Hünkâr Begendi

Name: Hünkâr Begendi
Yield: serves 6
Ingredients: 1 large onion, cut in half, then in slices; 3 tablespoons vegetable oil; 1 1/2 pound lamb cut into 3/4-inch cubes; 2 cloves garlic, chopped; 1 pound tomatoes, peeled and chopped; 1 teaspoon sugar, or to taste; Salt and pepper; 3 pounds eggplants; Juice of 1/2 lemon; 4 tablespoons butter; 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour; 2 cups hot milk; Salt and white pepper; 1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg (optional); 1/2 cup grated kasseri or cheddar cheese

December 9, 2011

This dish is uniquely Turkish, and was developed in the Ottoman palace kitchens. A current legend surrounding the name of the dish, which means “sultan’s delight,” places it in 1869, when the Sultan Abdul Aziz entertained Empress Eugénie, wife of Napoleon III, in his white rococo palace of Beylerbey, on the Asian side of the Bosporus. The Empress was ecstatic about the creamy eggplant sauce which served as the bed for a stew and asked for the recipe to be sent to her cooks. The Sultan’s cook explained that he could not give the recipe, because he “cooked with his eyes.” Serve it with rice.

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