Name: What To Serve With Eggplant Parmesan
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 15 min
Ingredients: 1 portion eggplant parmesan

Table of Contents

If you’re wondering what to serve with your eggplant parmesan, you’ve come to the right place.

In this article, I list 39 of the most popular side dishes for eggplant parmesan.

In a rush? Here’s the short answer.

The best side dishes to serve with eggplant parmesan are homemade garlic bread, tomato salad, and pest gnocchi. You can also serve it with spicy potato wedges, mashed cauliflower, or soft French bread. For salad options, there’s a zucchini ribbon salad, a simple tomato salad, or an Italian kale salad.

Ready? Let’s jump right in.

Tomato salad

Keep things super simple with a side of tomato salad.

It’s juicy and inviting, and really easy to put together (it only takes 5 minutes!)

I would make one big bowl and place it in the middle of the table for guests to serve themselves, perhaps with another salad alongside it.

Why we love this recipe: it’s great for weeknight meals and fancy dinners.

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Fresh tomato salad
Make it crunchy
Tomato cracker salad
Swap the veggie
Cucumber salad

Pesto gnocchi

Pesto and eggplant parmesan are a match made in heaven.

And there’s no better sauce carrier than gnocchi.

The rough surface and ridges mean the sauce clings to each individual piece of gnocchi, and every bite is filled with flavor.

Why we love this recipe: you only need four ingredients.

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Pesto gnocchi
Add tomatoes
Gnocchi with pesto and charred cherry tomatoes
Make it colorful
Summer gnocchi

Soft french bread

Here’s a fun idea: make your eggplant bake into a sandwich. It’s great for a quick lunch or paired with a green salad for dinner.

You can of course buy some French bread from the store, but making your own is so satisfying!

And it will make your house smell amazing.

Why we love this recipe: you can make the dough in advance to save you time.

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French bread
Make it unique
Hoagie roll
Go gluten free
Oat flour sandwich bread

Zucchini ribbon salad

You don’t always have to cook your veggies!

Raw zucchini has a mild grassy taste, and peeled into ribbons it looks so elegant and will instantly fanci-fy your meal.

Psst… you can leave the walnuts out if you don’t have any to hand.

Why we love this recipe: it’s a fresh side that you can whip up in ten minutes.

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Zucchini ribbon salad
Add corn
Corn and zucchini ribbon salad
Make it colorful
Summer vegetable ribbon salad

Lemon and parmesan couscous

This lemon couscous is diet-friendly and delicious.

It’s got acidity from the lemon, saltiness from the parmesan, and a pop of color and freshness from the peas.

It’s great next to eggplant parmesan when you want something light but filling at the same time.

Why we love this recipe: you can make extra and eat it for lunch the next day too.

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Lemon parmesan couscous
Make it unique
Curried couscous salad
Make it a salad
Couscous green pea salad

Tri-color rotini pasta

Make your eggplant parmesan more hearty with a 15-minute pasta dish.

This tri-color pasta is cooked with a light lemon and garlic sauce which will add a nice acidity to the sweet tomato sauce on the eggplants.

Psst… don’t hold back on the cheese when you’re pairing the eggplant parmesan with pasta.

Why we love this recipe: you can use any pasta you want.

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Tri-color rotini pasta in lemon garlic sauce
Add some herbs
Parsley pasta with parmesan
Make it a salad
Italian pasta salad

Spicy potato wedges

Potato wedges have to be my favorite kind of fry.

They’re thicker, so you get more soft potato goodness (essential when you have a plate full of tomato sauce to mop up), and they have more surface area which means more seasoning!

These wedges are spicy, but you can stick to a simple Italian seasoning too.

Why we love this recipe: they have a neat trick to ensure you get extra crispy wedges.

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Spicy potato wedges
Make it fast
Air fryer potato wedges
Go low-carb
Parmesan zucchini fries

Italian kale salad

Salad is usually my go-to side for eggplant parmesan when I’m not feeling that hungry.

And obviously, we need to stick with the Italian theme!

This flavorful salad is a melting pot of different textures – but the best part is the splash of soy sauce, which adds a burst of umani.

Why we love this recipe: it’s totally customizable – you can add in or take out whatever you want.

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Italian kale salad
Keep it simple
Everyday Italian salad
Go French
French bistro salad

Homemade garlic bread

This side dish list wouldn’t be complete without the classic garlic bread.

It’s delicious in its own right, but its main purpose is to mop up the yummy cheesy, tomato-y sauce.

Psst… use fresh garlic for a more intense flavor

Why we love this recipe: it’s a guaranteed crowd pleaser.

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Homemade garlic bread
Make it cheesy
Cheesy garlic bread
Make it spicy
Korean spicy garlic bread

Roasted garlic mashed cauliflower

Mashed potatoes are great, but I think they’re too heavy for eggplant parmesan.

Instead, I like serving mashed cauliflower.

It’s still luscious and creamy, but has a subtle nutty flavor to it that works well with the earthy eggplants.

Psst… roast the cauliflower before mashing it to prevent watery mash.

Why we love this recipe: it’s a low-carb alternative to mash with tons of flavor.

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Roasted garlic mashed cauliflower
Another low-carb alternative
Celery root puree
Make it indulgent
Cream cheese mashed potatoes

Sauteed asparagus

Looking for a quick, healthy side?

Saute some asparagus – in just eight minutes, you’ll have vibrant spears with a satisfying earthy flavor.

It’s perfect for spring or summer.

Why we love this recipe: you can easily customize the seasonings – I usually go for a knob of butter and Italian seasoning.

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Sauteed asparagus
Fire up the grill
Bacon-wrapped asparagus
Make a salad
Greek asparagus salad

White bean salad

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/62698619803673115/

Beans are an underrated ingredient.

They’re cheap, packed with nutrients, and will fill everyone up.

They don’t need a lot of work to taste amazing either, just mix in a tasty salad dressing and then let the beans marinate for around an hour so all the flavors can soak in.

Why we love this recipe: it only needs 5 minutes of prep time.

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White bean salad
More beans
Three bean salad
Go green
Balsamic green bean salad

Buttermilk onion rings

https://www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/109704940912964869/

For a little treat, serve your eggplant parmesan with a (big) helping of onion rings.

But frozen store-bought onion rings won’t do your dinner any justice.

Homemade is the only way to go. And the key to extra crispy onion rings is to double coat them.

Psst… don’t forget your favorite dipping sauce.

Why we love this recipe: it’s defiantly not traditional, but that doesn’t mean it’s not yummy!

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Onion rings
Bust out the air fryer
Air fryer onion rings
Make it different
Baby bloomin’ onions

What kind of salad goes well with eggplant parmesan

The best salad to serve with eggplant parmesan are simple salads like tomato salad or lemon kale salad. For something more hearty, try a marinated white bean salad or a couscous salad. For something a little different, try a zucchini ribbon salad.

The best salad to serve with eggplant parmesan:

What vegetables go well with eggplant parmesan

The best vegetables to serve with eggplant parmesan are simple veggies like sauteed collard greens that let their rich flavors do the talking. Italian-style broccoli rabe or garlic butter green beans are great too. For something unique, try serving parmesan zucchini fries.

The best vegetables to serve with eggplant parmesan: