Try this irresistible, simple recipe for stuffed eggplant: oven-roasted eggplant halves topped with Moroccan spiced lamb or beef. Low-cal, low-carb, low effort and utterly delicious!
Moroccan stuffed eggplant
You’ll often hear me declaring quite passionately that I think eggplant is one of the most underrated vegetables around. They’re cheap. They’re meaty. And they’re fabulously versatile, used in cuisines worldwide like Asian, Italian, Greek and Indian, prepared through various cooking methods including frying, steaming, roasting and simmering.
Today, we’re smearing, roasting and stuffing. Well, topping, not scooping-and-stuffing, in a manner that gives it a semi-stuffed vibe. Think of this as a mid-week take on traditional stuffed eggplant dishes you find in Arabic cuisine that involves hollowing out eggplants, stuffing with rice, meat, herbs and nuts, often baked in a tomato sauce. Sounds magnificent, doesn’t it? And it is. but there’s a lot more pots and pans involved! We’re going simple today. You can make this tonight, after work!!
Nice close up of said soft juicy eggplant!
Ingredients in Moroccan stuffed eggplant
The base flavouring for this Moroccan stuffed eggplant is a homemade Chermoula spice mix which does double duty as the spice paste for the eggplant as well as flavouring the meat filling.
Chermoula spice mix
Chermoula is a North African spice mix that traditionally is a marinade or sauce containing fresh coriander, garlic and spices. Sometimes you can also find it in a dry spice mix form. We’re using the dry blend today for our purposes.
The spices – The majority of the spices are pantry staples, but don’t make a special trip out if you’re missing one or two…or even three! There’s enough in the blend that you can substitute with something else – suggestions are in the recipe notes.
Olive oil and lemon juice – These are used to make the paste. I like to use lemon juice to add a bit of tang as well as cutting down on the oil required to make a smear-able paste.
The meat filling (lamb or beef)
Here’s what you need to make the meat filling. You can use lamb or beef, though if I had my pick I’d choose lamb as it’s a classic pairing with flavours from the Arab world.
3 teaspoons of the Chermoula spice blend is used to flavour the filling. In addition to this, we have garlic and onion for aromatics, and a little tomato paste to bind the filling together.
The eggplant
Choose eggplants around 250g/8oz and 17cm/7″ long. Don’t worry about exact size – adjust toppings accordingly. If you end up with larger eggplants, the topping layer might be slightly thinner, but the dish will still be packed with flavor.
Salt helps remove moisture from eggplants. More on this below!
Toppings
And lastly, the toppings! It really finishes this dish so I urge you to use them. The pine nuts are a great finishing touch, though other nuts will make an adequate substitute (almonds, macadamia, walnuts, or seeds).
If you’re anti-coriander/cilantro, switch with parsley!
How to make Moroccan Stuffed Eggplant
As mentioned above, I call it stuffed because describing it as a “topped” eggplant just doesn’t seem to capture the essence of this dish. 😂 But actually, it’s not properly stuffed – which means no scooping necessary, which means it’s easier to make. Win!
Sweating the eggplant (recommended)
Sweating the eggplant to remove excess water is a recommended but not essential step. It seasons the flesh as well as drawing out excess water that otherwise pools in the eggplant which dilutes flavour when you’re eating it.
But you can mostly get around this problem by simply cutting slits in the skin to let the water escape as it roasts. So don’t sweat it if you don’t have time to sweat it! *Sorry, I couldn’t resist!*
Cut the eggplant in half lengthwise. Keep the cap/stem intact and cut through it, it helps hold the eggplant together once roasted and soft.
Diamonds – Using a small sharp knife, cut 2.5cm/1″ diamonds into the flesh, cutting down as far as you are comfortable without piercing the flesh.
The said diamonds!
Salt – Sprinkle the surface with salt and rub it in. It’s good to get it into the slits but even if you just rub the surface, the salt will make it’s way into the slits.
Sweat for 30 minutes. I put the eggplant upside down in a colander to allow the water to drip out.
Squeeze like sponge to remove the excess water then pat the surface dry.
Making the “stuffed” eggplant
Mix the Chermoula spice blend in a bowl. Measure out 3 teaspoons and set aside for the meat.
Paste – Add olive oil and lemon juice into the remaining chermoula and mix to form a paste.
Smear the paste onto the surface of the eggplant.
Roast for 45 minutes at 180°C/350°F (160°C fan) or until the eggplant is softened. Sometimes it takes longer – don’t forget to check the edges.
Spiced meat – A quick cook! Sauté the garlic and onion, then cook the lamb with the reserved Chermoula spice blend. Finally, add the tomato paste and water to make the filling “juicy” (rather than dry and crumbly).
Assemble – Top the roasted eggplant with the lamb filling. Dollop on yogurt, sprinkle with pine nuts and coriander then dig in!
Matters of serving
Servings
This recipe is designed to serve:
2 people as a generous dinner with a small side salad;
4 as a meal with a starch (flatbread, couscous) and a substantial side (like Honey Cinnamon Pumpkin Lentil Salad, roast veg, chickpea salad); or
4 people as a generous starter.
Low carb, low calorie!
For the eggplant alone, it’s a mere 450 calories for a whole eggplant (ie 2 halves) with only 22 grams of carbs. To be honest, a serving of the eggplant alone makes for a satisfying meal – you have protein and vegetables covered! Though I do like to add something fresh on the side, even if it’s just some plain fresh cucumber and tomato.
So, it’s low calorie, low carb, simple to make and a something different to make with beef mince rather than the usual Spag Bol. What do you think?? Feel like giving this a go? I HOPE SO! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Easy Moroccan Stuffed Eggplant (beef or lamb)
Ingredients
Eggplant
- 2 x 250g/8oz eggplants (aubergines), ~17cm/7" long (Note 1)
- 3/4 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp lemon juice (or more oil)
Chermoula spice mix (Note 2)
- 1 1/2 tsp EACH coriander, paprika
- 1 tsp cumin
- 3/4 tsp all spice powder
- 1/2 tsp EACH garlic powder, ginger, turmeric powder
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
Spiced beef or Lamb topping
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 garlic clove , finely minced
- 1/2 onion , finely chopped
- 250g / 8oz beef or lamb mince , lean if you can (chicken, turkey, pork also ok)
- 1/2 tsp cooking/kosher salt
- 2 tsp tomato paste (Note 3)
- 1/4 cup water
To Serve
- Yoghurt , plain
- 2 tbsp coriander/cilantro leaves , roughly chopped (sub parsley)
- 2 tbsp pinenuts , toasted (Note 4)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F (160°C fan).
- Sweat eggplants (recommended, see Note 5 to skip) – Cut eggplants in half then score with 2.5cm / 1" diamonds. Rub surface with salt, getting some into the slits. Place face down in a colander and set aside for 30 minutes. Gently squeeze like a sponge to remove excess water, pat surface dry.
- Mix Chermoula spice mix ingredients in a bowl. Remove 3 teaspoons for the meat and set aside. Add olive oil and lemon juice into the remaining spice mix and mix into a paste.
- Roast eggplant – Place eggplant on baking tray. Slather spice mix onto the surface. Roast for 45 minutes until softened.
- Spiced topping – Heat oil in a non stick skillet over medium high heat. Cook onion and garlic for 1 minute. Turn heat up to high, add lamb/beef and cook, breaking it up as you go, until you no longer see red. Add reserved spices and salt, then cook for a further 1 minute. Add tomato paste and cook for 1 minute. Stir in water, cook for 1 minute until it's juicy but not watery.
- Assemble – Top eggplant with beef/lamb. Sprinkle over coriander, dollop with yogurt and pine nuts. Finish with an extra drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, if desired!
Recipe Notes:
- All spice – mixed spice
- Garlic powder – onion powder, or fresh garlic
- Ginger – more garlic
- Turmeric powder – saffron
- Cinnamon – more all spice
Nutrition Information:
Originally published in March 2016. Majority spruced up in 2023 with a better, more streamlined recipe with better flavour, sparkling new photos and a brand new recipe video!
Proof of eggplant fondness
Life of Dozer
Can’t even whiteboard recipe ideas without Mr D hovering around.
Easy recipe and fun to make. Next time, for my taste, I will skip the cinnamon and will make slits in the skin because the salting didn’t remove enough liquid. Thanks for an interesting cooking experience.😁
Hi Nagi,
Is there anyway I can sub meat with lentils? I know it’s not going to taste the same but I am a vegetarian and eggplant happens to be one of my favorite veggies- I really want to try this!
Thanks!
I went out for eggplant and pre toasted pine nuts this morning, I am so excited to make this. But can I pre make it a few hrs in advance maybe ??
Hi Nikki! I have make ahead tips in the notes 🙂 Make eggplant and meat, cool, reheat and assemble! N x
Just made the Moroccan eggplant with lamb mince… absolutely sensational ❤️👍
I’m so pleased you enjoyed it Lysbeth!! Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback – N x
I LOVE eggplant! I stick it in just about everything. So I will be making this for sure. I have all the spices, so all good. I liked your method of sweating the water out. Much better and easier than other methods which involve the bench covered in eggplant slices. Made the Korean noodle dish recently. YUM!!
I adore eggplant too!! I’m going to try a Moussaka-type bolognese this weekend with eggplant in it. I have a theory that it will make the bolognese sauce even juicier as well as filling it out. I have this idea in my head for a rice layered “lasagna” that I want to use it for. let’s see how it goes! N x
All I can say is DEELISH! Made it tonight and it was wonderful!
Made this tonight… just wonderful! The amounts of spices (even the salt) were spot on. If you can’t find eggplants small enough, you can buy giant ones and cut them into 1.5” “steaks” and roast on a non-stick silicone mat. Just be careful transferring from the pan to the plate, as they will be more fragile.
Thanks for sharing the tip re: larger eggplants! So glad you enjoyed the flavour – it took me a handful of gos until I was happy 🙂 My first version was WAY too salty!! I was quite surprised how little salt this dish needs, thought it would need more. – N x
I’ve just rummaged through the spice cupboard and I have everything, so it’s a quick trip to get eggplant and rustle this up for dinner tonight. Can’t wait! Thank you Nagi for making me look better in the kitchen than I am but my secret is out. My 2 older sons have discovered you as well so I’ve been busted!
Hope you love it Adele!! PS Bugger we’ve been busted. Would’ve been totally happy to remain your anonymous source! 😂
I used the spice mix to pep up my veggie/chickpea tomato stew. And the flavour is sensational! Would love to try the OG some time soon. And with roasted squash/peppers as others have mentioned in comments. Cheers Nagi!
This looks good. I’m going to try it with squash.
YUM YES!
I can confirm it works with carrots and obviously squash is the same flavour 🙂
I was so happy to see this recipe today! I just had your koftas last night and I have some of the meat left! Thank you
Well that’s just PERFECT then!!! 🙂 Hope you enjoy it! N x
Hi Nagi, the recipe looks great as always and I hope to make it this weekend. But I’m sorry, I must be going blind, because I can’t see chilli powder mentioned anywhere in the ingredients yet you refer to it in your notes. What am I missing please?
Sorry Lorraine! I changed it to cayenne. Will update now! N x
1/2tsp cayenne pepper in the cholula/dry spice mix
This looks awesome!
Any tips for making this in advance?
Do you think I can roast the eggplants and cook the meat mixture a few hours before, then just assemble and reheat in the oven before adding the final toppings?
Hi Fleur! Great question, you can absolutely do that. We’ve been reheating leftovers for days, took quite a few batches until I was happy with the spicing on the meat!! I’ll pop the make ahead tips in the notes – N x
Taken from the old recipe still on the blog – “This recipe is a great make ahead recipe as it can be served warm or at room temperature. Also you can make the eggplant and couscous ahead, and just reheat the eggplant in the oven (or keep it warm covered in foil) when you want to serve it.”. And I can confirm reheating mince in sauce works well. I add 1/4 cup water and cook on a high heat. Once the water reduces, I know the mince is ready to eat, it’s piping hot. Otherwise just cover and simmer on low heat for 10 minutes.
I made this for dinner this evening, and OH WOW it was incredible! I made it with lamb for my daughter and myself, and made an extra pot with Veg mince for my husband. Served with a side salad of rocket, avocado and radish. We all loved it! I will definitely be making this again, thanks Nagi! x
I made a lot of mixture, and also had eggplant left over. So the following night I mixed the eggplant into the meat (and veg mince) and then used this as the filling in pastry parcels and mini sausage rolls. Utterly scrumptious!
Nagi
What yoghurt are you using please? I use Jalna Greek yoghurt and it is thick, not loose like yours.
I use Farmers Union and I give it a good mix before I use it which loosens it up a bit 🙂 N x
So excited to have one of it recipes that is naturally low carb without needing to alter anything. Will put this on the menu next weekend. Looks delicious.
Thank you Nagi for all your wonderful recipes. You inspire me to move out of my comfort zone. I was wondering if this is the same filling and recipe I would use to stuff red capsicum.
Thank you for your generosity in sharing your knowledge and teaching so we understand the whys and hows of successful cooking.
It works with red bell peppers (capsicum). Cook time may change being different vegetables. Quick search on a trusted website says 40-45 minutes at a slightly higher temperature – 190C/170C fan. It also suggests to add 2.5cm/1in water to the baking dish to stop them from drying out.
Like Carolyn I always check out Dozer first. I was very impressed today Nagi – an entire whiteboard section devoted to Dozer! (or is that just his Wish List?)
This looks so good! Already have another Nagi recipe on the go for tonight (Shep’s pie), so will make this one over the weekend. PS>>> Got a sneak peek of Japchae on the whiteboard… YAY!
I rush to see Dozer and am greatly rewarded when I do and I sometimes forget about the recipe!!! Aw he is sooo cute