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Active Time
40 min
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Total Time
1 3/4 hr
One advantage to being married to a Lebanese man is that the food of his people is fantastic. I've never been able to perfectly replicate a single dish my mother–in–law makes until now: mahshi batinjaan, which my husband despises due to a lifelong aversion to eggplant. But ask yourself: How could he possibly resist this dish's charm? Once you slice through the silky flesh to reveal a fragrantly seasoned lamb and rice stuffing, this deceptively simple one–dish dinner is absolutely luscious and satisfying. (Editors' note: This recipe is solely the creation of Melissa Roberts and has not been formally tested by the test kitchen.)
Ingredients
Makes 6 servings
Step 1
Hollow out each eggplant with a melon-ball cutter, working from bottom end and leaving about 1/3 inch eggplant flesh along interior walls.
Step 2
Rinse rice in a sieve under cold water until water runs clear. Drain well.
Step 3
Heat oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Fry pine nuts, stirring frequently, until golden, about 3 minutes, then transfer with a slotted spoon to a bowl. Sauté onion and garlic, stirring occasionally, until golden, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer 1/2 cup onion mixture to bowl with pine nuts. Add stock, tomatoes, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper to skillet and simmer, uncovered, while stuffing eggplant.
Step 4
Add rice, meat, allspice, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper to bowl with onion mixture and mix well with your hands.
Step 5
Stuff eggplant with meat mixture, being careful not to pack tightly (rice will expand during cooking). Transfer stuffed eggplants to skillet with tomato sauce and simmer, covered, carefully turning once, until rice is cooked through, 50 minutes to 1 hour (cut 1 in half to test).
Step 6
If sauce is watery, transfer eggplant to a plate and boil sauce, stirring occasionally, until thickened slightly, 3 to 5 minutes, then adjust seasoning if necessary. Return stuffed eggplant to sauce. Squeeze lemon over dish and sprinkle with parsley before serving.
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Reviews (14)
Back to TopI grew so many eggplants this year, I needed a new recipe to prepare them. I sliced them in half the long way. I did not want to remove any of the healthy interior so I changed the recipe. I've sauteed onions and garlic added the meat to the mixture. Then I added the tomatoes and both. Brought it up to a boil and added rice and spiced it up. I precooked my eggplants halves. I added the mixture on top. Basically, it was all precooked so I only baked for a short time. I found the original recipe very helpful. My family loved it.
Anne of Westchester
10/7/2019
There's no way this could be anything but bland using only allspice for seasoning. It desperately needs the entire bevy of Middle Eastern/North African spices to be successful. Cumin, cinnamon, coriander, sumac, and how about some peppers and Za'atar? Plus, the scooped out eggplant should definitely be added to the sauce. This recipe needs so much tweaking that you might as well just find another recipe.
worldbeat
Oakland, CA
3/18/2016
i really like the way in which this recipe looks i eaten it before with my children most of us enjoyed this we may have a family group gathering again and cook this recipe again soon this really is one tasty recipe you need to check it out i guarantee you whatever you should this its very tasty
sarah12jones212212312
2/3/2014
We loved it cold , made it for a family lunch (12) servings ,it was devoured ,had to make it again as presents for departing guests , lovely with a crisp reisling
brenmac1942
Sligo Ireland
7/17/2013
Even following the suggestions of other reviewers, I found this recipe unimpressive. The taste was just so-so, especially considering all the add-ins people have suggested to boost the flavor. Also, from a strictly aesthetic stand point, even with the parsley for color, the dish was very unappealing in terms of appearance. Maybe if I was a combination food stylist/original chef, it would look and taste as good as it does in the picture, but since that's highly unlikely - I'd say, give it a miss. Epi is filled with more noteworthy choices.
Shawn_Cier
NJ
7/7/2013
I did as the others as added the chopped eggplant to the sauce, and added 1 tsp of Cumin and an add'l 1/2 tsp of Allspice. It could have probably standed another 1 tsp of Cumin (i.e. 2 tsp). You definitely need ALL of 2 cups of stock. I only made 4 stuffed baby eggplants and my sauce really thickened up in a dutch oven on the stove- I had to actually add another 1/2 cup of stock and another can of stewed tomatoes mid-way through bc. I didn't have enough reduced sauce.
AAHowell1
Indianapolis, IN
7/6/2012
I also tweak this good recipe to improve it. I add some 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin and 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon to the allspice and a sprinkling of Aleppo pepper (cross between the taste of paprika and ground chili. I used cooked rice.
brownkat
6/9/2012
Needs tweaking if you are looking for robust flavors. Use cooked rice. Reduce oil by half. Add another 1/2 tsp. of allspice and 1 tsp dried oregano to the meat mixture; also add the lemon and parsley directly to the meat. As others did, dice the scooped out eggplant and add to the sauce. Increase the garlic. Puree the sauce. Pecans and currants are a nice substitute for pine nuts. Ground chuck worked well. 2 medium eggplant are easy to work with. Pour the sauce over the stuffed eggplant and bake at 350 F. The end result was very flavorful and got enthusiastic responses.
lovestoputter
Texas
3/12/2012
Not as good as I thought it would taste. Possibly it was the lamb; the brand I purchased had a very strong flavor unlike some lamb I've had before. Otherwise it was fine. I had very small baby eggplants which didn't hold a lot of filling but they worked ok.
匿名
Charlotte, NC
12/28/2011
The reviews were so good I expected this to be 4 forks. Only change was to use tomato sauce (which I had on hand) instead of diced tomatoes. I felt the recipe was bland and the rice was overcooked even though I only cooked 50 minutes. I ended up adding some hot sauce for flavor.
dherron
dherron, grand rapids
6/22/2011
This recipe was delicious! It definitely took a while to make, but the end result was well-worth it. If I were to make it again, I'd add more seasoning to the meat mixture (cumin especially). We only used 4 baby eggplants and that was perfectly fine. We paired it with the Farro and Pine Nut Tabbouleh recipe from this site. This is definitely a keeper!
sweetpea1813
Philadelphia, PA
5/22/2011
This recipe is very good. I have had a few different versions of this in Lebanon and decided to make some adjustments to this recipe to see how it would turn out. First I hallowed 2 medium sized aubergines (chopped up what was removed to add to the sauce later), sprinkled the insides with sea salt and placed them in a 350 degree oven for a few minutes. After they have softened in the oven, I rinse them in cold water then lay on a cutting board (open side down) to drain. I used 1 onion, but 2 extra cloves of garlic (Lebanese love garlic!), and used double the amount of pine nuts. I used ground turkey, and added 2 tsp cumin to the stuffing mixture. I added the chopped up aubergine to the sauce, and let that simmer for about 25 minutes before adding the eggplants. These turned out absolutely delicious!
HRH1
4/28/2011
This was good with ground beef and would probably be great with lamb. I made it with medium size eggplants cut in half and scooped out. Put the chopped up pulp into the tomato sauce to cook. But, I have a few issues with technique. Fry the pine nuts on medium low and and stir constantly, taking them out before they are done because the heat of the oil will continue to cook them. Four tablespoons of olive oil in a non stick pan is too much. Two cups of chicken stock is too much. I cut it in half.
匿名
Montgomery, TX
10/5/2010
This was easy and delicious. I didn't have a melon baller, so I used a spoon, and baby eggplant are out of season, so I used small-sized regular eggplant and made the fleshy part a little thinner (about 1/4 inch). I highly recommend this recipe.
brownce1
10/5/2010
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