Stuffed Eggplant (Lebanese Batinjan Mahshi)

Wow guests with your stuffing skills by making Stuffed Eggplant or as we call it in Arabic, Batinjan Mahshi. This is inspired by a traditional Lebanese food recipe however this is a plant based version. What I really love about this meal is the explosion of taste. Stuffed eggplant can be eaten alone for lunch or dinner or serve it with a fresh salad. Each eggplant is a serving on its own.

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What you'll need to make this Stuffed Eggplant

• 6 med-large Eggplants Aubergine
• 2 ½ cups Long grain rice Par cooked
• 1 cup Parsley medium chopped
• 1 cup pine nuts dry roasted
• 2 cups Mixed veggies Frozen peas, carrots, corn
• ¼ cup Pomegranate molasses
• ½ cup Tomato paste
• ½ teaspoon Dried mint
• 3 cloves Garlic crushed
• 1 tablespoon Salt
• 1 tablespoon 7 spice
• ½ teaspoon Ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoon Olive Oil
• 400 g Diced tomato (canned)
• 2 tablespoon Tomato paste
• 1 ½ cup water

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 20 0degrees Celcius (392 degrees Farenheit)
2. Cut off ends of eggplants
3. Wash and dry eggplants
4. Using a manakra*, core eggplants. Set flesh aside (we will be making another dish with this)
5. Set cored eggplant aside

Stuffing Ingredients

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine very well; par cooked rice, parsely, pine nuts, mixed veggies, pomegranate molasses, tomato paste, dried mint, garlic, salt, pepper, 7 spice
2. Using a spoon, place stuffing into the eggplants. Every so often tapping side and bottom of eggplant until it is filled. Leave a 1 cm gap from the brim to allow for rice to expand
3. Add ½ tablespoon olive oil into the tops of the eggplants, allowing the olive oil to soak through

Adding Sauce

1. In a deep baking dish, lay each eggplant next to each other
2. Evenly cover eggplants in sauce
3. Wrap dish with foil and place in the middle of the oven to bake for approx 50-60 minutes
4. To check if eggplant is cooked, stick a fork into the eggplants and if the fork is easily able to pierce through, eggplants are now cooked.

Tips for making Batinjan Mahshi

Long grain rice can be substituted for basmati rice

Slivered almonds can be added or used instead of pine nuts

Left over stuffing can be used to stuff tomato or zucchini. Check out our Stuffed Zucchini (Kousa Mahshi) or mahshi selek stuffed chard leaves.

Eggplant flesh should be used to make Baba Ganouj (Eggplant Dip) With Mint recipe

Use a really good manakra (zucchini / eggplant corer)* to flesh out each eggplant, it will make this task a lot easier. Here is one I prefer*

Fork marks on the cooked stuffed eggplant indicating the eggplant is cooked

Stuffed Eggplants that have cut in half showing the cooked contents of rice, mixed vegetables and pine nuts

Here's another wonderful recipe for Georgian food eggplant with walnuts recipe. if you like stuffed vegetables, try my Stuffed Zucchini's called Kousa Mahshi