Alinazik is a delicious Turkish dish, also known as ali nazik, that’s a bed of eggplant puree topped with juicy lamb pieces. It’s so full of flavor, so exotic and delicious, and quite simple to prepare! A must try.
What is Ali Nazik?
Alinazik is a Turkish dish originating from the Gaziantep region of Turkey. It consists of a smoky grilled eggplant puree, that’s mixed with yogurt and garlic, and topped with pieces of lamb. You can use lamb cubes or lamb kebab, I used kebab in this recipe.
The name literally translates to “gentle Ali” in Turkish, and some stories say it’s because the dish originated from the gentle hands of a man named Ali.
Why should I make Alinazik?
It’s such a delicious dish, with so many different flavor components.
This can be a totally low carb dish too, if you eat the eggplant puree and meat without any bread or rice.
It’s exotic, but easily approachable, because it’s made with every day ingredients, nothing difficult to procure.
Ingredients you need:
The meat element:
I like using little mini kafta kebabs, and my favorite homemade kafta mix has both beef and lamb in it. You can make this with all minced lamb, all minced beef or you can use lamb cubes instead, which is very common as well.
For the kafta mix:
The meat: My preference is a 50/50 mix of beef and lamb, but you can use all one type of meat if preferred.
The herbs: Fresh chopped parsley imparts a lot of flavor in this, and is crucial to kafta’s flavor. Finely chop the parsley after washing so it mixes in well.
The spices: salt, pepper, seven spices (or all spice or mixed spices), cinnamon, cumin, a pinch of red chili flakes.
Onion and garlic: The key is pureeing or grating the onion so you don’t get big chunks of onion that will make it hard to form meatballs. I made this mistake once, and it was a messy process with lots of diced onions falling out. You can use the rough side of a cheese grater, or just process in a food processor.
The sauce:
It’s such a simple but essential addition to finish the dish with. A little tomato paprika sauce quickly made in a saucepan. If you brown the meat in a skillet on the stovetop, use the same skillet to make this sauce to add a little extra meat flavor.
For the eggplant puree:
Eggplants: That you can grill, or roast in the oven.
Olive oil
Lemon Juice
Yogurt
Tahini
Cumin Powder
Salt to taste
How to make alinazik:
Start off by making the kafta mix- the meat portion of this dish. Add all the meat ingredients to a bowl and mix well to combine- I find it best to use your hands. You can also use a food processor if you want this to be more hands free.
Form the kafta into little oblong meatballs like those pictured. Bake in an oven until cooked through.
Make the sauce by putting all the ingredients for the sauce in a skillet and simmering briefly, 30 seconds or so.
Make the eggplant puree by first roasting the eggplant until tender, then adding all the ingredients for the eggplant puree into a food processor, and blending until combined but still a little chunky.
Assemble by placing a bed of eggplant puree, topping with the meat kafta, then drizzling the sauce on top.
What to serve Ali Nazik with?
We like having this simply with some pita bread that we use to scoop up eggplant puree and meat with. You could also serve this with some basmati rice if you like, or just eat it as is with a spoon!
Alinazik
Ingredients
- 1/2 lb ground beef 250 g
- 1/2 lb ground lamb 250 g
- 1/2 onion, grated or pulsed in a food processor
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- small handful of parsley, finely chopped
- 1 tsp salt
- 1.5 tsp seven spice or all spice powder
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon powder
- 1/4 tsp cumin powder
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- pinch red chili flakes
For the sauce:
- 25 g butter
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/4 tsp coriander powder
- 1/4 tsp paprika powder
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
For the eggplant puree:
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 large eggplants
- 1 cup yogurt
- 1/2 lemon, juiced
- 1 tbsp tahini
- 1/2 tsp cumin powder
- salt to taste, about 1/4-1/2 tsp
Instructions
For the meat and the sauce:
- Preheat oven to 350 F (180C). Add all the ingredients in a large bowl, and mix well until combined. You can use gloved hands or a spoon to mix. I prefer using hands!
- Form the meat mixture into oblong meatball shapes as pictured. Place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet, evenly spaced apart. Bake for 13-15 minutes or until cooked through.
- In the video, you'll see I added the kafta to a skillet and just browned them a little more to get a little bit of the flavor from the meat into the sauce, this is optional. If doing so, remove the kafta from the pan after they brown.
- Add the butter, garlic, coriander powder, paprika powder to the pan and stir until butter melts. Add the tomato paste and stir, letting the mixture bubble for about 30 seconds. The sauce is ready! Set aside.
For the eggplant puree:
- Heat oven to 400 F (205C). Place whole eggplants directly on a baking sheet close to the oven broiler. Roast for 30-40 minutes, turning over halfway through until eggplant is completely soft and wrinkly and tender, then remove from the oven. Let eggplant cool enough to handle, then peel off the skin in strips.
- Add all the ingredients for the eggplant puree, into a bowl of a food processor or you can mix by hand. Process until combined, but with a little texture. If doing this by hand, chop the eggplant and stir in all the other ingredients.
To Assemble:
- Add the eggplant puree to your serving plate. Top with the kafta kabab, as many pieces as you like. Drizzle the sauce on top evenly, and garnish with chopped parsley or coriander or diced green bell pepper, and enjoy with pita bread!
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