“Raichlen’s Rule” states that if something tastes great baked, fried, or sautéed, it probably tastes better grilled. This brings us to a dish I never imagined I’d cook on the grill: eggplant Parmigiana. Another rule of mine states that if grilling doesn’t measurably improve a dish you might bake, fry, or sauté, you should stick with the traditional method. (Just because you can cook virtually everything on the grill, it doesn’t mean you should.)
Well, grilling benefits eggplant Parmigiana in at least four ways. First, you eliminate a lot of the oil and oil-soaked breading. Second, you can introduce an interesting smoke flavor by using a smoky tomato sauce. Third, there’s the charred cedar plank, which adds another layer of flavor and cool factor. Finally, my grilled version is a lot quicker, easier, and less messy to make than traditional eggplant parm, and it tastes cleaner, too.–Steven Raichlen
Cedar-Plank Grilled Eggplant Parmesan
Equipment
- 4 square or 2 long rectangular cedar planks, soaked
- Gas or charcoal grill
Ingredients
For the eggplant
- 1 to 2 medium (about 14 ounces) eggplants
- Extra virgin olive oil, for brushing and drizzling
- Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 to 2 teaspoons dried oregano, preferably Italian
- Mild vegetable oil, for oiling the grill grate
To assemble
- 12 ounces fresh burrata, sliced (cream reserved), or mozzarella
- 2 cups store-bought or homemade chunky tomato sauce
- 1/2 cup freshly and finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
- 4 fresh basil leaves, thinly slivered (optional)
- 1/2 cup dried plain breadcrumbs, or panko (optional)
Instructions
Grill the eggplant
- Set up your grill for direct grilling and heat to high. Char the cedar planks on one side until they darken and smoke, but not so long they catch fire, 2 to 4 minutes. Let cool on a heat-proof surface.
- Meanwhile, cut the eggplant crosswise into 12 slices, each about 1/4 inch (6 mm) thick. Lightly brush each on both sides with olive oil and season on both sides with salt, pepper, and oregano.
- Brush or scrape the grill grate clean and oil it well.
- Arrange the eggplant slices on the grate. Grill until well browned on both sides and soft in the center, 4 to 6 minutes per side. Alternatively, you can grill the eggplant on a preheated plancha. Transfer the eggplant slices to a rimmed baking sheet and let cool.
Assemble the eggplant parmesan
- Place a slice of eggplant on each plank (2 slices if using long planks). Top each slice with a slice of burrata (spoon on some of the cream as well), followed by a generous dollop of tomato sauce.
- Sprinkle with Parmigiano-Reggiano and a tuft of slivered basil, if using. Build the second layer of eggplant, burrata, tomato sauce, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and basil. Crown with a slice of eggplant.
- If you like a crisp top, sprinkle the top eggplant slice with breadcrumbs and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil. The eggplant Parmesans can be assembled and refrigerated several hours ahead of time and grilled at the last minute.
- Return the assembled eggplant Parmesans on their planks to the grill, placing over indirect heat. Grill until the tomato sauce is bubbling, the cheese is melted, and the tops are browned, 10 to 20 minutes.
- Serve immediately, preferably still on the cedar planks.
Notes
How do I prepare cedar planks for grilling?
In a large container, soak the cedar planks for 15 to 30 minutes. Use a heavy object to keep the planks submerged. Soaking the planks keeps the wood from burning and also keeps the food on top moist during grilling. Some grillers use salted water for soaking, which is nice but not necessary.I thought you had to soak cedar grilling planks overnight?
That seems to be a common misconception, and one David followed for a long time. But long soaks actually leech the flavor out of the wood, which is the last thing you want. A soak of up to 60 minutes, the maximum, is all you need for optimal results.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe Testers’ Reviews
I recommend using the listed sauce and burrata/mozzarella amounts as a guideline and adjusting to taste, as I found that the amounts as written would have overwhelmed my eggplant. I ended up using about 3/4 cup sauce and 6 ounces of cheese.
Depending on your grill type/size, I suggest grilling the eggplant slices in two batches. I found it tricky on a charcoal grill to get them all evenly browned in one batch, and had to do a lot of moving around.
This cedar-plank grilled eggplant Parmesan would be a Tester’s Choice just because of the plating alone. The cool factor is just off the charts–deconstructed eggplant parm on a cedar plank. The better news is that the dish delivers.
Grilling the eggplant rather than frying (not that there’s anything wrong with that!) does impart certain umami that elevates this dish. I used a homemade tomato sauce with a kick of red pepper flakes and that worked well with the creamy eggplant and burrata. Overall, a wonderful dish, full of flavor and texture. I served it with grilled broccoli and garlic bread. One comment was: “I could see this being served in a restaurant.” That’s high praise, indeed.
A no-fry eggplant Parmigiana recipe? I’m in! Cedar-plank grilled eggplant Parmesan is a modern spin on a traditional recipe. With a shortlist of ingredients and the option to prepare in advance, this makes for an impressive summer supper with friends just as well as a weeknight dinner. Forget about your past eggplant Parm experiences – this recipe doesn’t call for salting, draining, dipping, frying, or paper towels!
I was a bit leery about whether the cedar planks were necessary but they do add a nice hint of smoky flavor to the dish and of course make it extremely easy to cook on the grill without losing anything to the grill grate abyss. We served the eggplant with a mixed green salad and fresh bread.
I made a roasted tomato sauce which was not only easy but flavorful, the perfect jammy consistency for this particular recipe. I was pleased with how thick the sauce turned out, never running off of the plank and onto the grill. Next time, I will leave the eggplant stacks on the grill for a few more minutes to get the breadcrumbs extra toasty.
Depending on the size of your basil leaves, you may want to double or triple the number of leaves called for, 4 leaves weren’t enough for us.
The recipe makes 4 stacks which are enough for 4 people as an appetizer or 2 hungry people as a main dish. And what’s even better? After eating grilled eggplant Parmesan, you’re left feeling satisfied with a dish full of flavor, not full of oil and breadcrumbs!
This grilled eggplant Parmesan was a really spectacular dish…impressive and packed with flavor but very little effort. It takes all the flavors you’d expect of an eggplant Parmigiana but without any of the greasy heaviness. It’s so good even eggplant haters in my family went back for seconds. In fact, the biggest disappointment with this dish is there isn’t more of it…I would love to double this recipe and load up the planks with more towers. Regardless, the reaction when I brought the planks to the table was undeniable: you need to make these. We served this alongside pasta with homemade pesto.
