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Introducing this comforting Awesome Aubergine Bake: soft slices of aubergine layered with a smoky lentil and tomato sauce, topped with cheese and baked. This recipe is incredibly simple to make, full of flavour and naturally gluten free. It is the perfect recipe for a quick and easy healthy dinner with minimal ingredients and prep. The best part about it is that it is so versatile: it can be a dinner main, a side dish or even lunch the next day in a sandwich or wrap. If you love aubergine, it is a quicker, simpler cousin of my Aubergine Parmigiana.
Awesome Aubergine Bake at a Glance
James's tipSlice the aubergine about 1cm thick and drain it well after boiling. Thicker slices stay firm and wet slices make the bake watery.
Key ingredients
- Aubergines
- Tinned lentils
- Chopped tomatoes
- Paprika
Why you'll love it
- About 350 kcal a portion
- 19g of fibre and 17g of protein a portion
- Works as a main, a side or lunch the next day
Quick summary
This aubergine bake layers boiled aubergine slices with a lentil and tomato sauce spiced with paprika, coriander and chilli, then bakes with grated cheese on top for 20 minutes. It serves 4 and is about 350 kcal a portion.
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Why this recipe works
This Awesome Aubergine Bake is comforting, warming and healthy, plus it is a recipe that all the family will enjoy! Using simple ingredients that can easily be found at all supermarkets, I can guarantee this is a recipe you will love!
Aubergine is a great vegetable to cook with: it is so versatile, packed full of fibre and often overlooked! Paired with my Hasselback Potatoes or a bowl of my Mashed Peas, this is a recipe you’ll be making time and time again!
If you fancy a pasta bake instead then try my Tuna Pasta Bake recipe.
Ingredients to make Awesome Aubergine Bake
- Aubergine: the obvious hero ingredient in this delicious recipe! They have a similar taste to courgette: mild, tender and sweet. I use 2 medium aubergines.
- Cooked Lentils: I use tinned green lentils. Lentils are highly nutritious and are rich in minerals, plant-based protein and fibre. Plus they give a really great texture in contrast to the baked aubergines.
- Chopped Tomatoes: These provide the base for the Aubergine Bake and provide the perfect level of liquid and acidity.
- Garlic: adding garlic offers a gentle spice and adds more flavour.
- Cheese (optional): any grated cheese works, such as cheddar or mozzarella. I use a dairy free one, which keeps the bake vegan.
- Onion: I’ve used a red onion in this recipe but a white onion would also work.
- Ground Coriander: Ground coriander is a floral and citrusy spice that pairs really well with the other ingredients in this recipe.
- Paprika: this adds further flavour and gives the Aubergine Bake a subtle smokey flavour.
- Chilli Flakes: adds a gentle and subtle heat!
See recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities
Substitutions
- Lentils: tinned chickpeas work too. If you eat meat, you could swap the lentils for mince: brown it well in the pan in Step 1 before adding the tomatoes.
- Onion: I’ve used a red onion in this recipe, however a white onion would also work.
- Aubergine: Due to their similarities, you could substitute the aubergine for another vegetable such as courgette.
- Cheese: use any grated cheese you like, or leave it out. I use a dairy free cheese as I am dairy free.
Variations
- Kid-friendly: this is a great recipe to make for children. It’s packed full of hidden vegetables and nutrients! Plus it’s simple to make, so a great recipe to get the children involved in. If you have a child that isn’t aubergine’s biggest fan, then check out my Sausage Tray Bake. This is another great recipe to get some vegetables on their plate!
- Deluxe: This is a delicious recipe to make if you have dinner guests over. It is quick and simple to make and can also be made ahead of time. To make it look really impressive, I would serve this with grated cheese and top with chopped fresh parsley, alongside either a crisp green salad, my Air Fryer Chips or Air Fryer Roast Potatoes or even my Easy Gluten Free Focaccia!
- Spicy: I wanted this recipe to be mild, so that everyone can enjoy it. If you are sensitive to spice then reduce or remove the quantity of chilli flakes. However, if spice is your vice then you can increase this quantity! You could even top with some freshly chopped chilli!
How to make Awesome Aubergine Bake
Step 1: Firstly, preheat your oven to 200°C fan (220°C conventional, gas 7). To a large pot on medium heat add 1 tbsp of olive oil, the diced red onion, garlic cloves, coriander, paprika and chilli flakes and fry for a couple of minutes. Then add the drained lentils and tinned tomatoes along with a pinch of salt and pepper and stir.
Step 2: Meanwhile slice the aubergine into circles about 1cm thick, add to a pot of boiling water and boil for 5 minutes until just tender, then drain well. This helps to soften them in the bake.
Step 3: Now to a large baking dish add some of the aubergine circles topped with lentil mix and build this up.
Step 4: Finally, top with grated cheese (optional; I use dairy free) and bake for 20 minutes until bubbling and golden.
Hint: Pat the boiled slices dry before layering so the sauce stays thick. Some readers prefer to roast the slices instead of boiling them for a deeper flavour; my Roasted Aubergine shows how I roast mine.
Leftovers
The thing I love most about this recipe, aside from the insane flavour, is how versatile it is. You can save leftovers and use them as a side dish the following day, as a work lunch or even served cold in your sandwiches or wraps. Allow to cool, then store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. You can also freeze it for up to 2 months: cool it, then freeze in an airtight container. Defrost overnight in the fridge, then reheat in the oven or microwave until steaming hot all the way through. If you have a spare aubergine, try my Air Fryer Aubergine.
Recipe FAQs
No, this isn’t necessary. There is a step to boil the sliced aubergines for 5 minutes before they go in the baking dish. This softens them and speeds up the baking time.
No, the skin of an aubergine is entirely edible. Give them a quick rinse under the tap before slicing.
Slice the aubergine about 1cm thick, boil until just tender and drain the slices well (pat them dry if you can). Thicker slices stay firm and wet slices thin the sauce. For a deeper flavour you can roast the slices instead of boiling them.
Certainly! This is the perfect recipe for using up other vegetables in your fridge. Readers have added mushrooms, grated carrot and a handful of spinach. For another quick aubergine dinner, try my Aubergine Curry.
This aubergine bake is really versatile, so it works as a main or a side. To make it a full meal, serve it with some crusty bread and a simple green salad, or spoon it over rice, couscous or a jacket potato. Any leftovers are lovely the next day tucked into a wrap or sandwich for lunch.
Yes. Cool it, then freeze in an airtight container for up to 2 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge, then reheat in the oven or microwave until steaming hot all the way through.
More Aubergine Recipes
- Aubergine Salad
- Aubergine Curry
- Roasted Aubergine
- Miso Aubergine
- Peanut Butter Aubergines
- Vegan Moussaka
- Vegetable Curry
- Mediterranean Vegetables
- Sausage Traybake
- Air Fryer Aubergine
- Aubergine Parmigiana
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Awesome Aubergine Bake
Ingredients
- 2 aubergines, sliced about 1cm thick
- 1 large red onion, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp paprika
- large pinch chilli flakes , (or 1/2 fresh chilli)
- 2x 400g tins of green lentils, drained and rinsed
- 2x 400g tin chopped tomatoes
- 100 g grated cheese, any kind, optional (I use dairy free)
Instructions
- Firstly, pre-heat your oven to 200°C fan (220°C conventional, gas 7). To a large pot on medium heat add 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 diced red onion, 3 garlic cloves crushed, 2 tsp coriander, 1 tsp paprika, large pinch of chilli flakes and fry for a couple of minutes.
- Now add the drained lentils and tinned tomatoes along with a pinch of salt and pepper and stir.
- Meanwhile, slice the aubergine into circles around 1cm thick (shown in the pics above), add to a pot of boiling water and boil for 5 minutes until just tender, then drain well. This helps to soften them in the bake.
- Now to a large baking dish add some of the drained aubergine circles topped with lentil mix and build this up.
- Finally, top with cheese (optional) and bake for 20 minutes until bubbling and golden.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Easy recipe. Very tasty. Thank you James
Thanks Kim 🙂
Quick and easy to make, super tasty!
Thanks Rachel 🙂
Another terrific bake, my husband is loving me trying a lot of your recipes, thank you, James.
I now know where to get the tins of lentils !
Thank you Dorothy 🙂
Thoroughly enjoyed this dish, I would recommend it to everyone to try , so easy to make & Im not a cook.So tasty & my friends have asked for the recipe , which I will of course forward to them .
Thanks again James for a great recipe.
This is a fabulous dish, not had it ever before, & would thoroughly recommend it, my husband who is a fairly fussy eater can’t stop talking about it…….. thank you James another of your recipes on my eating list.
Thanks Dorothy 🙂
Great recipe. Easy and very filling.
Thanks Linda 🙂
Very tasty & quick, thank you! Nice to avoid the oil heavy aubergines of other recipes.
I substituted half the lentils with 200g. small cubed smoked Tofu, this paired really well with paprika & dry chilli flakes. Yum 🙂
Thanks Alison 🙂
As James says, this delicious concoction is dead easy to make and cook, it takes a little while but then I make enough for a couple of meals and have it the next day too, just microwaving to re-heat. My wife’s favourite dish so she’s happy for at least 2 days! Just serve with a salad and half a baked potato.
Thanks so much Lee 🙂
Not being vegan I won’t use vegan cheese, but the rest of the recipe interests me. I’ll have a go at it soon. Sounds excellent.
Absolutely, just swap for what cheese you prefer! Keen to hear your thoughts Antony 🙂
I was searching for a quick easy recipe to do justice to the vast amount of aubegines my husband is growing at the moment. I’m vegetarian and some veggie recipes do fall short of flavour, but this did not dissapoint at all. I had all the ingredients in my store cupboards so was super cheap to whip up too. Definitely will be making it again as it was a big hit. And totally agree with saving some for leftovers, it was even tastier the following day!!
Thank you
Love this 🙂 thanks so much!
Absolutely Awesome Aubergine Bake!! Added grated carrot and chopped mushrooms too. Super tasty and highly recommended.
Thanks so much Diane 🙂
In your video you add spinach to the dish but this doesn’t appear in the ingredients. Should it be added and if so how much ?
Hey Barbara, good spot! It’s optional and up to you if you want to add, but not essential. Enjoy 🙂