Roasted aubergine halves filled with allspiced lamb and pine nuts, baked in tomato sauce until everything melts together. No breadcrumbs anywhere.
Prep
25 mins
Cook
1h
Servings
4
Per serving
£2.25
Difficulty
medium
The name translates roughly as the sheikh of stuffed things, which tells you how it was regarded. Roasting the aubergines first rather than frying them keeps it lighter and means less oil is absorbed, and the filling needs nothing to bind it beyond the onion and the fat in the lamb.
Heat the oven to 210C fan. Score the cut faces of the aubergine halves in a diamond pattern, brush with 3 tbsp of the olive oil and season with 0.5 tsp salt.
Roast cut side up for 30 minutes until deeply browned and completely soft. Press the centre of each half with a spoon to make a hollow, pushing the flesh to the sides.
Meanwhile, toast the pine nuts in a dry frying pan for 2 minutes until golden, then tip onto a plate.
Heat the remaining 2 tbsp oil in the same pan and cook the onions for 10 minutes until soft and golden. Add the garlic for 1 minute.
Turn the heat up, add the lamb mince and fry hard for 8 minutes, breaking it up only after the first 3 minutes so it browns properly.
Grey, steamed mince makes a bland filling. Wait for the crust before you start stirring.
Stir in the allspice, cinnamon, black pepper and 1 tsp of the salt, cook 1 minute, then fold in three-quarters of the pine nuts. Take off the heat.
For the sauce, mix the chopped tomatoes, tomato purée, pomegranate molasses, remaining salt and 100ml water. Pour into a baking dish.
Sit the roasted aubergine halves in the sauce and heap the lamb filling into each hollow, pressing it in firmly. Cover with foil and bake for 25 minutes.
Uncover, bake 5 minutes more, then scatter with the remaining pine nuts and parsley. Rest 10 minutes before serving with rice.