Eggplant Cutlet with Fennel-Herb Salad

The eggplant, or the mighty aubergine, is one of those vegetables, I mean fruit — nope it’s a berry, you either love it immensely or hate it intensely. I wager if you fall into the latter category you have probably had some pretty mushy bad renditions of this delightful purple orb. Eggplant should be silky and creamy on the inside, not mushy, oily, and slimy, I like some crispy bits on the outside. The meatiness of its interior lends itself to a mostly meat-free meal without feeling like you are missing a protein.

This recipe started as an eggplant-focused dish and has evolved into the base for another delicious and favorite summertime vegetable — fennel. I use fresh shaved fennel in the salad, fennel seeds, and the pollen in the eggplant dredge as well as the vinaigrette and the fronds to garnish the salad.

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This is the place for that large meaty Italian eggplant usually starring in Eggplant Parmesan. No need to peel the beautiful purple skin, this will add texture and chew. Cut your eggplant into 1/2″ rounds, layout on a sheet pan lined with a cooling rack, and salt both sides of each slice liberally, let rest for 15-20 minutes while you prep your salad. It’s said this is to draw out the bitterness from the seeds, really this draws out extra moisture that will make your cutlet mushy. The bitterness is mild and adds a nice balance to the finished dish. Bitterness is a flavor we shy away from in America, I encourage you to embrace this flavor profile and use it to add harmony to your dishes.

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Most of us use lemon juice and the zest of lemon judiciously in recipes, but rarely the whole fruit. Again, we are taught the white pith is TOO bitter! In all fairness, I may have an affinity for those savory bitter notes from way back as a kid (I preferred the white pith on the rind of an orange or grapefruit over the fruit itself). Here I slice the whole lemon thin, skin, pith, and all, make sure to pick out any seeds, and roast on high heat with a little olive oil. This mellows the bright lemon flavor, adds a hint of sweetness and nutty citrus.

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Toast half of your fennel seeds and red pepper flakes in a dry skillet just until you start to smell the aroma. Gently crush so you have some variable sizes of spice, but not too fine. I use a mortar and pestle but you can use a spice grinder or pulse in a blender. Just don’t pulverize it. Add the spices to your panko bread crumbs.

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Most of the flavor for this salad comes from all of the fresh herbs, fennel, and roasted lemon slices, so the vinaigrette is quite simple. Warm the fruity extra-virgin olive oil on low heat with the other half of the fennel seeds, add the fennel pollen, a pinch of red pepper flakes, and a good pinch of flaky salt. Toast very gently for just a minute, and remove to a bowl, squeeze in the juice from half a lemon, and that’s it!

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Prep the rest of your salad ingredients, thinly sliced fennel (I use a mandolin, but a sharp knife works just as well), place in acidulated water (fancy word for water with acid) to keep the fennel slices from browning. Halve the cherry tomatoes, and pick the herbs. I am sticking with herbs from the mint family, these are my favorites, but you should mix up what you have growing in your garden or your favorites. I used mint, tarragon, basil, anise hyssop flowers, and parsley flowers.

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Lots of finely chopped parsley and Parmigiano Reggiano go into the panko bread crumbs with the toasted fennel seeds and red pepper flakes. I also season each layer of my breading components. And, while this is veg forward, I am using a delicious combination of duck fat and avocado oil to fry my cutlets. You can definitely swap out the duck fat for a veg-friendly option like ghee, and use any neutral oil if avocado is not what you have on hand. Standard breading procedure, flour, egg then the seasoned bread crumbs and into the hot fat. This is the most important step to make sure your cutlets are light and crispy and not mushy and oily. Your fat needs to be hot about 350 degrees. Not hot enough and the oil will soak into the eggplant and your cutlet will ooze oil on the plate. Too hot and the outside will burn before the eggplant is creamy and perfect on the inside. You want golden brown and crispy outside, creamy silky lusciousness inside.

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Build your salad: to the arugula, add all the picked herbs, roasted lemon slices, fennel, and the vinaigrette, toss gently with your hands. Your soft gentle fingers are the best tool for this, you do not want to bruise or crush all the delicate greens with tongs. Plate up with the cutlets on the bottom sprinkled with flaky salt and a generous mound of fennel herb salad on top, finish with shavings of Parmigiano Reggiano, fennel fronds, flowers of parsley, anise hyssop, and borage if you have them, beautiful and delicious!