Stuffed eggplant makes for a wonderfully healthy and filling meal complete with a lovely presentation. My stuffed eggplant recipe is ultra flavorful, prepared with lots of fragrant spices, then filled with lean ground beef, basmati rice, tomatoes, fresh herbs, and a drizzle of spicy garlic tahini sauce!
Eggplant, The Perfect Piece of Produce to Stuff
Eggplant is one of my all-time favorite pieces of produce to cook with. I've always thought of it as a vegetable, since it's typically used in savory dishes, but here's an interesting little fact: eggplant is a part of the nightshade family, and actually considered a fruit—go figure!
When it comes to eggplant, I love to cut it into chunks and drizzle it with a touch of olive oil, plus some herbs and spices, and caramelize until charred and soft (perhaps with some tomatoes) to make a chutney fit for this delicious spiced Moroccan chicken wrap.
I also love eggplant sliced, breaded and lightly fried for use in eggplant parmesan, or even gently stewed with lots of colorful vegetables and olive oil for this savory ratatouille, perfect with crusty bread.
But one of my all-time favorite ways to enjoy eggplant is as stuffed eggplant, filled with lots of warming spices, lean ground beef plus basmati rice, cherry tomatoes and fresh herbs, all drizzled with a super flavorful spicy tahini sauce—absolutely mouthwatering!
My Recipe for Stuffed Eggplant with Garlic Tahini Sauce
Part of the joy of preparing a recipe like stuffed eggplant is that the sky's the limit when it comes to ingredients.
You can go completely vegetarian, or you can add a little of your favorite ground meat. I like ground beef, but ground chicken or turkey works terrifically, even ground lamb.
And it's up to you whether you'd prefer to use rice, quinoa, farro, barely, or another type of grain as part of the filling.
Mixing and matching filling ingredients for your stuffed eggplant is the fun and creative part. And for me, I love the flavors of Middle Eastern cuisine (the warm spices and other interesting ingredients like tahini), so I created my recipe for stuffed eggplant with that flavor profile in mind.
For my stuffed eggplant recipe here, I'm sprinkling in some warm spices such as ground cumin, coriander, a pinch of cinnamon, plus paprika for color and kick. I'm also adding to the mixture some chopped cherry tomatoes for juiciness, and fresh herbs like mint and parsley for a fresh note.
And since stuffed eggplant can always benefit from a delicious sauce drizzled over top to tie the flavors together, I used a little of that tahini to create a savory and spicy garlic tahini sauce with a kiss of lemon.
Here's a sneak peek at my stuffed eggplant recipe: (or just jump to the full recipe...)
- To get started, I prepare my spicy garlic tahini sauce and set that aside.
- Next, I season and roast my prepared eggplant until tender.
- While the eggplants roast, I prep my filling.
- Once the eggplant has roasted, I place the eggplant onto a serving plate, spoon equal portions of the savory filling into each hollowed out cavity of the eggplant, and drizzle generously with the spicy garlic tahini sauce.
- I garnish with extra herbs before serving.
Recipe
Stuffed Eggplant
by Ingrid Beer
This warming stuffed eggplant is filled with basmati rice, lean ground beef, tomatoes, herbs, plus a spicy garlic tahini sauce!
Category: Entree
Cuisine: Middle Eastern
Yield: Serves 4
Nutrition Info: 524 calories per serving
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook time: 35 minutes
Total time: 1 hour
Stuffed Eggplant Ingredients:
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 eggplants, cut in half length-wise and center scooped out leaving about 1” border all around
- Olive oil (about 4 tablespoons, divided use)
- Salt
- Black pepper
- 1 small onion, finely diced
- ½ pound lean ground beef (or turkey, chicken, lamb, or sausage)
- 4 cloves garlic, pressed through garlic press
- Pinch red pepper flakes (optional)
- 1 ½ cups cooked basmati rice
- ½ cup chopped cherry tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh mint leaves, plus a couple extra leaves for garnish
- 1 tablespoon roughly chopped pistachios (optional)
Spicy Garlic Tahini Sauce Ingredients:
- ½ cup plain, low-fat Greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons tahini paste
- 6 cloves garlic
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper (or your desired amount)
- 3 tablespoons water
- Begin by gathering and prepping all of your spicy garlic tahini sauce ingredients according to the ingredient list above to have ready and organized for use.
- Preheat the oven to 400°, and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- To prepare your garlic tahini sauce, adding all of the ingredients into a food processor and process until smooth. Pour into a dish, and set aside while you prepare the rest of the recipe.
- Next, gather and prep all of your stuffed eggplant ingredients according to the ingredient list above to have ready and organized for use.
- In a small ramekin, combine the paprika, coriander, cumin and cinnamon, and set this aside this seasoning mix for a moment.
- Place the four eggplant halves, flesh-side up, onto the baking sheet, and drizzle about 3 tablespoons of oil (total) over the flesh side of the cut eggplant, and sprinkle over about ⅓ of the seasoning mix from your ramekin, plus a couple of good pinches of salt and pepper.
- Place into the oven to roast until tender and easily pierced with a paring knife, about 35 minutes.
- While your eggplant is roasting, prepare your filling by placing a pan over medium-high heat, and drizzling in about 1 tablespoon of the oil. Once hot, add in the diced onion and saute for a few minutes until tender, then crumble in the ground beef and cook that for a few minutes with the onion.
- Add in the remainder of the seasoning mix, along with a couple of pinches of salt and pepper, the garlic and the red pepper flakes (if using), and continue to cook until the meat is cooked through.
- Add into this ground beef mixture the cooked rice, the chopped cherry tomatoes, the chopped parsley and mint, plus the pistachios (if using), and fold together to combine. Keep warm.
- Once the eggplant is tender, fill each roasted eggplant cavity with generous, equal portions of the warm filling, and place onto a plate. Drizzle over some of the spicy garlic tahini sauce, and garnish with extra mint or parsley, if desired.
Tips & Tidbits for my Stuffed Eggplant recipe:
- What kind of eggplant to use: Use traditional eggplant for this, and look for ones that are medium-large and rather longer than rounder. Traditional eggplant are easier to scoop and fill, and make for a pretty presentation.
- Choose your protein: Ground beef is my choice for this, but feel free to use turkey, chicken, spicy or sweet sausage, or even ground lamb, another great option.
- Vegetarian stuffed eggplant: Feel free to leave out the meat completely if you'd prefer to go the vegetarian route. You could also sub tempeh or ground soy.
- Other filling options for stuffed eggplant: I use basmati rice for my filling, but you could also use brown rice, quinoa, barley, or couscous, anything that you prefer!
- Where to find tahini: Tahini is a sesame paste used in middle eastern cuisine, similar in consistency to almond or peanut butter, and is typically found with those nut butters. But if you can't find it, just leave it out and the sauce will still be super flavorful.
Hungry for more delicious recipe such as this one? Check out my Stuffed Acorn Squash, my Ratatouille, my Grilled Eggplant Parmesan, my Warm Eggplant Dip with Yogurt, or my Spicy Chickpea Stew with Eggplant!
Cook's Note: This recipe was originally published in 2018, and has been updated with even more love!
Linda
I love this recipe. I have one question. Did you scoop the eggplant before you roasted it or after? Did you use the middle in the filling?
The Cozy Apron
Hi Linda! I scooped the middle out prior to roasting, but I did not use it. I didn't go too deep when I scooped it out, rather scooping mostly the seeded area. You can, however, use that center and chop it up and sauté it with the onions/ground beef, if you desire. Hope you enjoy!
Linda
Thank you. This is on the menu next week.
Linda
The Cozy Apron
I think you'll really enjoy these, Linda! Happy cooking!
Maureen
Hi Ingrid,
I just made your stuffed eggplant and didn’t use the scooped out eggplant after I read the previous posts. Did you eat any of the eggplant or just use it as a boat to serve the hamburger and rice? I just ate hamburger, rice, tomatoes, spices... a little bland and thought it was going to be more of an eggplant dish. I usually love your recipes but was a bit disappointed in this one. It may totally have been my preparation!
I did like the tahini sauce.
The Cozy Apron
Hi Maureen! Yes, you are definitely supposed to eat the eggplant, as it's an incredibly tasty part of the recipe. Because the eggplant is seasoned and roasted, the flesh becomes very tender and almost velvety, and is a pleasure to eat with the filling (I cut into it like I would a piece of meat...). I actually eat all of the eggplant "boat", skin included; but some folks don't care for the skin and eat only the tender flesh along with the filling. I do hope you try it this way sometime again, because it sounds like you missed so much of the good stuff! Thanks for sharing your experience.
Maureen
ThanksIngrid. I definitely will try it that way! Thanks for your quick response!!!
Richard Benchimol
Well I can not wait to make this one for the family. Thank you for the idea.
The Cozy Apron
Hi Richard, I'm excited to read that! I hope you all enjoy.
Emily
This looks great! Cooking right now! I was cooking this ahead for myself to eat through out the week. How would say I re heat this? And do you think I could freeze these as well? Thank you!
The Cozy Apron
Hey Emily, I'm so excited that you're preparing the recipe!
The way that I like to reheat this is in a toaster oven—I put it on "bake" at around 350-400 degrees, and allow it heat through for about 10-15 minutes. (Otherwise, you can microwave for a couple of minutes if the toaster oven is not an option for you.)
As far as freezing, I have not personally tried this—we've never had any leftover to freeze, lol! But I have the feeling they might get a little "mealy". Not certain this would be best for these. Hope you enjoy!
Linda
Thank you, this is a wonderful recipe! I can't help but wonder why you don't use the scooped out eggplant? A few have asked about using it in your comments...I've made this numerous times, and always dice the leftover eggplant and add to the meat mix when Browning the meat. It adds more flavour and leaves no waste!
The Cozy Apron
Hi Linda, so glad you're enjoying the recipe!
In regards to the scooped out eggplant, the reason I don't advise folks to use that part is because that center "seed" area can sometimes be quite bitter, although this depends on the eggplant... If it isn't bitter, then yes, it's ideal to use it as part of the filling. But since that can be hit or miss, I'd rather not direct folks to automatically add it and impart any bitter flavor to the filling, just to be sure.
😉
Elizabeth
I have frozen the leftovers and it works great!
The Cozy Apron
Elizabeth, glad to read that it worked out for you! Thanks so much for sharing.
Gerrie S
I have made this twice, the first time using hot Italian chicken sausage. For the second time around I used the scooped out eggplant and smokey andouille chicken sausage. Delicious both times!!!
The Cozy Apron
Hey Gerrie, I'm so excited to read that you've now made this tasty recipe twice—awesome!
Glad you're enjoying it, and making it your own. The filling ingredients can be very versatile, and the smokey andouille sausage sounds delicious in it!
Thank you so much for taking a little time to come back and comment, and share your personal experience with the recipe!
Reebs
I want to make this for a crowd so I will be using the smaller eggplants so each person can just grab one. Now can I make the stuffing in advance and roast the eggplants the day of the party and fill right before serving, warming the filling in the microwave? This recipe looks amazing. Thanks
The Cozy Apron
Hi Reebs, yes, you got it! Your plan sounds spot on.
Hope you all enjoy!
Umm Nooh
How long do you roast the eggplant?
The Cozy Apron
35 minutes.
ashley
love love love this recipe!! just made it with lean ground turkey meat and brown rice, variety of heirloom tomatoes, and brussel sprouts. can't wait to try out more of your recipes.
The Cozy Apron
Ashley, wonderful and creative substitutions to fit your needs! So very glad you enjoy the recipe, and I certainly do hope you peruse and find more tasty recipes to try out. Happy cooking to you!
Safia
Omg...this was so delicious. I also baked and then scooped out the insides of the eggplant and then cooked it further with the ground beef and seasonings. Even made leftovers for lunch...!!!
The Cozy Apron
I'm thrilled to read that, Safia! Isn't it great to have enough for lunch leftovers? 😉
Glad you enjoyed!
Sade
Where does it say to scoop out the inside of the eggplant? I’m confused. Needs to be clearer
The Cozy Apron
Sade, I mention that in the recipe under the ingredient list "stuffed eggplant ingredients":
"2 eggplants, cut in half length-wise and center scooped out leaving about 1” border all around".
Hope you enjoy!
Jeff pasternak
Hi , I’m thinking this dish would be great with minced lamb
Lemon rice, slivered roasted almonds ,garlic
Maybe a few raisins tomatoes and fresh oregano
Thanks
Chef Jeff pasternak
The Cozy Apron
Yes, delish!
Carolyn
I just made this with some variations. I used red lentils and barley instead of the meat and rice. I also sautéed the scooped out eggplant with the onions. I added a little grated mozzarella to the mixture. We loved it. My husband pronounced it great. Loved the tahini sauce and have plenty leftover. Now thinking what else I might use it with.
The Cozy Apron
Carolyn, excellent modifications—yum!
So glad that you enjoyed my basic recipe and made it your own...and as for that leftover tahini, you can use it with chicken, or drizzle it into a sandwich, perhaps mix it with some sour cream or Greek yogurt, add some additional spices/seasonings, and make a dip...?
Thanks so much for sharing your experience!
Nancy Lavoie
I just made your Stuffed Eggplant recipe for myself and for my daughter's family. It was absolutely delicious. I'm vegan and so is my daughter, so I had to make two substitutions. My market didn't carry vegan greek yogurt, but I did find kite hill sour cream which is tangy and thick like greek yogurt. I also used Gardein beefless ground which I added a tad more olive oil to keep it moist like hamburger. Other than these two subs, I followed the recipe as written. I loved the combination of spices and herbs with the eggplant and stuffing, so full of flavor. I didn't think I would like the drizzle, but it was a perfect accompaniment to the dish. The dish would have been great without it, but the sauce brought it to the next level of deliciousness. I do have one question though, how the heck do you stir tahini? I haven't found one yet that I can stir without being covered in it and it is so hard to clean off of the utensils. I would love to use tahini more often, but I found it is too much work for me.
The Cozy Apron
Hi Nancy, great to hear that you all enjoyed the recipe, and even prepared it according to your needs with some tasty modifications—awesome!
Yes, I, too find tahini to be a bit messy. Don't know if there are any "secrets", so to speak, in regards to making it easier to stir, but I typically store it upside down (make sure the lid is on nice and tight). At least that way, the oil in it tends to mix through and not pool at the top, redistributing somewhat. Maybe that'll help?
Thank you so much for sharing your experience!
Vicki
Hi Nancy,
I don’t know if you will read this reply since it’s a couple of years since your post, but I recently discovered a trick for stirring tahini and natural peanut butter. I take a long-handled wooden spoon with a dowel-shaped handle and invert the spoon so that I’m actually stirring the contents with the handle. I set the jar down in my kitchen sink and begin with a gentle up-and-down motion kind of like an old-fashioned butter churn and then continue drawing up the contents as I scrape around the bottom of the container. I find this is a very effective way of reincorporating the oil with the separated solids. If there is any overspill it falls into the sink and I can rinse it away. I also wear disposable gloves so that my hands don’t get covered in oil. I hope you find this helpful. Happy cooking!
The Cozy Apron
This is fantastic, thanks for sharing, Vicki! Happy cooking!
Karen N.
Big Hit! My family loves this recipe. I used ground chicken, chopped scooped flesh and seasoned with a bit from the ramekin and roasted in oven for 30 mins. at 400. Then popped boats that were brushed with olive oil and seasoning in for 30 mins while preparing the filling. When boats came out I sprinkled grated smoked Gouda cheese on the bottom, mixed roasted flesh with other ingredients and topped with another sprinkle of Gouda cheese on top and popped back in oven for 15 mins. Good thing I doubled the yogurt Tahini garlic sauce because everyone loved that too. This will definitely become a staple recipe in our house. Thank you so much for sharing it with us.
The Cozy Apron
Karen, I love it! Way to be creative with the recipe.
I always appreciate it when folks take one of my recipes and make it their own, and your personal tweaks sound super delicious. 🙂
So happy you and your family enjoyed, and I thank you for taking some time to come back and share your experience!
Mimi Salmon
I just made this and it is delicious. Just a few tips though. I ran out of tahini so I substituted peanut butter for tahini. Not exaclty the same taste but very close. Second, I have made a sauce like that before which was dibbled onto slices of baked sweet potatoes. The potatoes then got a sprinkling of pomegranate seeds on top. That was a Yotam Ottolenghi recipe with knock your socks off flavors.
The Cozy Apron
Hi Mimi, so glad you enjoyed!
And I'm thrilled your shared some of your swaps and a few other yummy bits of info...your complete meal sounds absolutely delicious, thank you for sharing!
Nikki
Sooooo good! I never liked eggplant until now. Super happy I came across this recipe! Thanks for sharing. The sauce is delicious and simple. We still have some eggplant growing in the garden looking forward to making this again 🙂
The Cozy Apron
Nikki, so glad to read that! What a gift it is to have home-grown eggplant in your garden...I'm sure they're super delicious and flavorful!
Thanks for sharing your experience with this recipe, and I hope you enjoy it every time you have a bounty of the eggplant available. 🙂
Happy cooking!
Lora
I made this tonight as my Mother’s Day dinner for myself. It hit every single note to perfection. Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe.
The Cozy Apron
Hi Lora, your comment touched me so much! I am so, so happy you treated yourself to this recipe as a Mother's Day meal, and that you enjoyed every bite. This warms my heart immensely.
Thank you for taking some time to share your experience with me, and may you continue to be nourished and made comforted by the recipe. Happy cooking!
Christine
We just finished eating the stuffed eggplant. I made it exactly as you created the recipe. The eggplant was fresh from my garden as were the mint, parsley, garlic and onions. This dish was absolutely perfect! This is only the second time we’ve eaten eggplant. Because of your recipe, we have become fans! I also love the suggestion of using the stuffing for red peppers! Bon Apetit!
The Cozy Apron
Christine, your garden veggies sound absolutely mouthwatering—what an ideal way to enjoy a recipe like this!
So happy you all enjoyed, and are now fans of the wonderful little eggplant. They're a truly spectacular ingredient, and I have some other recipes which incorporate them, as I'm huge fan. Hope you check those out—you can search for eggplant in the search box, and you should get a number of options.
Thanks so much for sharing your experience, Christine, and happy cooking (and gardening!) to you!
Katie
So I made this recipe a while back as we loved it! Except the eggplant. Turns out I don’t like eggplant! But the other day I used this recipe to marinate chicken thighs! The only thing I left out was the eggplant, rice and tomatoes. Oh man! The tahini sauce with the chicken - wow!!! I think this maybe become a new staple in our house! My toddler devoured it!
The Cozy Apron
Hi Katie, how creative! Wonderful way to make use of the ingredients that you do like, and leave out what you don't (in this case, the eggplant, haha! 😂)
Thanks for sharing, happy cooking to you!