Hunkar Begendi Recipes

HUNKAR BEGENDI - SULTAN'S DELIGHT (TURKISH LAMB STEW)

Steps:

• Season the pieces of lamb with salt and pepper. Dice the onion relatively finely and dice the pepper. Finely chop the garlic.
• Warm the oil in a Dutch oven or large pot over a medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook for around 5 minutes until softened and translucent. Add the lamb chunks and brown on all sides. Then add the green pepper and garlic. Stir and cook for a couple more minutes.
• Add the tomatoes, thyme, oregano and tomato paste to the pot. Stir to mix through and cook a minute. Then add the stock/water. Bring the mixture to a boil, cover with a lid, then reduce the heat so that the sauce is gently simmering. Leave to cook for around 1 hour, so that the lamb is tender. (You may want to have the lid only half-on for part of this time to help the liquid reduce a little.)
• Meanwhile, cook the eggplant. If possible, cook the eggplant on a grill/BBQ or over a gas burner. (You may want to cover around the burner with foil to catch any drips.) Alternatively, preheat the oven to 430F, prick the eggplant all over with a knife, and place it on a baking sheet or in a baking dish. Roast for around 40 minutes. In all cases, you are looking for the inside of the eggplant to become very soft, and if over grill/flame, the skin should be well-charred. Once cooked, leave the eggplant to cool so it is safe to handle and open.
• Once cooled, cut open the eggplant skin and scoop out the flesh. Either roughly chop and mash the flesh for a coarser texture, or blend it up for a smoother paste. In both cases, once chopped, try to drain off as much liquid as you can from the flesh as this can make it sour. If you want a really smooth puree, you can press the mixture through a fine strainer to remove the seeds.
• Make the bechamel: Melt the butter in a medium-small saucepan over a medium heat. Once melted, add the flour. Stir as it cooks for a couple minutes and becomes gently nutty smelling.
• Gradually add the milk and stir or whisk after each addition to make a smooth paste. Cook a minute or two more, as needed, to thicken slightly.
• Remove the sauce from the heat, then add the cheese and stir through so that the cheese mixes in and melts. Add the eggplant puree and stir to mix evenly through. Season with a little salt and pepper to taste.
• To serve, either spread some of the eggplant sauce over the bottom of individual plates or all of it on the bottom of a serving platter. In both cases, spread it out so it creates a bit of a bowl in the middle to hold the stew. Add the lamb stew in the middle of the eggplant sauce and serve with bread on the side.

HUNKAR BEGENDI

Steps:

• Stew: Fry the onion in the oil till soft. Add meat and brown. Add garlic and cook for a few seconds longer.
• Add tomatoes, sugar, and salt and pepper to taste.
• Add water to cover and simmer with the lid on for about 1 or 1 1/2 hours, till meat is very tender.
• If necessary, add more water or let the sauce reduce a bit to get a good saucy consistency.
• Eggplant Sauce: Prick eggplants all over and roast in a very hot oven (500 degrees or as hot as your oven goes) for 30 minutes, until eggplants soften and skin chars. Cool and peel carefully.
• Put lemon juice in a bowl of water and put peelec eggplants in acidified water to keep them white.
• Melt butter in saucepan, add flour and stiur over very low heat for 2 minutes or until well-blended. Remove from the heat and add milk gradually, beating vigorously. Season with nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste. Cook ove rlow heat for 15 minutes, until sauce thickens.
• Drain the eggplants in a colander and squeeze out as much water and juice as possible. Chop in the colander and mash with a fork (I think this step is meant to allow additional drainage).
• Mix with the milk sauce until well blended. Return to the heat, add grated cheese, stir until melted and add more salt and pepper if necessary.
• Serve the stew with the eggplant cream in a ring around it. Serve with rice.