Stuffed Aubergines Recipes

MIDDLE EASTERN STUFFED AUBERGINES

Steps:

• Cut the stems off and hollow out the centres of the aubergines to make room for the stuffing. To do that, you will need a special courgette or zucchini corer to get rid of the flesh.Leave about 1/2 inch of rim of aubergine and make sure not to make any holes.
• Start by pouring warm water over rice, and leave aside for it to soften a little.
• Dice onion, tomatoes, and mince some garlic. Roughly chop parsley and fresh mint leaves.
• Mix all of the ingredients together with olive oil, salt, cumin, baharat mix and black pepper. Add the rice and mix. Your stuffing is now ready.
• Stuff the eggplants with the rice veggie stuffing, but make sure that the rice takes only two thirds of the space in the aubergine and is loose as the rice will expand while cooking and can become a bit messy and aubergines might even break.
• Arrange the stuffed aubergines/eggplants in a pot. Then add water or vegetable stock and cook for 15 minutes.
• Add tomato paste or blended tomatoes with garlic, 2 bay leaves and a few mint leaves (fresh or dried). Cook on medium heat for around 40 minutes or until the rice is soft.Cover with a plate to help the aubergines stay in place, you could also place a mug on top if the plates starts to move.
• Cook for about 40 minutes, or until the aubergines are cooked and soft. While the aubergines are being cooked, try the sauce and see if it needs more salt. Add more salt to taste.
• Serve warm in a plate or bowl with some extra tomato sauce from the pot. Eat with yogurt or pita bread.

STUFFED AUBERGINES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 200C/Fan 180C/Gas 6. Cut the aubergines in half, lengthways, and (leaving a border of around 5mm/¼in), cut out the flesh.
• Dice the flesh and set aside. Brush the inside of the aubergines with olive oil and season with salt. Place in a baking tin and cover with foil. Bake for 20 minutes.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a pan. Add the onion and fry gently over a medium heat for 10 minutes, or until softened.
• Increase the heat, add the garlic and aubergine flesh and stir until the aubergine has lightly browned. Add the herbs, chilli flakes, if using, and the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Stir to combine, reduce the heat and cover.
• Simmer for 10 minutes, remove the lid and continue to cook until any liquid has evaporated.
• Spoon the mixture into the aubergine halves. Mix the breadcrumbs with the cheese, lemon zest and basil, and season with a little salt and pepper. Sprinkle this over the stuffed aubergines, and drizzle with more olive oil.
• Bake the aubergines, uncovered, for 25-30 minutes, or until the filling is hot and the top has lightly browned. Serve.