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We love eggplant at Taste Buds Kitchen!

We know that eggplant can be an intimidating ingredient to cook with and eat, and it may take a few tries before your tastebuds approve of the unique flavor and texture. We’ve been searching for an eggplant recipe that even our youngest chefs will love and we’ve found it — Eggplant Fries! For one, kids love “finger foods” and anything that they can dip into a tasty sauce. This recipe is also the perfect thing to snack on during story time or to enjoy as an after-school snack. This recipe has the added benefit of being healthy. Eggplant has a good amount of potassium and vitamins, we take it one step further by baking our Eggplant Fries instead of deep frying them in oil. If your little one still isn’t biting, try comparing it to a similar food that they know and love… like French Fries.

Baked Eggplant Fries

• Choose a firm and fresh eggplant from the store.  The fresher the eggplant is, the smaller the seeds inside will be and the milder the flavor.  Cut your eggplant into 1/2 inch coins.  It is important that they aren’t too thin so they hold their fry shape during the baking process.
• Cut your eggplant coins into 1/2 inch batons, discard the ends that are all peel, as the peel can be a bit tough.
• Make a seasoned breadcrumb mixture for the eggplant.  Eggplant has a very mild flavor, so season your breadcrumb mixture really well.  We put into ours: Thyme, Oregano, Parsley, Garlic Powder, Paprika, Parmesan, Salt and Pepper.  We also use half regular breadcrumbs and half Panko breadcrumbs for an extra crunchy texture.
• The breading procedure that we use for our Eggplant Fries is a Standard Breading Procedure.  This same method can be used for chicken cutlets or fish filets as well.
• In order to prevent the dreaded “claw” from dipping your hands into egg and then breadcrumb – and back again.  The trick is to keep one hand as your “wet hand” and the other as your “dry hand”
• Start with your left hand (dry hand) and dip your eggplant piece into the flour, pull it out and drop it into the egg mixture.
• Switch to your right hand (wet hand) to coat all the way around in egg mixture and then drop into your seasoned breadcrumbs.
• Switch back to your left hand (dry hand) to coat with breadcrumb all around and place finished eggplants on a sheet tray.
• These tasty fries are good on their own or served with a Zesty Tzatziki Sauce (download recipe below).