Baked Tomatoes Stuffed With Parmesan & Panko Crumbs

If you've ever been faced with needing to make a vegetarian appetizer or side dish and you had no idea where to start, I have JUST the recipe for you! These baked tomatoes stuffed with parmesan and panko crumbs are the perfect thing to serve a crowd, or just yourself. They're ready in under half an hour, and they require fewer than ten ingredients.

I've had such good luck with finding great tomatoes lately. And when I placed a grocery order this past weekend, I accidentally ordered about 16 Roma tomatoes when I meant to order a case of cherry tomatoes. This turned out to be a happy accident because I've been making all sorts of things with them, including these baked tomatoes!

The easiest vegetarian appetizer or side-dish ever

Coming up with a quick and easy vegetarian appetizer can be tricky if you're not used to cooking that way. But with this recipe in your arsenal, you'll always have a crowd-pleasing option! I really think this is also one of the most perfect summer side dish recipes you could ever dream of! 

I also have a quick TikTok showing you these tomatoes in action to check out next.

Ingredients

All you need is:

• Ripe roma tomatoes
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper
• Garlic cloves (or garlic powder in a pinch)
• Fresh or dried parsley
• Italian seasoning
• Melted butter
• Panko crumbs
• Freshly grated parmesan (not pre-shredded, please!)

What to serve with baked tomatoes stuffed with Parmesan and panko crumbs

You've got so many options when it comes to what to serve with this recipe.

If you're making it for an appetizer, your options are almost endless. I personally love it as an appetizer before pasta! If you're a carnivore, it will also work really well with fish, chicken, or beef.

It will pair really well with almost any Italian meal as a vegetarian side dish. It would also pair well with eggs for breakfast. Or eggs for any time of day, if you're like me!

By the way, did you check out my scrambled eggs with ricotta and chives yet?

Okay, now on to the recipe!

📖 Recipe

Baked Tomatoes Stuffed with Parmesan and Panko Crumbs

5 from 5 votes

A perfect vegetarian appetizer recipe: baked tomatoes stuffed with parmesan & panko crumbs. These are ready in under half an hour, & they require fewer than ten ingredients! This tomato-focused recipe also brings the crunch factor with some flavored panko crumbs and it makes for the perfect summer side dish.

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Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Servings: 2

Course: Appetizer, Side Dish

Cuisine: Italian

Calories: 201

Ingredients Method Nutrition Notes

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x?

• 2 Roma tomatoes ripe, cut in half lengthwise
• ½ cup Panko crumbs
• 1.5 tablespoon butter melted
• 4 tablespoon parmesan grated, plus more for topping
• 1 teaspoon parsley dried, or 1 tablespoon fresh parsley
• 1-2 cloves garlic or ¼ to ½ teaspoon powdered garlic
• ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 1 generous pinch salt
• 8-10 grinds black pepper
• 1 splash olive oil for coating the tomatoes

Method

 

1. Preheat oven to 375F.

   Cut two ripe roma tomatoes from lengthwise (from stem to core) and scoop out the insides
2. Lay a sheet of tinfoil in an oven-safe dish

   Coat tin foil with a splash of olive oil or avocado oil

   Rub all sides of tomatoes (including the exposed part) with the oil on the pan. Coat them well.
3. Melt about 1.5 tablespoon (a generous spoonful) of butter in the microwave

   When the butter is melted, add the panko crumbs, parmesan, minced or powdered garlic, Italian seasoning, parsley, salt, and pepper

   Stir to combine until all crumbs are coated

   Scoop the panko mixture into each tomato half until it’s all used up
   
4. Bake tomatoes for 18-20 minutes on the middle rack—or until the panko is golden brown. Watch for burning. You can cook at a lower temperature and for longer if your tomatoes are bigger or if you want them softer.

   The tomatoes will be HOT. Let them sit for a minute or two before serving. Garnish with more parsley and parmesan and an extra pinch of flaky sea salt.

Nutrition

Calories: 201kcalCarbohydrates: 16gProtein: 7gFat: 13gSaturated Fat: 7gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 29mgSodium: 469mgPotassium: 248mgFiber: 3gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 892IUVitamin C: 9mgCalcium: 180mgIron: 2mg

Notes

This (naturally) is a tomato-focused dish—make sure you're serving it to people who love tomatoes! 

If you are using less-ripe tomatoes, if your tomatoes are a lot bigger, or if you want them a lot softer, go ahead and cook them at a slightly lower temperature and for longer. 

Tried this recipe?

Let us know how it was!

I wasn't lying when I said these were easy!

Hope you love them! Please comment down below and let me know what you think when you try them.

xo - C

PS: I have a new page on my site with a bunch of helpful links. It has links to my social profiles, LTK, Amazon Storefront, etc. There's NO pressure to shop from any of these links, but if you're curious about the products I use, etc., that's where you'll find them. As always, your support is SO appreciated!

This recipe was updated in 2023 with new pictures but it was first published in 2019!