Last updated:
Last updated:
Ali Nazik
Hot lamb and pepper butter over smoky eggplant folded into garlic yogurt. This diced-lamb adaptation is related to Gaziantep’s alinazik, which is also made with coarsely minced meat. Let the eggplant cool to warm before folding it into the yogurt so the base stays creamy.
Prick eggplants, place on a metal tray under a hot grill/broiler and turn regularly for 25–35 minutes until blistered and collapsed. Peel when safe to handle, drain and finely chop.
Meanwhile brown lamb in oil in a heavy pan. Add green pepper and seasoning. Add a small splash of hot water, cover and simmer gently for 25–40 minutes until tender; add water as needed. Uncover to reduce to a light glaze.
Meat is fork-tender and cooked through; extend the simmer for a tougher cut.
Mix yogurt with garlic and a little salt. Fold in warm, not piping-hot, drained eggplant and spread on plates.
Melt butter in a small pan. Add pul biber and heat briefly until fragrant, taking off the heat before the flakes scorch.
Top the yogurt-eggplant with hot lamb, spoon over pepper butter and finish with parsley. Serve immediately. Refrigerate leftovers in shallow containers within 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90°F. Keep at 40°F or below, use within 3–4 days and reheat cooked leftovers to 165°F.
Meat is fork-tender and cooked through; extend the simmer for a tougher cut.
Alternating eggplant rounds and lamb patties roasted with tomatoes and green peppers. This oven adaptation follows the alternating meat-and-eggplant arrangement documented in Kilis. Use a shallow dish and avoid packing so tightly that the vegetables steam without softening.
Tender lamb, whole pearl onions and vegetables simmer together before cooked erişte is folded through the juices. A hearty Antalya-style stew.
Tender lamb in tomato sauce over a smoky eggplant purée enriched with milk and kaşar.
Whole eggplants with minced lamb tucked into deep slits, cooked gently with tomato and peppers.
Hand-chopped lamb and tail fat grilled on flat skewers, with warm flatbread, charred vegetables and sumac onions.
Lamb cooked with sheep tail fat, seasoned with kekik and pepper, served in flatbread with onion and parsley.
Dried eggplant shells filled with beef, rice and currants, gently cooked in a tomato-and-pepper sauce. Currant-filled dried eggplant is associated with Denizli. This home version uses onion, herbs and mixed tomato and pepper pastes; local variations exist.
Roasted eggplant layered with minced beef and tomato, with an optional chickpea variation. The optional chickpeas reflect a documented Afyonkarahisar variation. This oven adaptation roasts the eggplant instead of frying it and has no béchamel topping.
Soft eggplants filled with beef, onion, peppers and tomato, baked in a light tomato sauce.
Individual meatballs wrapped in crossed eggplant strips and baked with tomato and pepper caps.
Mild beef-and-lamb meatballs, chilled before shaping into small fingers and grilling.
Lamb and chickpeas in turmeric broth, finished with tomato and green pepper in an earthenware casserole. This home adaptation follows the Kars lamb-and-chickpea preparation. It is distinct from other regional dishes also called piti. Use oven-safe cookware and protect the table from the hot casserole.
