Eggplants Stuffed With Meat And Rice Recipes

MOM'S STUFFED EGGPLANT

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Cut the eggplant in half and scoop out the center, leaving enough meat inside the skin so that it holds its shape when baked. Boil the scooped-out center part until very soft, about 10 to 12 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in a medium saute pan heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Season the beef with salt and pepper. Add the seasoned ground beef to the pan and saute until all of its liquid is evaporated and the beef begins to brown slightly. Drain the beef, removing the extra, unnecessary fat. Let cool briefly and chop the cooked beef so that there are no large chunks of meat. In another medium saute pan over medium heat add the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and saute the onions, peppers and garlic together.
• In a bowl mix together the cooked eggplant, vegetables, cooked beef, herbs, 1 cup of the cheese, bread crumbs, and the egg.
• Fill the scooped-out eggplant halves with this mixture, dividing it evenly among the 2 halves.
• Top with chopped tomatoes and the remaining 1/4 cup of grated cheese, season with salt and pepper, place on an oiled oven tray or baking dish, and bake for 50 minutes in preheated oven. Let cool briefly, slice widthwise and serve.

EGGPLANT STUFFED WITH RICE AND TOMATOES

Steps:

• Cut the eggplants in half. With a grapefruit spoon or a small knife, remove the flesh to within 1/2 inch of the skins.
• Sprinkle the eggplant shells with salt, and let sit for 30 minutes while you prepare the remaining ingredients. Chop the flesh, and steam for 20 minutes, until tender.
• In a large bowl, combine a third of the tomatoes, the steamed eggplant, 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, all but 1 clove of the garlic, the rice, herbs and the juice of one of the lemons. Season with salt and pepper.
• Oil a large flameproof casserole or an earthenware casserole set over a flame tamer. Combine the remaining tomatoes, olive oil, allspice, cinnamon, lemon juice, sugar, tomato paste and remaining garlic in the casserole. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Fill the eggplant shells with the rice mixture, and arrange in the casserole in a single layer. Add water if necessary to cover about a third of the eggplant. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, cover tightly and reduce the heat to low. Simmer 45 minutes to an hour until the eggplant and rice are tender. Remove from the heat.
• Using two spatulas (the eggplants are soft at this point), transfer the eggplants to a platter. Bring the sauce to a boil. If it is not already thick, reduce until thick and fragrant. Pour over the eggplants, and allow to cool to warm or room temperature. They're good chilled as well. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley or cilantro if desired.

EGGPLANTS STUFFED WITH MEAT AND RICE

Steps:

• Cut off the stem ends of the eggplants and reserve. Soften the pulp by rolling them on the table and pressing them with the palm of your hand. Hollow them, using an apple corer or a special tool for hollowing vegetables (you find them in Arab markets). Insert the corer through the cut end and push it as far as possible, making sure that you don't break through the other end, and twisting it to loosen the pulp and pull it out. Repeat to make a reasonably large hole. (Use up the discarded flesh for another dish.)
• Prepare the filling in a bowl, using raw rice.
• Stuff the eggplant shells three-quarters full with the filling, to allow room for the rice to expand. Close them with the reserved "corks."
• Put the oil in a large saucepan. Place the eggplants in it, packed close and in layers. Add enough water, mixed with salt, pepper, and lemon juice, barely to cover them. Cover with a lid, and cook over gentle heat for 40 minutes, or until the eggplants and the filling are tender. Remove the lid at the end so that the water, if any is left, evaporates.
• Serve hot.

FETHI SOLAK'S EGGPLANT WITH MEAT AND RICE

Steps:

• To prepare the stuffing, cook the chopped onion in 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-low heat. After about five minutes, when the onion starts to soften, add the chopped green peppers. Cook together for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the vegetables are soft but not browned. Remove the vegetables from the pan with the oil in which they cooked, and set aside.
• Add ground lamb to the pan, and saute quickly, raising the heat and stirring constantly until the lamb is thoroughly browned. (If the lamb is especially lean, you may need to add a teaspoon or more of olive oil to the pan.) Scrape the lamb with its fat into a sieve to drain. Discard the fat and return the lamb to the pan, together with the chopped vegetables. Add the tomatoes, mint, cumin and red-pepper flakes to the pan and mix well. Cook, stirring occasionally, over medium-low heat until the tomatoes have released all their liquid and the sauce has thickened. Do not let the sauce dry out. Taste and adjust the seasonings, adding salt and freshly ground black pepper if desired.
• Remove from heat and stir in the rice and parsley, mixing well. Set aside until ready to use. (The stuffing may be prepared a day or more ahead of time and refrigerated until ready to use, but bring it back to room temperature before proceeding with the recipe.)
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Rinse the eggplants. If they are the smaller Italian variety, leave them whole, but prick them with a fork in half a dozen places. If using larger eggplants, cut in half lengthwise and score the cut surfaces in a crosscross pattern no more than half an inch deep. Be careful not to cut through the skin of the eggplants. Paint the cut surfaces with a little olive oil. Place the eggplants on a lightly oiled baking sheet (cut side up if you are using large ones), and bake them for about 30 to 40 minutes, or until the flesh is soft. Set aside until they are cool enough to handle.
• Using a table knife and spoon, gently cut a slit down one side of the whole eggplants so that they can be opened up and the flesh can be pushed to either side. (Do not cut them into halves.) If using halved eggplants, break up the cooked flesh with the tines of a table fork to make room for the stuffing. Be careful not to cut through the eggplant skin. Pile several heaping tablespoonfuls of stuffing in the center of each eggplant.
• When the eggplants have been stuffed, set them in a lightly oiled rectangular roasting pan. Raise the oven heat to 450 degrees. Place one or two thin slices of tomato on top of each eggplant and drizzle a teaspoon of olive oil over each. Sprinkle a little grated cheese on top of the tomato slices. Pour boiling water into the roasting pan to a depth of about one-half inch, place in the oven, and cook for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the tops are nicely browned.
• Set the eggplants aside until you are ready to serve them. For serving they should be warm or at room temperature, but not cold.

TURKISH STUFFED EGGPLANT WITH SPICY LAMB AND RICE

Steps:

• Lamb and Rice Filling
• Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat, then add the onion and pepper, stir, and cook for 3-5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and crumble in the ground meat. Raise the heat to medium-high and cook, stirring, for 5-6 minutes, until the meat has lost its pink color and the mixture is starting to dry out and brown a little in the pan. Tilt the pan and spoon out any excess fat from the lamb. Sprinkle in the seasonings, stir, then add the tomatoes and puree, then the stock. Stir and scrape the bottom of the pan to dissolve the brown bits that have accumulated. Add the rice and herbs, and stir and cook a couple of minutes, until warmed through. Taste and adjust seasoning to your liking. When the filling is well mixed, moist, and flavorful-but not wet-remove it from the heat and let it cool.
• Eggplant
• Preheat the oven to 400°F.
• Combine all the ingredients except the eggplants in a small bowl.
• Cut the stem end from each eggplant, then cut it in half lengthwise. Take a look at the flesh, and if it is creamy white and not too seedy, don't worry about salting it. However, if it is a little darker, with numerous seeds, there's a good chance the juices will be slightly bitter, so you'll want to extract them. To do this, sprinkle the cut sides with about a teaspoon of salt each and place them cut side down on a plate or tray lined with a double thickness of paper towels. Place another plate or tray on top and weight that with a couple of pounds (cans of beans work well). Set aside for 10-15 minutes, then remove the weight and brush the salt off the surface, or rinse with running water and pat dry. Cut a shallow crosshatch pattern in the cut surface of the eggplant and brush generously with the flavored oil. Place the eggplant halves cut sides up on a lightly oiled baking sheet and bake for about 20 minutes, rotating the pan once, until the eggplants are very soft when you squeeze the sides and the surface is golden brown. Cool completely.
• To Assemble
• With your fingers or a spoon, press the tender eggplant flesh to the sides, making a bed for the filling. Divide the filling among the halves. Sprinkle the bread crumb topping evenly over the filling and pat it lightly. Bake the filled eggplants for about 15 minutes, or until they're heated through and the crumbs are browned.

EGGPLANTS STUFFED WITH LAMB, RICE, AND CURRANTS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in an ovenproof pot over medium heat. Cook onion, stirring often, until soft and lightly caramelized, 10 to 12 minutes. Add lamb, breaking it up with a wooden spoon. Season with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Cook until lamb is cooked through and no longer pink, 3 to 4 minutes. Add stock, rice, and currants. Bring to a simmer. Cover, and transfer to oven on lowest rack. Cook for 1 hour and 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, slice eggplants in half lengthwise; brush each cut side with 1/4 teaspoon oil. Roast, cut sides up, on a rimmed baking sheet on top oven rack until centers are soft and tops are browned, about 40 minutes. Let cool.
• Gently scrape eggplant flesh into a large bowl, reserving skins. Stir in lamb-rice mixture, chopped herbs, and lemon zest. Divide stuffing among eggplant skins. Garnish with more herbs and lemon zest.

STUFFED EGGPLANTS WITH MEAT (KARNIYARIK)

Steps:

• Trim the caps but leave the stems on the eggplants. Peel 1/2-inch-wide strips off of the skins lengthwise, leaving alternate 1/2-inch strips of peel. Soak the eggplants in water mixed with 1 tbsp of salt for 30 minutes, then drain and dry them. Fry them very briefly in hot shallow oil, 2 or 3 in the skillet at a time, turning to brown them lightly all over. Drain them on paper towels.
• For the filling, fry the onion in another pan in 2 or 3 tbsp of oil until it is soft. Add the meat and cook for about 5 minutes, crushing it with a fork and turning it over until it changes color. Add the tomato paste and one of the tomatoes, peeled and chopped, and the cinnamon, allspice, salt, pepper, and chopped parsley. Stir well and simmer for about 10 minutes, until the liquid is reduced.
• Place the eggplants side by side in a single layer in a baking dish. With a sharp pointed knife, make a slit in each one, length wise, along one of the bare strips on the top until about 1 inch from each end. Carefully open the slits and, with a dessertspoon, press against the flesh on the insides to make a hallow pocket.
• Fill each of the eggplants with some of the filling, and place a slice of the remaining tomato on top. Pout the tomato juice into the dish, cover with foil, and bake in an oven preheated to 350F for about 40 minutes, or until eggplants are soft.

STUFFED EGGPLANT

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Scoop out the flesh of the eggplant, chop, and reserve. Season shells with salt and pepper, and coat with some olive oil; set aside.
• Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a large, deep skillet over medium high heat. Saute sausage and garlic until sausage is evenly brown. Stir in the reserved chopped eggplant. Season with parsley, salt and pepper. Pour in wine, and cook 5 minutes. Mix in the bread crumbs and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. If mixture is dry, stir in more olive oil. Stuff mixture into eggplant shells, and sprinkle top with remaining Parmesan cheese.
• Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes, or until eggplant is tender.

YUMMY STUFFED EGGPLANT WITH MEAT AND RICE

Steps:

• Cut the stem ends from the eggplants.
• Halve the eggplants lengthwise.
• Peel if desired; if the eggplant is fresh, there is no need to peel it.
• Use a spoon to scoop out the centers, leaving boat-shaped shells.
• Keep the flesh you scooped out to add to the stuffing.
• Sprinkle the shells with salt.
• Put them in a colander upside down and leave to drain for 1/2 hour.
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees C.
• Prepare the stuffing: Add the rice to 3 cups boiling salted water and boil for 10 minutes until not quite tender.
• Rinse under cold running water and drain well.
• Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a frying pan, add the onion and cook over low heat until soft but not brown.
• Leave to cool.
• Mix with the beef, parsley, cumin, turmeric and almonds.
• Chop the flesh removed from the eggplant.
• Heat 2 tablespoons oil, add the chopped eggplant and sprinkle with salt.
• Saute over medium-low heat, stirring often, until tender, about 10 minutes.
• Leave to cool and mix with the stuffing.
• Taste for seasoning; if you prefer not to taste a mixture that contains raw beef, broil or microwave a teaspoon of the mixture and taste it for seasoning.
• Rinse the eggplant shells, pat them dry and put them in a baking dish.
• Fill them with the stuffing.
• Mix the tomato paste with 1/4 cup water and spoon the mixture over the eggplant.
• Add enough water to the dish to cover the eggplant by one third.
• Add the garlic to the dish.
• Spoon 1 tablespoon oil over the eggplant.
• Cover and bake 15 minutes.
• Reduce the heat to 350 F and continue baking, covered, 15 more minutes.
• Uncover and bake, basting occasionally, 30 minutes or until the eggplant is very tender.