Recipe of the week: Alinazik kebab

A bad translation of this kebab's name would be "Ali-polite," so don't be surprised if you find this dish with a weird name on an English menu in a Turkish restaurant. Considering its Ottoman origins, the name actually comes from "ala nazik" which would translate to "delightful dish." As the humble name suggests, this dish is ever so satisfying yet oh so simple. The kebab is a specialty of the southeastern Gaziantep province. Depending on where you eat this, the meat on top will be different – both in size and type of meat – but will usually be lamb chopped up in small pieces. In this version of the dish, I chose to use minced beef to make it more accessible to all. But don't hesitate to try out different versions!

Ingredients:
1 onion
300 grams minced beef
4 roasted eggplants

A few cloves of garlic (to taste)
4 tablespoons yogurt (or more to taste)
Spices: salt, cumin, red pepper flakes and black pepper

How to make it:
Mince the onion and sauté it in a bit of oil. When the onion starts to turn translucent, add your meat of choice and cook them together, stirring continuously. Add the spices of your choice and continue to stir until the meat is cooked through.

Cut the roasted eggplants into tiny pieces and add chopped garlic to them. Then add a bit of yogurt to the eggplant and mix well.

First, make a "bed" of eggplant on each plate and then add the meat mixture over it. Serve with melted butter or extra red pepper flakes. Enjoy!

Tip:
The meat mixture on top of the eggplant is traditionally pretty spicy, but considering that not everyone can handle the heat, we suggest tasting the meat repeatedly until you are satisfied with the level of spiciness.