This stuffed eggplant sandwich is a juicy, vegetarian sandwich filled with vegetables and tofu caramelized in garlicky olive oil. If you have a large sheet pan, you can get this monster veggie sandwich easily ready for a family of four within 20-25 minutes.
It can also be made vegan if you skip the mozzarella cheese at the end and use vegan mayo instead.
Process Pictures
Load your well-oiled tray with veggies cut in about 1 inch thickness.
Prepare the garlicky, chili oil and spread on the veggies. Parent tip – Rope in your child to do this step :). They’ll love it!!
Veggies into the oven…
20 minutes and a flip later:
At this point, take all the veggies out and add cheese to the eggplant slices for people who want cheese in their sandwich. The tofu can take a little more heat too. Back into the oven for a minute or two.
Out of the oven – melted cheesy eggplant!! The type of eggplant that kids like :)!!
Now time to assemble the sandwich…Ta-da!!
Recipe
A vegetarian sandwich stuffed with caramelized eggplant, onions, pepper, tomatoes, tofu and topped with melted mozzarella cheese.
- 1 American Eggplant
- 4 Roma tomatoes
- 1 Large Red Onion
- 1/2 Green Bell Pepper
- 4 Mozzarella slices
- 1/2 Packet Tofu (1/2 inch thickness is ok)
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil (to oil the bottom of the tray)
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1/2 tsp Garlic Powder (1/3 tsp for people who prefer less garlic)
- 1 tsp Chili Flakes
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Set oven to broil (525F, 275C). Liberally oil a 21 X 15 inch baking tray with 2 tbsp olive oil.
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Cut veggies and into 1 in thick pieces. Cut tofu in about 1/2 inch thickness. Tofu is denser, thus it needs to be slightly thinner. Layer all ingredients in the tray. *
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Mix garlic powder, chili flakes, salt and oil in a small bowl. Brush this oil mix on the top surface of all the tray ingredients.
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Place the tray in the oven for 20 minutes. Check every 5 minutes to see the status of veggies. At 10 minute mark, flip all tray ingredients on to the other side.
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After 20 minutes, take all the ingredients out and place them on the plate, except some eggplant. Place mozzarella cheese on top of the eggplant slices and place in back in the oven for 1-2 minutes until the cheese melts.
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Get the sourdough bread (or baguette) ready by heating in the oven for 5 minutes and scoop out the insides. Spread mayo or vegan mayo on the inside.
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Now layer all the caramelized veggies, tofu and top it with the cheesy eggplant and close the sandwich. Serve!!
- When placing the veggies – make sure that all veggies and tofu are touching the surface of the tray. Do not overcrowd them. They must not be on top of each other (then they will steam and not caramelize). However, do not worry about too much space between the veggies, since they will shrink as they get broiled in the oven.
- I don’t like to use parchment paper in my tray because I feel it doesn’t allow that beautiful caramelization of direct heat. And flipping veggies is also a pain with the parchment paper. But, be warned, it does lead to more elbow grease required in cleaning of the tray at the end of cooking.
- I placed the tray in the slot one-below the highest slot under the broiler. The timings of 20 minutes reflect that. If you are inching closer to the broiler, you may only need 15 minutes.
Conclusion
This recipe is super easy to make if you have a large tray that will hold all components. Cutting the veggies into large 1 inch slices is so easy. Pshaaww!! You will get it done even before the oven reaches its set temperature.
I always put 5-minute timers on and check the tray every 5 minutes. I get busy cleaning the kitchen or spreading the condiment on the bread, etc while the veggies are getting done. What I mean, is that I am always near the oven. There are only a few minutes separating melt-in-your-mouth creamy veggies vs burnt ones.
On the other hand, also don’t take it out too early. You need the insides of the eggplant creamy and the skin of the eggplant crispy to get the perfect yumminess for this recipe.
Ok, folks, do try this recipe – all the adults and kids in my family loved this recipe (even the eggplant haters) – shhhh!!!
Do post your comments and feedback below. I always look forward to reading them. Also, check me out on twitter @Upgrade_My_Food for more fun conversations about food and cooking!!
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This is the tray I used:
Other healthy recipes from this blog:
Cauliflower rice stuffed Vegan Burrito
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