Simple and easy to make, and so delicious, this crispy air fryer eggplant recipe makes for one crowd-pleasing appetizer. Eggplant is sliced into rounds and coated with breadcrumbs for a crispy and healthier bite.
Can you make them ahead of time?
These crispy eggplant rounds are best served as soon as they are cooked so that they are nice and crispy. You can get ahead of things by salting and breading them earlier in the day and keep them covered in the fridge til you are ready to cook and serve them.
The good news is, is that they are easily reheated in the air fryer and they will get nice and crispy again, so perfect if you have leftovers. Reheat them at 370F for around 3 to 4 minutes until crispy.
Why do you need to salt the eggplant?
It’s really important to salt the eggplant slices before you bread and air fry them. Salting them helps to draw out the moisture so that they crisp up. If you skip this step, the eggplant will steam as it cooks instead of crisping up.
Ingredients
- 1 medium sized eggplant about 1lb, sliced into ¼ inch rounds
- 4 teaspoons kosher salt for salting eggplant
- 2 large eggs lightly beaten
- ¼ cup milk
- 1.5 cups Italian Breadcrumbs
- ⅓ cup grated parmesan cheese
- Oil for spraying olive, canola, or avocado
- Salt to taste
Instructions
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Place eggplant rounds on a wire rack in a single layer and sprinkle kosher salts on all sides. Let sit for 30-40 minutes to release any excess moisture.
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Rinse the salt off the eggplant and dry with a towel.
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Preheat the air fryer basket to 370 degrees Fahrenheit.
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Add eggs and milk in one bowl and whisk to combine. In another bowl, add Italian breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese and mix to combine.
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Dip the eggplant rounds in the egg mix, then the breadcrumb mix to coat.
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Spray the preheated air fryer basket with a little bit of oil and then add eggplant slices in the basket in a single layer. Note that all your eggplant slices may not fit in the basket and you may need to cook these in batches. Close the air fryer basket and cook eggplant slices on 370 degrees Fahrenheit for 12-14 minutes, flipping and spraying halfway through. Remove eggplant slices and lightly sprinkle with salt to taste.
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Cook the remaining eggplant slices the same way.
Notes
- Use panko breadcrumbs for extra crispiness.
- Cook the eggplant slices in a single even layer so that they get crispy all over and the breading stays intact.
- These eggplant slices are great for making eggplant parmesan. In the alternative, you can serve them with marinara on the side and dip them in the sauce.
- These are very crispy once done but will lose the crispiness the longer they sit out.
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