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Air Fryer Eggplant Fries with an insanely flavorful Miso Tahini Sauce. Air fried eggplant is perfectly tender on the inside with crisp edges!
These eggplant fries are the perfect way to sneak more veggies in. You can enjoy them year round, but eggplants are at their peak from July to October.
Eggplants are a low carb vegetable that are also high in fiber, which makes for a delicious and healthy snack or side dish. They will pair perfectly with all your summer cookout favorites!
Looking for more air fryer vegetables? Check out these Air Fryer Zucchini Chips and these Air Fryer Potatoes!
Air Fryer Eggplant Recipe
These crispy eggplant fries are a great way to enjoy eggplant! You can serve them as a snack, appetizer, or side dish to any meal.
There’s no breading required, just a few delicious seasonings from your pantry. Using an air fryer makes them beautifully golden, with a very small amount of oil.
A simple homemade Miso Tahini Sauce gives this eggplant a rich umami flavor like no other.
Ingredients to make Eggplant Fries
Eggplant (also known as aubergine): for this recipe, you will need 2 small eggplants to make 4 servings. Double or triple accordingly based on need.
Herbs and spices: the incredible flavor comes from the seasoning; you don’t want to skip out on any of the garlic powder, paprika, cumin, salt, or fresh parsley!
Seasoning surprise: a touch of light brown sugar to the seasoning adds a nice surprise and delicious flavor!
Garnish: garnish with sesame seeds before serving! You can also toast the sesame seeds for a deeper nutty flavor.
Ingredients to make Miso Tahini Sauce
- Tahini
- Chili powder
- Miso paste
- Olive oil
- Honey
- Hot water
Tip!
Make sure your water is hot (not boiling), if it is not hot, the tahini will seize up.
*For a detailed list of ingredients and measurements, please reference the recipe card down below.
How to make Air Fryer Eggplant Fries
Eggplant Fries
1. Prepare the eggplant. Slice the ends off of the eggplant, then slice it in half lengthwise. Slice into 1 inch thick pieces and then slice the eggplant in half horizontally to make the fries shorter.
2. Season the eggplant. In a small bowl, combine the garlic powder, paprika, cumin, salt, and sugar. Place the eggplant fries in a medium-sized mixing bowl and toss in olive oil, then season and toss to coat.
3. Preheat the air fryer. Preheat the air fryer and place the eggplant fries in the air fryer basket in a single layer (you might want to work in batches) and cook for 8-10 minutes, flipping halfway through.
Miso Tahini Sauce
1. Make the tahini sauce. In a small mixing bowl, mix the tahini paste, miso paste, olive oil, honey, hot water, and chili powder until fully combined.
If you prefer the sauce to be more like a paste (like my photos), keep the recipe as is. If you prefer a dipping sauce or a thinner sauce to drizzle or dip the eggplant, double the amount of warm water in the recipe.
How do you keep fried eggplant from getting soggy?
Eggplant is a moisture filled vegetable. In order to prevent the eggplant from getting mushy or soggy, lay the slices flat onto paper towels and sprinkle each slice with salt and then cover the slices with another paper towel.
Let your eggplant sit for a few minutes. This process helps draw out a lot of the immediate moisture which causes soggy eggplant.
Do you soak eggplant before frying?
No. You may see people soaking eggplant in salt water before cooking, but this technique is only helpful before grilling eggplant. For this recipe, you do not need to soak your eggplant before cooking it.
Why is my food not crispy in the air fryer?
There are two reasons why your food might not be coming out crispy from the air fryer.
1. Oil: air fryers are not deep fryers, so you don’t need a ton of oil. I recommend using a spray olive oil or a spray avocado oil to spritz the food lightly before air frying to ensure the food doesn’t become too “wet.”
2. Spacing: air fryers rely on the circulation of air flow to crisp food. If you jam pack your air fryer, your food does not get the proper air circulation it needs to get crispy and may come out “steamy” or “soggy”.
To prevent this from happening, I recommend working in batches. To make this recipe for 4 I worked in 2 batches so the eggplant got crispy.
Tip!
You can make this recipe with sweet potatoes too!
How much oil do you put in an air fryer for fries?
You may see some air fryer recipes not call for the use of oil, however, most air fryer recipes do! If you are new to air frying, the amount of oil used is significantly less than deep frying and less than what you’d drizzle over food before it goes in the oven.
For air frying, you will only need about 1-2 teaspoons of oil. I do recommend using a spray oil as it is easier to control and spritz evenly over the basket. This is the olive oil spritzer I use.
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Air Fryer Eggplant Fries
Equipment
- Oil Spritzer
Ingredients
Eggplant Fries
- 2 small eggplants
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
- sesame seeds, to garnish
Miso Tahini Sauce
- 3 tablespoons tahini paste
- 1 tablespoon white miso paste
- 2 1/2 tablespoons light olive oil
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1/4 cup hot water, can add more for a thinner consistency
- 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
Instructions
Eggplant Fries
- Slice the ends off of the eggplant, then slice it in half lengthwise. Slice into 1 inch thick pieces and then slice the eggplant in half horizontally to make the fries shorter.
- In a small bowl, combine the garlic powder, paprika, cumin, salt, and sugar. Place the eggplant fries in a medium-sized mixing bowl and toss in olive oil, then season and toss to coat.
- Preheat the air fryer to 375° F. Place the eggplant fries in the air fryer basket in a single layer (you might want to work in batches) and cook for 8-10 minutes, flipping halfway through.
Miso Tahini Sauce
- In a small mixing bowl, mix the tahini paste, miso paste, olive oil, honey, and chili powder until fully combined. Slowly mix in the hot water until the desired consistency is reached. If you prefer a thinner consistency, you can add more hot water.
Notes
- It’s important to mix the hot water in slowly, because depending on the type of tahini you are using, the consistency might differ.
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