Air fryer : vegan garlic butter stuffed eggplant parmesan

Vegan eggplant parmesan is always a hard yes at my dinner table…but the process of making it traditionally is incredibly time consuming! Luckily there is a much easier way to get all of that delicious vegan eggplant parmesan flavor, with a lot less time and effort. How? Introducing…Vegan Garlic Butter Stuffed Eggplant Parmesan, made in the air fryer!

This easy, plant-based air fryer recipe is super simple to make and mouthwateringly delicious! Made with air fryer roasted eggplant, stuffed with vegan garlic butter mixed with Italian breadcrumbs, topped with roasted garlic Marinara sauce, fresh basil, vegan parmesan and feta cheese.

This Vegan Garlic Butter Stuffed Eggplant Parmesan is a quick and easy meal…thanks to the air fryer. And it’s absolutely LOADED with flavor! Make any weeknight special with this Vegan Garlic Butter Stuffed Eggplant Parmesan…you can even prep this recipe in advance to make your life even easier. Or, if your looking to easily please a crowd, make a large batch of these babies for your next dinner party! Serve as a main course or an Italian vegan side dish.

Jump to Recipe

Vegan Garlic Butter for Stuffed Eggplant Parmesan

Eggplant parmesan is often made with thinly sliced, breaded and fried eggplant. Although this is delicious…it is a time consuming project. For this version of air fryer vegan eggplant parmesan, we will change things up a bit. How? By using breadcrumbs mixed with vegan garlic butter.

Mixing breadcrumbs with vegan garlic butter is a cleaver, low maintenance way to give your eggplant that indulgent, delicious, addition of breadcrumbs…without all of the time consuming work! Stuffing your eggplant with vegan garlic butter allows everything to become tender, juicy, buttery, garlicky, and oh so delicious while roasting in the air fryer!

How to make vegan garlic butter for stuffed eggplant Parmesan

Making vegan garlic butter requires only four ingredients and takes only a minute of your time. Simply combine soft (or melted) vegan butter with breadcrumbs, fresh chopped garlic, and Italian seasoning. Mix and done! Now you’re ready to stuff that eggplant!

How to make vegan garlic butter stuffed eggplant parmesan in the air fryer

As mentioned, this Vegan Garlic Butter Stuffed Eggplant Parmesan is a simple low maintenance way to get all of that delicious eggplant parmesan flavor. Here’s how!

Preheat your Air Fryer

Begin by preheating your air fryer to 400 degrees F. If you don’t have a preheat button on your air fryer, simply turn it on with nothing in it for 5 minutes.

Prep your eggplant

Now it’s time to prep the eggplant! Cut the eggplant in half longways. Then slice the inside of the eggplant into a grid, but do not cut all of the way through the eggplant! You want to cut through most of the inside of the eggplant, but don’t go too far down, and don’t break through the skin. Your goal is to create nice deep cuts to allow your vegan garlic butter and Italian breadcrumb mixture to seep into your eggplant and stuff it.

Once you have your eggplant prepped, place on an air fryer tray, skin side up. Pop your eggplant in the preheated air fryer and cook for 5 minutes. While the eggplant is cooking, move ahead to prep the rest of your ingredients.

Make your vegan garlic butter and Italian breadcrumb mix

Now it’s time to make the vegan garlic butter and Italian bread crumbs. Simply combine 1 tbsp melted vegan butter with 1 tsp Italian seasoning, 1 clove of garlic (diced small), and 2 tbsp of breadcrumbs.

Want your Vegan Garlic Butter Stuffed Eggplant Parmesan super stuffed and buttery?! Double the vegan garlic butter and Italian breadcrumb mix!

“Stuff” your eggplant

Once your eggplant has cooked for 5 minutes, remove it from the air fryer. Spread the vegan garlic butter and Italian breadcrumb mix on the inside of the eggplant. Allow the vegan garlic butter mix to fall into the cracks of the gridded eggplant to stuff it.

Spread 3 tbsp of roasted garlic marinara sauce on top of the garlic butter mix.

Place your eggplant back on the air fryer tray, but place them skin side down this time. Air fry for 5 more minutes.

Prep your vegan cheese and basil mix

While the eggplant is back in the air fryer, move ahead and prep your vegan cheese and basil mix. To do so, combine 3 tbsp of vegan parmesan, 2 tbsp vegan feta crumbles, and 2 tbsp fresh chopped basil. Mix until evenly combined.

When eggplant has finished cooking another 5 minutes, remove from air fryer. Top eggplant with vegan cheese and basil mix. If you desire a little extra crunch, feel free to top everything off with some extra breadcrumbs.

Finish off your Vegan Garlic Butter Stuffed Eggplant Parmesan in the air fryer

Place the Vegan Garlic Butter Stuffed Eggplant Parmesan back in the air fryer (for the last time) and cook for 5 more minutes. And that’s it! Your Vegan Garlic Butter Stuffed Eggplant Parmesan will be hot, cooked, and ready! The inside will be soft, tender, and buttery. The cheese will be hot and melted!

Why do I air fry the eggplant in stages?

For this recipe you will cook your eggplant in the air fryer in three separate stages (5 minutes each). Why? This allows the eggplant to become super soft and tender without overcooking your other ingredients.

Do I have to air fry my eggplant in stages?

For best results, I do recommend sticking to the 3 stage process. As mentioned above, the stages allow the eggplant to become super soft and tender without overcooking your other ingredients.

But if you really want to simplify things you can just stuff and top the eggplant in the beginning and cook for 15 minutes straight. Your cheese will become super roasted on the top, however, and your sauce may dry out slightly. But the dish will still be tasty!

Ingredients for Vegan Garlic Butter Stuffed Eggplant Parmesan

In this recipe there are a couple of vegan ingredients that you may or may not be familiar with. So let’s dive a little deeper for those that have questions!

Vegan Butter

For those that are new to the vegan / plant-based game…YES there is vegan butter! You can use any vegan butter brand of your choice, but my go-to is Miyoko’s salted plant milk butter. It’s incredible! Creamy, spreadable, and full of that delicious butter flavor…and of course, vegan.

Vegan Cheese

If you were surprised to find out there is vegan butter, you may also be surprised to find out there’s vegan cheese! And there are now plenty of delicious options out there! For this recipe I went with Follow Your Heart vegan Feta crumbles and Follow your heart vegan parmesan. I love this company’s cheese. The texture and flavor are incredibly impressive!

Roasted Garlic Marinara Sauce

To make this Vegan Garlic Butter Stuffed Eggplant Parmesan recipe extra garlicky and delicious, I went with Rao’s roasted garlic marinara sauce. Rao’s is one of my all time favorite jarred sauce companies. Their products are slightly more expensive than some, but it is worth it! Feel free to swap out any Marinara sauce of your choice of course!

What to serve with Vegan Garlic Butter Stuffed Eggplant Parmesan

This Vegan Garlic Butter Stuffed Eggplant Parmesan makes an excellent entree or side dish! Serve this recipe as an entree and serve with pasta, orzo, or a salad. You can also use multiple mini eggplants or cut this dish into 4 or 6 pieces and serve as a vegan side dish for your next Italian meal!

Want some more Italian inspired vegan dishes to serve along side this recipe? Check out these 10 Easy Vegan Italian Starters and Appetizers!

Meal Prep Vegan Garlic Butter Stuffed Eggplant Parmesan

Yes! This is a perfect air fryer recipe to make ahead of time! To do so, simply complete the recipe up to the step where you add the vegan cheese and basil mix on top. But don’t put your eggplant in the air fryer for the last 5 minutes! Instead, store your eggplant in an air tight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Or in the freezer for up to 3 months (defrost before cooking).

When you are ready to serve simply place your Vegan Garlic Butter Stuffed Eggplant Parmesan in the air fryer for the 8-10 minutes. This will allow your air fryer vegan Eggplant Parmesan to reheat and finish cooking.

More Italian Inspired Vegan Recipes