Aubergine and chilli pide
Pide is a Turkish flatbread which can be topped like pizza for a quick, easy meal. Make your dough, then top with aubergine, chilli and spices for a vegetarian lunch or supper.
Turkish baked aubergine and meatball kebab
Serves 6
Easy
Prep:
Cook:
This easy all-in-one bake is a firm favourite with family and friends – the juicy köfte, meatballs and aubergines just melt in the mouth
Skip to ingredients
KÖFTE
- 60g stale bread
- 1 medium oniongrated
- 1 eggbeaten
- small bunch of parsleyfinely chopped
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp pul biber
- 450g 15% fat lamb mince or beef (or a mixture)
VEGETABLES
- 2 medium long aubergines
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 small green pepperdeseeded and cut in 1cm strips
- 2 medium tomatoescut into 1cm-thick circles
SAUCE
- 3 garlic clovesfinely chopped
- 2 tbsp double concentrated tomato purée
- 2 tbsp olive oil
TO SERVE
- cooked pilaf
Nutrition: per serving
- kcal364
- fat27g
- saturates9g
- carbs11g
- sugars6g
- fibre5g
- protein17g
- salt1.1g
Method
step 1
To prepare the köfte, soak the bread in a bowl of water for 1 min then squeeze out the water with your hands. Crumble into a large bowl. Add all remaining köfte ingredients (except the mince) plus 1 tsp of salt and knead well. Add the mince and knead well again for 1-2 mins until the mixture resembles a soft dough. Cover and chill until ready to use.
step 2
Slice the aubergines into 1.5cm-thick circles and spread over a baking tray. Sprinkle over salt and leave for 10 mins. Squeeze out any excess moisture with a tea towel or kitchen paper, then put on a clean baking tray. Drizzle the oil over the aubergines, season, then use your hands to rub the oil and seasoning into the aubergines. Heat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7.
step 3
Dampen your fingers in a bowl of water with a drizzle of olive oil. Take a piece of the köfte mixture the size of a small tangerine and roll into a meatball as large as the aubergine slices. Slightly flatten and put on a large dish or tray.
step 4
Using a 25cm baking dish, put a slice of aubergine upright with a köfte next to it. Repeat, putting all the aubergine slices and köftes side by side, quite tightly so they stay upright.
step 5
Gently tuck in the sliced green peppers around the aubergine slices and köftes. Put the tomato slices around the middle of the dish and in between the aubergine and köfte layers.
step 6
For the sauce, combine the garlic, tomato purée, oil and 100ml of water in a small bowl. Season and combine well. Pour the sauce over the köfte and vegetables, shaking the dish so the sauce penetrates through the layers. Cover with foil and bake for 45 mins.
step 7
Remove the foil, spoon the sauce in the baking dish over the aubergines and meatballs, and bake for 25-30 mins or until the köfte and vegetables are cooked through and slightly charred.
step 8
Drizzle the sauce from the dish over the vegetables and köfte again. Serve with pilaf on the side.
