Crispy air fryer eggplant fries or made in Ninja Foodi are delicious! They are fun vegetable French fries even your kids will love to snack on. If you loved our air fryer eggplant parm recipe this one will be a hit too.
Jump To
- Air Fryer Eggplant Fries Recipe
- Ninja Foodi Eggplant Fries
- Do you have to peel eggplant before you air fry it?
- Ingredient Notes
- Do you need to blanch eggplant?
- How Long to Cook Eggplant Fries in the Air Fryer
- Tips
- Air Fryer Eggplant Fries Recipe
- Other vegetables you can air fry
- How do you store leftover eggplant?
We made air fryer eggplant French fries the other day and they didn’t last long. Even my girls gobbled them right up. If you love easy air fryer recipes but looking to try something out of the box this is always a winner with dinner.
Air Fryer Eggplant Fries Recipe
Ok so we will share 4 different methods with you. The first is if you wanted to cook eggplant slices you’d slice this purple vegetable into dials. We did this and called them air fryer eggplant chips. Super good, same great flavor but a bit easier to prep since we don’t remove the skins at all.
Cut into sticks like you see here can be baked or air fried which would be the healthiest method. I am not a huge fan of submerging my food into calorie laden oil but if that is your choice you can go that direction too. Follow the same instructions for breading and then dunk them for about 3 minutes until crip.
Ninja Foodi Eggplant Fries
Use your AirWave, Cosori air fryer or if you want to make with your multi function Ninja Foodi recipe that works great too. The latter will need the lid that is attached with the round basket that came with the machine. Use the air crisp button on the front.
Do you have to peel eggplant before you air fry it?
Yes you don’t want to eat the skin, it is tough. Use a vegetable peeler to remove it all before slicing into sticks the size you want so you don’t lose a lot of the vegetable inside but the skin will slide off this way easily.
The directions for how to bread the outside are the same whether you use a baking sheet or your air fryer basket. If you have followed my blog for any length of time you know how I love all my small countertop appliances. Have
Ingredient Notes
I like to use a Chinese eggplant or 1 medium eggplant to make each batch of these. I slice it into sticks that are finger sized or so. Just make sure that they are all the same thickness so they cook evenly to crispy.
A large whisked eggs will coat the outside and allow the breading to stick nicely. If you need an egg-free version you could brush the outsides with mayonnaise.
I like to use light panko breadcrumbs instead of Italian style, but those will work. There is a gluten free variety to this if needed too or you can just skip and season lightly like our turnip fries.
Some grated parmesan cheese is optional but adds a lot of flavor to the outside so I highly recommend that you add that in.
And then when done you’ll want to season with salt and pepper to taste. For dipping sauces I would suggest either ranch or our sriracha mayo dip.
Do you need to blanch eggplant?
If you want a milder flavor then you should for a quick minute. For this one we did peel and cut the eggplant into thin strips, about 1/2″ thick and 4″ long. You could leave the outside on but realize that it does bring a bit of bitterness unless you blanch vegetables real quick first.
How Long to Cook Eggplant Fries in the Air Fryer
Once breaded the vegetable fries will need to air fry for 5 minutes cook time. Then you will need to flip to the other side and cook another 4-5 minutes or until crispy on outside and tender inside.
Tips
The key to any food like this is you want to make sure they are in one single layer. Having just a bit of space in between each piece is necessary to get that golden brown crunch all the way around.
Now these do take longer than frozen sweet potato fries air fryer let’s say because those are already made, but processed.
Air Fryer Eggplant Fries Recipe
Equipment
- 1 air fryer
- 2 shallow bowls
- 1 knife
Ingredients
- 2-3 Eggplant, chinese used or 1 medium eggplant
- 2 eggs
- 2 c Panko breadcrumbs
- 1/2 c parmesan cheese
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Peel skin off and then slice the eggplant into thin strips, about 1/2" thick and 4" long. In a shallow bowl, beat the eggs. Set aside.In a second shallow bowl, combine the breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese and seasonings. Dip the eggplant strips into the egg, then dredge in the breadcrumbs.
- Preheat air fryer to 380 degrees F for 5 minutes. Spray basket with non stick spray and place coated fries inside in one single layer. Spray tops with olive oil spray and cook for 5 minutes. Flip to the other side and cook another 4-5 minutes or until crispy on outside and tender inside.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Other vegetables you can air fry
Yes you can still call them this. No they aren’t made of potatoes like our homemade Ninja foodi French fries but different is kinda’ our thing. Once you try this and make your family real believers you can do the same thing with all sorts of other veggies later too!!
I mean check out how we made air fryer carrot fries and jicama fries kinda’ the same way, but without the breading! Those are on the healthy end of things but still come out nice and crispy with great seasonings on the outside. The perfect light side dish to serve with any meal with your family. 😉
How do you store leftover eggplant?
If you cooked too many of these you can crisp them later on in the evening but beyond that they don’t keep super well. The breading will become a bit wet if you store in the fridge overnight. Although you can somewhat liven them back up in the air fryer it isn’t super appetizing again.
Instead it is better to freeze eggplant sticks before adding the panko breadcrumbs and then coat when you are ready on a later date.
Our eggplant variation isn’t a root but another idea if you want to make French fries with vegetables. You can use this, carrots, sweet potato, parsnips, even beetroots into sticks and lightly coat with your choice of batter to bake or air fry.
Yes. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F. Spray non stick cooking spray on two baking sheets and set aside. Bake for 20-25 minutes, flipping each fry over at the halfway point. Give or take a few minutes here or there depending on how thick yours are, remove when golden brown. Remember that they will continue to harden as they cool so don’t overdo it.
