To explore and search through all our recipes, check out the new WSJ Recipes page. Fried Eggplant With Sungold Tomatoes, Basil and Mozzarella Planks of fried eggplant sit atop a sauce made with fruity Sungold tomatoes. Rather than melting mozzarella on top, tear off shreds of room-temperature cheese and […]

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To explore and search through all our recipes, check out the new WSJ Recipes page.

Fried Eggplant With Sungold Tomatoes, Basil and Mozzarella

Planks of fried eggplant sit atop a sauce made with fruity Sungold tomatoes. Rather than melting mozzarella on top, tear off shreds of room-temperature cheese and scatter them over the dish to soften in the residual heat from the other elements. Finished with lemon zest and torn basil, it’s the comfort food we love, only lighter and brighter.

Total Time: 45 minutes

serves: 4

Drew Escriva for The Wall Street Journal, Food Styling by Tyna Hoang, Prop Styling by Emily Eisen

Ingredients

• 2 Italian eggplants, sliced lengthwise into ½-inch planks
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil plus more to fry and finish
• 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• ½ teaspoon chile flakes
• 1 pint Sungold tomatoes, halved
• ¼ cup dry white wine
• 3 tablespoons butter, chilled
• Sherry vinegar
• 1 cup flour
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 2 cups panko
• 1 (12-ounce) ball fresh mozzarella, at room temperature, torn into bite-size shreds
• Zest of 1 lemon
• ½ cup torn basil leaves

Directions

1. Season eggplant liberally with salt and place on a cooling rack set over a baking sheet. Let drain at 5 minutes. Pat dry with paper towels.
2. Make the tomato sauce: Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a medium pan over medium-low heat. Add garlic and cook until translucent, about 1 minute. Season with chile flakes and salt, and increase heat to medium. Stir in tomatoes and cook until they release liquid, 3 minutes. Add wine and cook until sauce tightens, about 3 minutes more. Stir in butter and, once sauce is creamy, season with vinegar and salt to taste. Cover to keep warm.
3. Place flour, eggs and panko into three large separate bowls. Fill a large, deep pan with at least 1/2 inch of oil and set over medium-high heat.
4. Dredge each eggplant plank through flour to cover. Shake off excess and dip eggplant into eggs to completely coat. Let excess run off and then dredge eggplant through panko, pressing to make crumbs adhere evenly. Set breaded eggplant on rack.
5. Once oil is hot but not smoking, working in batches, lay breaded eggplant into oil and fry until crisp and golden brown on one side, 2-3 minutes. Control heat so oil bubbles steadily. Use tongs to carefully flip eggplant and fry until golden and crisp on reverse side and fully tender, about 2 minutes more. Transfer fried eggplant to paper-towel-lined plates to cool. Season with salt.
6. To serve, spoon warm tomato sauce into shallow bowls. Place fried eggplant on top. Scatter torn mozzarella over top. Season with salt, pepper and zest. Garnish with basil and a drizzle of oil.

—Adapted from Joe Papach

—Kitty Greenwald is a chef, food writer and the co-author of ‘Slow Fires’ (Clarkson Potter)

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