A twist on your typical french fry, these crispy baked eggplant fries are not only healthy but taste great too. They’re crispy on the outside and soft and tender in the middle, and they’re gluten-free!
Instead of frying the eggplant, this healthier version requires baking them-and might I add that they are baked to crispy perfection.
Healthy, guilt-free fries.
Got your attention?
Good, because these crispy baked eggplant fries are sensational.
I literally cannot wait for the warm weather to arrive, and simultaneously for the eggplant to start growing in our summer garden away-from-home. During the summer months we eat eggplant almost every day. And I’m cool with that, because I love them!
Eggplants have such a delicious, meaty texture-a perfect meat substitution for vegans and vegetarian. Turn them into meatballs, whip up a hearty pasta dish, prepare a healthy party dip, or combine them with lentils in a coconut-curried broth.
However you prepare them, they are delicious since they easily soak up other flavours and lend well to so many recipe interpretations.
Consider roasted eggplant for a moment, if you will. It is absolutely delicious, right?
Now picture roasted eggplant fries. Tender on the inside, coated with crispy breadcrumbs, seasoned with Parmesan cheese, oregano, and a hint of sea salt, and baked to crispy perfection.
These are also easy to make. You really just need to slice the eggplant, coat it with the eggs and breadcrumb mixture then bake it until crispy.
You can also easily change the flavour of these crispy baked eggplant fries by altering the spices used to coat them. I’m thinking next time, I’ll toss them in a curry-cumin spice mix the next time I prepare-which will most likely be tomorrow!
On a side note, if you’ve cooked with eggplants before, you’ll probably concur that they are notorious for being a bit tricky to work with. Cooking eggplant is like cooking a big sponge-they soak up everything!
In fact, the first time I made these I was concerned that they would end up being a soggy mess. On the contrary, they turned our beautifully.
Turns out eggplant make darn good fries!
Serve these guilt-free fries with ketchup or another delicious dip, such as chipotle mayo, hummus or guacamole.
If you try this recipe (and love it!) be sure to snap a pic and tag me on Instagram with #bitesforfoodies so I can see your creation!
You don’t need to sweat these first?
I actually didn’t and they still came out crispy! They remain soft and moist inside. You could try both ways…I preferred the option that was less work 😉
Made these tonight and SUPER FANTASTIC!!!! Will share your recipe!!
Great to hear, and thanks for sharing!
These sound absolutely delicious! I’m excited to try them, and I’m sure my toddler will love them too. It’s exciting to have discovered genuinely healthy fries 🙂
http://www.thislifeisbelle.com
Thanks Belle! We have an absurd amount of eggplant in our garden so we will be making these often this summer!
Absolutely delicious!! I’ve made these twice now with perfect results.
Yay! So glad you love them! Thanks for coming back to comment 😉
I am CRAZY about egg plant so will definitely try this recipe! Thank you!
Or, I can make it for you?! 😉
Look these fries sound delicious!!! I’m always looking for new ways to use eggplant. Will have to give this a try 🙂
You never disappoint me with your delicious looking and sounding recipes. I have had plain eggplant before in the past and wasn’t fond of it but this makes me want to try it again. 🙂
Thank you!! I think you need to give eggplant another chance 😉
Those look scrumptious! I bet even my eggplant hating husband would eat them, lol!
Well, if I can get the kids to eat them, then maybe it could work for him?!?
I have always wanted to use eggplant in a recipe, but I’ve never known what to make. These look fantastic! Thanks for sharing.
I love that you say it’s very crunchy! That is a texture that my kids crave so this might just be passable for them!
They are very crunchy actually…even though they are super soft inside!
I’ve only made eggplant in a few different ways…definitely haven’t utilized its potential as of yet. I can totally see myself making and lovin’ these.
I agree…I often resort to making the same eggplant dishes. Lately I’ve been experimenting a bit more and every time I make them differently, they turn out delicious!
Much as I would love to like it, I just can’t really get into eggplant for some reason. This looks really good, though!
Have you tried it prepared different ways? I find that makes a huge difference! What about in a ratatouille?? 😉
What a clever way to make eggplant! I have never tried this before, but you can rest assured, I am going to!
Thank you! It’s amazing what kids will eat if it looks interesting or fun to play with, lol!
These look amazing! I never know how to cook eggplant, but this looks super easy! Thanks!
I usually just saute eggplant in a frying pan with garlic, olive oil, and fresh basil and parsley. The kids prefer this recipe though 😉
Now I have never thought about using eggplant to make baked fries. They have some on sale this week for 99c. I am going to have to grab a couple and try this.
You should try this! I’ve also made sweet potatoes and zucchini like this!
I have never tried eggplant fries before. This looks like a delicious recipe. I will have to give it a try.
I don’t think many people have…it’s a but unconventional! Of course, they are much healthier than regular fries 😉
I have never tried “eggplant” fries before, thanks for sharing this, I am going to try this one, and with Guac too!
Tracy @ Ascending Butterfly
I love that combo! I’ve also served them with a garlic, sriracha aioli!
I love eggplant too and I actually made eggplant fries before using Giada’s recipe. I will have to try your recipe too. Looks yummy!
I’m sure if Giada made them they were delicious! Was the recipe similar?? 😉
Yum. These look so good. I haven’t ever had eggplant before, but these? I’m pretty sure I could enjoy.
Eggplant is such a great option for vegetarians or vegans because it has a really meaty texture. I make it often because I don’t meat (my husband does) but he also really enjoys eggplant!
We love eggplant so this is a perfect recipe for me for sure. I will be making these this weekend. Yummy!! Thanks for sharing.
Great! I’d love some feedback!
My husband loves eggplant. Ill try this recipe this weekend. looks yummy
I love eggplant and what a great idea to prepare it. I love that this is baked. I can’t wait to try this.
I have made these fried before and I have to admit…I’m a sucker for the fried ones!!
That’s a great idea of preparing an eggplant as eggplant absobs too much oilk when fried. I will do this soon with my eggplant here.
Yes, it does…although it’s delicious when fried, lol! These are definitely much lighter and not oily at all!!
can’t wait to try these!! I have an eggplant in my fridge right now, and now I know what I’m going to do with it!!
Great! Hope you love them as much as we do!
I just have to try this for myself. It would be nice change of pace to have these as a side.
Actually, I don’t make this specifically for the kids…I love eggplant but I also like to switch it up every now and again!
With harvest season around the corner – I can see us making this often. Thanks for sharing!
I’ve never tried eggplant before but I do enjoy the photo recap. That way, if I ever muster up enough courage to try this recipe it will be as easy as scrolling this post. 🙂
Thanks, I do keep that in mind when preparing recipes. I think the photo recaps really help!
Those look delicious! I love this healthy take on fries.
I have never been a bog fan or eggplant, but I bet that I would love these! Anything that comes out of the oven looking like this I would be all over. I will give eggplant another try!
How have you eaten them? They tend to be bitter and also retain a lot of water so the cooking method makes a hige difference in how they taste!
This is just what I was looking for! I have this one crazed zucchini plant in our garden this year that is spewing dozens of zucchinis! lol I love that it is a baked version!
Lucky you!!! I’ve made the same recipe with zucchini and they were delicious. I also have a recipe for zucchini Parmesan medallions on my Blog you might want to try!
Yum! I’ve had eggplant several ways, but I haven’t had them as crispy fries. I’m going to make them this weekend.
I could eat them every which way….my favourite way is pickled!
We make eggplants this way too! My kids love it with ketchup or honey-mustard dip. This is definitely a must-try for homemakers like us!
Ketchup is always a winner, lol! I hadn’t thought of a honey-mustard dip…yum!!
I made these the other night and they were fabulous. Very moist. Super easy too.
Thanks for the feedback! We love them!!!