Hünkar Beğendi - Sultan's Delight

Hünkar Beğendi - Sultan's Delight is a traditional Turkish recipe made with slow-cooked lamb stew served over smoky eggplant puree. The puree, called beğendi, is eggplant charred over a flame and folded into béchamel with grated cheese. The name means the sultan liked it, and it has been on Istanbul tables since Ottoman times.

Most of the flavor comes from the smoky eggplant, so don't rush that step. I make it for dinner parties because I can cook both parts ahead, and it always looks far more difficult than it is.

Jump to:

• Why This Recipe Works?
• Eggplants in Turkish Cuisine
• The Story Behind Hünkar Beğendi
• Ingredients You'll Need
• How to Make Hünkar Beğendi?
• recipe Tips From the Chef
• Serving Suggestions
• Storage and Make Ahead Instructions
• Recipe FAQs
• Related Recipes
• Hünkar Beğendi - Sultan's Delight

In Turkey we love the eggplant puree so much that it has turned into a dish of its own. Restaurants serve grilled meat over the same smoky base and call it beğendili kebap.

Don't let the palace history put you off. All you need is a heavy pot for the stew and a saucepan for the puree. The method below walks you through both, with step-by-step photos.

Why This Recipe Works?

• The recipe has two simple parts. Neither needs any special skill.

• It is a complete meal on one plate: tender meat, vegetables, and a creamy sauce.

• It is a versatile recipe. Swap the lamb for beef or chicken, and both work well with the smoky eggplant base.

• The leftovers freeze well. Cool them completely and pack them into airtight containers.

• Hunkar Begendi looks and tastes fancy, but it is only roasted eggplant stirred into a basic white sauce with cheese.

• The stew is forgiving. If dinner runs late, it just gets more tender sitting on low heat.

Eggplants in Turkish Cuisine

Eggplant is everywhere in Turkish cooking. It goes especially well with lamb, and we have plenty of recipes that use the two together, such as Moussaka Recipe (Musaka) and Patlican Kebabi - Eggplant Kebab.

You can pickle them, make jam with them, turn them into dips like Baba Ganoush Without Tahini, or stuff them, as in my Stuffed Eggplant Recipe.

We Turks are obsessed with this purple fruit. The only thing we love as much is borek, like my Su Boregi.

The Story Behind Hünkar Beğendi

There are two stories about which sultan gave Hünkar Beğendi its name. The older legend points to Murad IV in the 1600s. A palace cook made up a new dish, the sultan loved it, and the name stuck.

The more likely story is from the 1860s. Empress Eugénie of France, wife of Napoleon III, was a guest of Sultan Abdülaziz on the Bosphorus. She loved the eggplant puree served at the palace so much that she asked for the recipe for her own kitchen. Béchamel arrived in Turkish cooking around that time, so this story fits the dish better.

Either way, the dish left the palace long ago. You can now find Hunkar Begendi at lokantas all over Turkey. The lamb stew on top is a close relative of Tas Kebabi - Turkish Beef Stew, another recipe with Ottoman roots.

Ingredients You'll Need

Please scroll down to the recipe card below for the full ingredients list with measurements, complete recipe method, recipe notes, and nutritional information.

Ingredients for Lamb Stew

• Lamb - I use lamb shoulder, the same cut as in my Braised Lamb Ragu and Sac Kavurma (Turkish Lamb Sauté). Any cut works as long as it is marbled with some fat.

• Onions - They are a must when making a stew. I love the umami flavor and sweetness they add to the dish. White, brown, or yellow onions work best with this recipe.

• Chicken stock - The best option is my homemade Chicken Bone Broth. You can substitute it with vegetable stock or water, or use stock cubes if you don't have any stock in hand. Just watch the salt, as ready-made stocks and stock cubes contain salt already.

• Peppers - You can use Turkish green peppers, Spanish Padron peppers, or bell peppers for this recipe.

• Tomato paste - It is the staple of Turkish cooking. It adds an umami flavor to the dishes as well as a bright red color. You can find it in Turkish or Middle Eastern shops.

• Cumin - It complements the lamb dishes perfectly. Adjust the amount to your taste or omit it if you don't like its taste.

Ingredients for Eggplant Purée

• Eggplants - Pick slightly firm but not hard ones. Discard the seeds after cooking if there are any.

• Butter - Use good quality butter for the béchamel sauce, which is the base of the eggplant puree.

• Cheese - Kaşar is my choice. Cheddar, gruyere, or a mix of them also work. Some cooks in Turkey skip the cheese altogether for a purer eggplant taste.

• Nutmeg - It adds a sweet and soft aroma to the sauce. It goes perfectly with béchamel or any other dairy-based sauce.

How to Make Hünkar Beğendi?

Cook the Lamb Stew

Heat a large heavy-based pan or Dutch oven on medium to high heat. When it's hot, add the olive oil and brown the diced lamb. Do it in two batches if your pan is not large enough, so the meat browns evenly instead of steaming.

Lower the heat to medium, add the onions, and sauté until soft and slightly browned.

Stir in the peppers along with the garlic. Cook for a few more minutes, stirring continuously to avoid burning the garlic.

Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, pepper paste, cumin, salt, and black pepper.

Give it a good stir before adding the stock or water. I use my homemade chicken bone broth when I have some. Make sure you reduce the amount of salt when using store-bought stock or stock cubes.

Bring the mixture to a boil, take the lid off, and then gently simmer on low heat for 1.5 hours or until the lamb is tender. Check the liquid and add more stock if needed. Stir the lamb every half an hour or so to make sure it doesn't stick to the bottom.

If there is too much liquid in the pan, cook further without the lid until the sauce thickens.

Prepare the Eggplant Purée

Start cooking the eggplant purée while the lamb stew is cooking. To prevent the eggplants from bursting, prick each one with a toothpick a few times and place them on a gas burner or BBQ.

Cook them until soft and the skin is charred, turning them frequently. Place them in a bowl, cover it, and let them sit for 10 minutes. The steam loosens the skins and makes peeling much easier. You can also cook the eggplants on the grill or over a gas stove.

If these aren't an option, you can preheat the oven to 390° F (200° C) and then bake them for about 45 minutes or until the flesh is soft. They won't have the smoky taste we are after, but they will still taste great.

Peel the eggplants and discard the seeds if there are any. Finely chop them and then place them in a sieve to get rid of their bitter water. Set them aside until needed.

In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter, add the flour, and then cook for 2 minutes stirring continuously.

Whisk in a little of the warm milk at a time, stirring continuously, until you have a smooth and velvety sauce. Cook for a few minutes until thickened, stirring continuously.

Mix in the eggplant and the grated cheese, and then season it with salt and nutmeg. Keep warm until you serve it.

When the lamb is tender and the sauce is rich and thick, remove it from the heat.

Spoon the eggplant purée on a plate and then top it with some lamb stew. Garnish with chopped parsley.

recipe Tips From the Chef

• Cook the eggplants until they are completely soft. The puree should be smooth enough to eat with a spoon, with no firm bits.

• A squeeze of lemon over the peeled eggplant flesh keeps the puree from darkening while it waits.

• Fold a few of the charred flecks from the skin into the puree for extra smokiness.

• Dice the lamb into even pieces so they all turn tender at the same time.

• If the puree thickens too much while it waits, loosen it with a splash of warm milk.

• Taste the stew before serving and adjust the salt, especially if you used store-bought stock.

Serving Suggestions

The most popular way to serve Hünkar Beğendi is with a simple pilaf on the side, such as Mujadara, Bulgur Pilaf, or Turkish Rice. The grains soak up the stew juices.

For a lighter meal, add a fresh salad such as Gavurdagi Salatasi (Turkish Tomato Walnut Salad), Beetroot Salad, Lebanese Tabbouleh Recipe, or Indian Chickpea Salad (Chana Salad), and a slice of my Sandwich Bread for the sauce.

Storage and Make Ahead Instructions

Hünkar Begendi keeps well. Store the stew and the puree in separate airtight containers in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat the stew gently on the stove. Warm the puree over low heat with a splash of milk until it is creamy again. If the puree needs to wait before serving, press plastic wrap onto its surface so it does not form a skin.

You can make both parts a day ahead, and the stew tastes even better after a night in the fridge.

The stew freezes for up to 3 months. The puree freezes too, but use it within a month. Thaw them overnight in the fridge, then whisk the puree back to smooth over low heat with a splash of warm milk.

Recipe FAQs

Related Recipes

For more delicious eggplant recipes, why not try:

Did you make this recipe? Please let me know how it turned out! Leave a comment below and tag @cookingorgeous on Instagram and hashtag it #cookingorgeous.

I hope you enjoy the process of making this authentic Hünkar Beğendi (Sultan's Delight) recipe as much as you enjoy eating it! 🙂