Turkish Eggplant and Beef Bake

Instructions

1. 1

   Preheat your oven to 200°C. Slice 600 g eggplants into 1 cm rounds. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Finely chop 150 g yellow onion, 100 g green peppers, and mince 15 g garlic. Set all prepared ingredients aside on your cutting board.

2. 2

   Lay the eggplant slices in a single layer on the prepared baking tray. Brush them evenly with 30 ml olive oil and sprinkle with a pinch of salt. Bake at 200°C for 15 minutes until they become tender and lightly browned at the edges.

3. 3

   Heat remaining 15 ml olive oil in a wide skillet over medium heat. Add chopped onion, green peppers, and garlic. Cook for 4 minutes until soft. Add 400 g ground beef, breaking it up with a wooden spoon for 6-8 minutes until fully browned with no pink.

4. 4

   Add 30 g tomato paste to the skillet, stirring for 1 minute. Mix in 200 g diced tomatoes and 100 ml water. Simmer on medium-low heat for 5 minutes until sauce thickens. If it starts to stick or dry out, add a small splash of extra water and stir well.

5. 5

   Take a medium baking dish (about 20x30 cm). Arrange the baked eggplant slices across the bottom in an even, slightly overlapping layer. Pour the hot ground beef and tomato sauce evenly over the eggplants, flattening it gently with the back of your spoon.

6. 6

   Place the baking dish in the oven at 200°C. Bake for 15 minutes until the meat sauce is bubbling at the edges and deeply fragrant. Remove carefully using oven mitts, let cool for 5 minutes, and serve hot directly from the dish with plain rice or yogurt.

Serve with

Drink

Traditional Turkish Frothy Mint Ayran

Turkish · 10 min