on Amazon now! It has so many functions: programmable cooking functions to Pressure Cook, Air Fry/Air Crisp, Steam, Slow Cook, Yogurt, Sear/Sauté, Bake/Roast, Broil, Dehydrate, Sous Vide & Keep Warm.
I also highly recommend using Air Fryer Disposable Parchment Paper Cooking Paper for Air Fryers if you want to skip a messy clean up! Get it here on Amazon!
Here are the directions for how to make our Air Fryer Eggplant
Gather your ingredients to make this healthy eggplant recipe air fryer and then set out your dishes for the breading process. Go ahead and begin slicing your eggplant into 1 inch slices now.
You are going to begin making our air fryer eggplant recipes by taking a shallow dish and adding together your Italian style bread crumbs, the grated parmesan cheese, the dried Italian seasoning, basil, half of a teaspoon garlic powder and onion powder, the salt and freshly ground black pepper and mixing them all together really well.
In a separate dish, add your all purpose flour. In a third and separate dish, add your eggs and whisk them.
Dredge your large globe eggplant into the all purpose flour, followed by dregding them into the egg and then directly into the Italian bread crumb mixture.
Make sure that you are fully coating the eggplant slices on both sides.
Place them on a clean plate and allow them to rest for five minutes.
While the breaded eggplant slices are resting, preheat the air fryer for 5 minutes at 370 degrees.
Place the breaded eggplant air fryer slices into the air fryer basket, in a single layer and making sure the eggplant does not touch.
Heat for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. Spread a spoonful of marinara sauce on the eggplant and spread evenly.
Top with shredded cheese. Return to the air fryer for 2 minutes at 370 degrees.
When our eggplant air fryer recipes cooking is complete, remove from air fryer and serve topped with chopped fresh parsley.
Please note that this eggplant recipes air fryer serves 4 to 6 people. If you are feeding a crowd, or people with larger appetites, make sure to double the recipe!
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What are you making for Dessert to go with this Air Fryer Eggplant?
Dessert Recipes
To print, simply click the recipe card below!
I know that many people still like to print out recipes and keep them in a recipe binder, or simply have the printed recipe sitting in front of them when it comes time to cook!
Air Fryer Eggplant
Ingredients
- ½ cup Italian style bread crumbs
- ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¼ cup all purpose flour
- 2 eggs
- 1 eggplant sliced into ½" slices
- marinara sauce
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- chopped fresh parsley optional for serving
Instructions
- Add bread crumbs, cheese, Italian seasoning, basil, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper to a shallow dish and mix well. In a separate dish, add flour. In a third and separate dish, add eggs and whisk.
- Dredge eggplant into the flour, followed by the egg and bread crumb mixture, coating on both sides. Place on plate and let rest for five minutes.
- While eggplant is resting, preheat the air fryer for 5 minutes at 370 degrees. Place the eggplant into the air fryer basket, in a single layer and making sure the eggplant does not touch. Heat for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. Spread a spoonful of marinara sauce on the eggplant and spread evenly. Top with shredded cheese. Return to the air fryer for 2 minutes at 370 degrees.
- When cooking is complete, remove from air fryer and serve topped with chopped fresh parsley.
Video
Notes
Variations and Substitutions for this Air Fryer Eggplant Recipe
Now, while our Air Fryer Eggplant Recipe is vegetarian, I realize that a lot of people are now moving towards a plant based diet for a variety of reasons.
How to make this Eggplant in the Air Fryer Vegan
You can easily turn this into a vegan recipe by using a plant based cheese alternative to mozzarella cheese.
You can also omit the cheese portion of this fried eggplant in air fryer altogether.
How to make this Eggplant in the Air Fryer Gluten Free
You can switch the all purpose flour for a gluten free flour mix - like this King Arthur Certified Gluten-Free flour that we found on Amazon!
King Arthur Measure for Measure Flour is gluten-free but also 1:1 substitute for wheat flour; an essential gluten-free pantry staple for bakers. This gluten-free flour is fortified with iron, calcium and Vitamin B and comes in a re-sealable bag. Not ideal for yeasted recipes (breads, pizza, and buns).
You can replace the Italian Style Bread Crumbs with this 4C Premium Gluten Free Bread Crumbs that is also seasoned!
Ingredients: Gluten Free Crumbs (Rice Flour, Raisin Juice Concentrate, Honey, Salt), Grated Pecorino Romano Cheese [Pasteurized Sheep's Milk, Cheese Culture, Salt, Enzymes (Rennet)], Salt, Dehydrated Parsley Flakes, Spices, Onion Powder, Garlic Powder.
How to make this Air Fryer Eggplant Low Carb and KETO
Eggplant, cooked (0.5 cup) contains 4.3g total carbs, 3g net carbs, 0.1g fat, 0.4g protein, and 17 calories. So while it is a relatively low carb vegetable on its own, the flour, the bread crumbs and the marinara sauce tend to pack in the carbohydrates.
You can make this a lower carb version by replacing the all purpose flour with almond flour, and the bread crumbs with KETO bread crumbs or even by substituting crushed pork rinds in place of the bread crumbs.
This Appel Foods Nut Crumbs is only about 1 net carb.
- HEALTHY ALTERNATIVE TO BREAD CRUMBS: And you may just never look back from this tasty gluten-free, Paleo, and Keto-friendly bread crumb Alternative.
- MADE FROM RAW, PREMIUM NUTS: Taste the difference with this natural and healthy texture and flavor booster for chicken, shrimp, eggplant, soups, and sauces.
- MEET YOUR NEW FAMILY FAVORITE: Blended with spices you and your family both know and love, you’re likely to see your favorite dishes vanish even faster!
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This Almond Flour is great in recipes and baking, it supports low carb, Keto and Paleo Lifestyles. It is finely sifted and made with high quality blanched almonds.
Walden Farms Tomato Basil Marinara Sauce is actually ZERO net carbs!
- Classic Basil Marinara Sauce – Crafted with sun-ripened tomatoes, minced garlic, chopped onion, natural sea salt, and freshly ground herbs and spices our sauce makes every meal more delicious.
- Expand Italian Recipes – This basil pasta sauce can be paired with all your favorite meals including traditional spaghetti or ravioli, as a dipping sauce for bread and cheese sticks, and so many other great ideas.
- Dairy Free, Low Carb, Keto Friendly Option – Especially great for those sticking to strict diet goals our marinara sauce is fat free, sugar free, and super low in carbs, so you can maintain your health and wellness goals.
- Naturally Sweet Flavor – Unlike heavier pasta sauces our basil offers a lighter, sweeter flavor that goes well with food and doesn’t overpower your tastebuds, which makes it great for those with sensitive palates.
- Convenient 2-Pack Bundle – Our marinara sauce comes in two 12 oz. jars perfect for serving up small meals for yourself or larger meals for family and friends. They’re also sealed and shipped fresh so they’re ready to eat.
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