AI-generated image
Karnıyarık
Stuffed aubergines with beef
Karnıyarık ('split belly'): fried whole aubergines split open and filled with spiced beef and tomato, then baked
TurkishKarnıyarık is a summer weekday dinner in kitchens all over Turkey, made when aubergines are glossy, cheap and piled high at the street markets. Small whole aubergines are peeled in stripes, fried until silky, then slit down the middle and packed with minced beef cooked with onion, green pepper and tomato. A short spell in the oven melts it all together. It is eaten warm with plain rice pilaf and a bowl of cacık or yogurt. Chef's tip: press the fried aubergine open with the back of a spoon to make a deep boat, so the filling sits inside rather than rolling off.
- Total time
- 75 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the aubergines
- 8 small auberginesabout 150 g each
- 1 tbsp salt
- ¾ cup sunflower oilfor frying
For the filling
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onionfinely chopped
- 3 cloves garlicsliced
- 2 long green pepperchopped
- 12 ½ oz beef or lamb mince
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 tomatoesgrated, skins discarded
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 4 tbsp flat-leaf parsleychopped
To bake
- 1 tomatocut into 8 slices
- 2 long green peppershalved
- ¾ cup hot water
- 1 tsp tomato paste
Shop this recipe on Amazon
Spices & pantry
Fresh ingredients (7)
Links open Amazon in a new tab. As an Amazon Associate, WhatToEat.Today earns from qualifying purchases.
Method
0/8 doneStep 1: Peel 8 small aubergines in lengthways stripes so they look striped, leaving the stems on. Soak them in a bowl of water with 1 tbsp salt for 20 minutes, then drain and pat completely dry. A common mistake is skipping this: wet, unsalted aubergines soak up oil and turn greasy.
20 minStep 2: Heat ¾ cup sunflower oil in a wide frying pan over a medium-high heat. Fry the aubergines in batches for 8–10 minutes, turning, until golden all over and soft when pressed. Drain on kitchen paper.
15 minStep 3: Meanwhile, heat 2 tbsp olive oil in another pan over a medium heat. Cook 1 onion and 3 cloves garlic for 5 minutes until soft, then add 2 long green pepper for 2 minutes.
7 minStep 4: Turn the heat up, add 12 ½ oz beef or lamb mince and break it up with a spoon. Fry for 6–7 minutes until no pink remains and the liquid has cooked off; the mince should reach 160°F.
7 minStep 5: Stir in 1 tbsp tomato paste, 2 tomatoes, 1 tsp pul biber (chilli flakes), 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp black pepper and cook for 5 minutes until thick. Take off the heat and stir in 4 tbsp flat-leaf parsley.
5 minStep 6: Heat the oven to 375°F (350°F fan). Lay the aubergines in a baking dish, slit each one lengthways without cutting through the ends, and press open into a boat.
Step 7: Spoon the filling into the aubergines and top each with a slice of 1 tomato and a piece of 2 long green peppers.
Step 8: Mix ¾ cup hot water with 1 tsp tomato paste and pour around (not over) the aubergines. Bake for 25 minutes until the peppers have softened and the sauce bubbles. Rest for 5 minutes before serving with rice.
30 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 430 kcal
- Protein
- 21 g
- Carbs
- 20 g
- Fat
- 30 g
- Fibre
- 9 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does karnıyarık take?
- About 75 minutes in total: 25 minutes to prepare and 50 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of onion?
- 2 shallots per onion.
- What can I use instead of garlic?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
Reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to cook it.
Rate this recipe
Sign in to rate and review this recipe.
You might also like
Pork souvlaki
This is a pork recipe. Walk through any Greek town after dark, from Athens to Thessaloniki, and the smell of souvlaki stands drifts down the street; cubes of pork shoulder grilled on thin skewers are the country's favourite cheap supper, eaten standing up or at a plastic-table taverna. At home you marinate the meat in lemon, olive oil, garlic and dried oregano, grill it hard and fast, and pile it on warm pitta with tzatziki, tomato and red onion. Chef's tip: cut the pork into even 2.5 cm cubes and leave a little fat on; lean loin dries out, shoulder stays juicy over high heat.
Greek
Pfälzer SaumagenStuffed pig's stomach
Saumagen is the pride of the Palatinate, served at wine-village festivals and family dinners from the Haardt hills to Ludwigshafen. A cleaned pig's stomach is stuffed with diced pork shoulder, pork sausage meat, potato and carrot seasoned with marjoram and nutmeg, poached slowly, then sliced thick and fried until crusty. The stomach works only as a casing and is ordered from a butcher; if you can't get one, bake the same filling in a covered terrine in a water bath. Serve with sauerkraut and mashed potato. Chef's tip: fill the stomach only three-quarters full, or it bursts as the potatoes swell.
German
Chha goshtLamb in buttermilk gravy
Up in the hill villages of Himachal Pradesh, where flocks are walked to summer pastures, lamb is often cooked in chhaachh, the thin buttermilk left after churning butter. Thickened with a spoonful of gram flour, it makes a pale, gently sour gravy that is milder and lighter than the red curries of the plains, and it is a favourite at dhams, the festive meals of the Kangra and Chamba valleys. Serve it with steamed rice or makki ki roti. Chef's tip: whisk the gram flour into the buttermilk until there are no lumps before it goes near the pot; once it hits the heat, any lumps stay lumps.
Indian