• 6 French Rolls
• 5 c. panko bread crumbs
• 1/4 c. freshly grated Parmesan
• 6 large eggs
• 3 c. all-purpose flour
• 2 lb. chicken cutlets, cut in half lengthwise
• 2 medium eggplants
• kosher salt and black pepper to taste
• Freshly ground black pepper
• canola oil or olive oil for frying
• 1 lb. fresh mozzarella, sliced 1/4" thick
• 2 c. tomato sauce
• Fresh basil leaves, for garnish
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp garlic powder

① Slice the eggplants into ½” thick disks. If you have the time, season the slices with salt and set them aside on a rack to “drain” for 30 minutes. Wipe the salt and excess moisture off with a paper towel. If you don’t have the time, you can get away with not doing this step, but you’ll need to season the eggplant more aggressively in later steps

② Preheat oven to 350°. Prepare breading station with 3 large mixing bowls: one with bread crumbs and Parmesan mixed together, another with eggs beaten with 1 tablespoon water, and the last with flour. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Coat each piece of chicken in flour and shake off excess, then dip into egg and coat in bread crumbs. Set chicken aside on a plate. Similar to the chicken dredge the eggplant slices in the flour, shake off the excess, then in the egg, shake off the excess, then into the panko bread crumbs. Set aside.

③ In a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat add 1" oil.

④ When the pan is hot but not smoking add chicken cutlets. Cook until golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes on each side. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate. Similar to the chicken, place a single layer of eggplant slices into the skillet and fry for about 5 minutes on each side, until golden brown. Make sure to watch that the eggplant slices aren’t burning, and adjust the heat up or down as needed. Place the fried eggplant slices on a tray, season with salt and pepper, then keep in the warm oven while you finish frying all batches of eggplant. Add more olive oil to the skillet as needed.
When you’re done frying all the eggplant, remove the eggplant from the oven and increase the temperature to 350 degrees F.

⑤ In a small saucepan, warm up tomato sauce.

⑥ Meanwhile, in a rimmed sheet pan lined with parchment paper, place hero rolls cut-side up. Toast until lightly golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Place chicken cutlets on bottom halves of hero rolls and top with the fried eggplant and mozzarella. Toast again until cheese begins to melt. Add spoonfuls of warm tomato sauce and 3 or 4 fresh basil leaves between the chicken and hero rolls. Close sandwich and cut in half. Serve immediately.