Fethi Solaks Eggplant With Meat And Rice Recipes

ONE POT GREEK EGGPLANT AND RICE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Slice the eggplant crosswise in 1/2 inch slices, then cut into 1 inch pieces.
• Preheat oil in a 12-inch oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat.
• Add eggplant and stir to coat with the oil. The eggplant may soak up all of the oil; this is normal. Add 1 teaspoon of the salt and continue to saute for five minutes, until the eggplant has softened.
• Add onions and saute for another five minutes. The eggplant and onion will both melt down slightly.
• Add tomatoes and garlic and cook for an additional minute. Season with the remaining salt, black pepper, and oregano.
• Add rice and bay leaf and stir to combine.
• Stir in the stock, ensuring all of the rice is submerged (any vegetables sticking out is fine). Top with grated cheese and dot with butter.
• Place in the oven, uncovered, and bake for thirty minutes, or until all the liquid has been absorbed.
• Remove from oven and let cool slightly. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.
• Garnish with parsley and serve!

MEAT AND EGGPLANT SAUCE LASAGNA

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion and garlic; cook and stir until onions start turning clear, 5 to 10 minutes. Add ground beef; season with salt and pepper. Cook and stir until browned and crumbly, 5 to 7 minutes. Add crushed tomatoes. Fill the empty tomato can with water and pour into the sauce.
• Stir eggplant, zucchini, mushrooms, carrots, tomato puree, 2 tablespoons salt, basil, black pepper, oregano, and bay leaf into the sauce. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring occasionally, until flavors are well blended, about 1 hour. Remove and discard bay leaf.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook lasagna noodles in the boiling water, stirring occasionally until tender yet firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Drain and lay the noodles out on paper towels to dry; remove and discard any broken pieces.
• Combine ricotta and egg in a bowl; season with salt and pepper and whisk thoroughly.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Coat the bottom of a large baking pan with the sauce. Layer noodles, ricotta mixture, sauce, mozzarella cheese, and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese on top. Repeat layering until all used up. Cover the pan with aluminum foil.
• Bake in the preheated oven until bubbling furiously, 30 to 35 minutes. Uncover pan and increase oven temperature to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Continue baking until top is golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes more. Let lasagna sit for 10 to 15 minutes before serving.

BAKED EGGPLANT WITH GROUND BEEF

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Put bread crumbs in a bowl with enough water to cover; set aside to soak.
• Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet. Cook and stir ground beef, onion, and garlic in hot oil until the beef is completely browned and no large chunks remain, 7 to 10 minutes.
• Stir eggplant into ground beef mixture; cook and stir until eggplant is tender, about 5 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and set aside to allow mixture to cool.
• Drain excess water from bread crumbs and dump into a large bowl; add ground beef mixture, half the tomatoes, rice, Italian cheese blend, egg, and basil. Stir the mixture until ingredients are evenly mixed, adding more liquid from the tomatoes if too dry; season with salt and pepper. Fill the eggplant shells with the mixture and put into a large baking dish. Top with remaining tomatoes and cover dish with aluminum foil.
• Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes, remove foil, and continue baking until beginning to brown around the edges, about 10 minutes more.

LENTILS WITH GROUND BEEF AND RICE

Steps:

• Place lentils in a bowl and cover with cold water. Soak for at least 4 hours.
• Drain lentils and put in a large pot with 5 cups water and bouillon cube; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes. Add rice and simmer until rice and lentils are tender, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add onion, bell pepper, garlic, cumin, salt, and pepper; saute until onion is golden brown and tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Add ground beef; cook and stir until browned and crumbly, 7 to 9 minutes. Add paprika and cook for 1 more minute.
• Add meat mixture to lentils and rice. Simmer over low heat for 5 to 10 minutes.

EGGPLANT AND RICE

Steps:

• Heat oil in a heavy saucepan over medium high heat.
• Sauté onion and garlic 3-4 minutes or until onion is softened.
• Stir in next 4 ingredients (eggplant, tomato, bay leaf & thyme) and mix thoroughly.
• Cover saucepan and simmer 3 minutes.
• Stir in remaining ingredients (rice & chicken stock) and salt and pepper to taste and return to a boil.
• Immediately reduce heat to low.
• Cover and simmer 20-25 minutes or until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed.
• For vegetarian do not use Chicken stock.

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.

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.

BEEFY EGGPLANT AND RICE CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Brown ground beef with salt and pepper and half tsp italian seasoning. Add onion, celery and garlic and cook til soft.
• Stir in rice.*If rice was leftover and a little dry, add a little water or beef broth to refresh. Pour into bowl and set aside.
• Spray pan with cooking spray and add eggplant with a little salt and pepper and remaining italian seasoning. Cook until softened and slightly browned. Add marinara sauce and cook additional 3-5 minutes. Pour over meat and rice mixture and combine.
• Pour casserole into a 9x13 baking pan and top with cheese.
• Bake at 350 until warmed through and cheese is melted and bubbly about 20 minutes.

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.

SPICY LOW-CARB EGGPLANT WITH BEEF AND TOMATOES

Steps:

• Place eggplant in a bowl, sprinkle with salt, and add water to cover. Let stand for 15 minutes. Drain and pat dry.
• Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook and stir ground beef in the hot skillet until browned and crumbly, 5 to 7 minutes.
• Reduce heat to low and add diced tomatoes and green chiles, eggplant, bell pepper, garlic, thyme, rosemary, and chili powder. Mix well, cover, and simmer until vegetables are tender, 15 to 20 minutes.