Maqluba with Meat and Eggplant

Ingredients

• Eggplant
• Salt
• Oil
• Onion
• 1 tomato
• Pieces of lamb or veal (as desired)
• Black pepper
• Rice
• Seven-spice mix (baharat)
• For making Bukhari rice see: Bukhari Rice

Method

1. Boil the meat with aromatics until tender
2. Peel the eggplant, sprinkle a little salt on it, then fry it in oil
3. Drain the eggplant and place it on kitchen paper to absorb excess oil
4. Sauté the sliced onions in the same oil used for frying the eggplant with finely chopped fresh tomato; when they soften, add the pre-boiled meat slices or pieces, increase salt and pepper, and stir
5. Place a layer of eggplant and on top a quantity of washed and drained rice
6. Sprinkle a little salt, a pinch of seven-spice mix, and black pepper over the rice, then add a layer of meat, top it with eggplant, then rice
7. Cover the contents of the pot with the meat's boiling stock so that it completely covers the surface
8. Cover the pot until it reaches a boil, then reduce the heat to the lowest setting
9. When the rice is cooked, turn off the heat under the maqluba and let the pot rest for about a quarter of an hour
10. Invert the maqluba onto a serving plate or tray
11. Rana Jarkas
12. For making Bukhari rice, see the link: Bukhari Rice