Karniyarik (Turkish Stuffed Eggplant)

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If you love eggplant and ground beef, you need to try our Turkish Karnıyarık recipe. Tender roasted eggplants are filled with a rich ground beef mixture and baked with a tomato paste sauce until everything comes together beautifully.

Turkish karnıyarık made with roasted eggplants stuffed with seasoned ground beef and baked in tomato sauce, garnished with fresh parsley.

What is Karniyarik?

Karniyarik is one of the most popular eggplant recipes in Turkish cuisine.

It's a classic comfort food that you'll find everywhere, from home kitchens to traditional esnaf lokantası (casual Turkish restaurants serving homemade dishes).

When we were living in Türkiye, karnıyarık was one of our favorite lunch choices. We'd often stop by an esnaf lokantası during our lunch break and order it with a side of rice and a bowl of cacık. It was one of those meals that never disappointed.

To put it simply, karnıyarık is a Turkish stuffed eggplant made by filling roasted eggplants with a savory mixture of ground beef, onions, peppers, tomatoes, and herbs. The stuffed eggplants are then baked in a simple tomato sauce until everything comes together beautifully.

The name karnıyarık literally means "split belly," referring to the slit made in each eggplant before it's filled.

If you want a meat-free version, check out our imam bayildi recipe!

Two pieces of Turkish karniyarik with tomato sauce on a white plate.

About the Ingredients

Turkish karnıyarık is made with three simple components: eggplants, a flavorful ground beef filling, and a light tomato sauce.

Eggplants: Choose medium-sized eggplants so each one can hold plenty of filling without becoming too large to serve. They should feel firm and have smooth, shiny skin.

Ground beef filling: The filling is made with ground beef, onions, green peppers, tomatoes, garlic, parsley, and a few pantry spices. It's simple but incredibly flavorful, and it's what makes karnıyarık such a comforting meal.

Tomato sauce: A quick mixture of tomato paste and water is poured around the stuffed eggplants before baking. It keeps the eggplants moist while creating a delicious sauce to spoon over them when serving.

You can find the full list of ingredients with their exact measurements in the recipe card below.

Eggplants, ground beef, tomato paste, olive oil, Turkish green peppers, a tomato, garlic cloves, onion, parsley on a grey background.

How To Make Karnıyarık

Don't let the number of steps fool you. While karnıyarık takes a little time to prepare, most of it is hands-off, and the result is well worth it.

Roast the eggplants. Peel the eggplants in alternating strips, leaving some of the skin intact. Make a slit down the center of each one without cutting all the way through, brush with olive oil, and roast until completely tender.

Prepare the filling. Sauté the onions, then cook the garlic and ground beef until the beef is no longer pink. Let the meat absorb most of its juices before adding the peppers, tomatoes, and seasonings. Stir in the chopped parsley at the end for freshness.

Stuff the eggplants. Once the roasted eggplants are cool enough to handle, gently open the slit with a spoon to create a boat for the filling. Fill each eggplant generously with the ground beef mixture.

Add the sauce and bake. Mix the tomato paste with water and pour it over and around the stuffed eggplants. Bake until the sauce is bubbling. Finish with fresh parsley and serve hot.

You can find the full step-by-step instructions in the recipe card below.

Step-by-step collage showing how to make Turkish karnıyarık by roasting eggplants, preparing a seasoned ground beef filling, stuffing the eggplants, and baking them in tomato sauce.

Serving Suggestions

We almost always serve karnıyarık with orzo rice pilaf or bulgur pilaf, plus a bowl of Turkish cacik or plain yogurt.

A fresh coban salatasi (Turkish shepherd's salad) is another favorite that pairs beautifully with this dish.

While the stuffed eggplants finish baking, you can easily prepare the side dishes.

Don't forget some crusty bread. The tomato sauce at the bottom of the baking dish is too good to leave behind.

For more inspiration, have a look at our favorite Turkish side dishes.

Baked stuffed eggplants served on a white plate and the baking pan on the side.

Storing

Refrigerator: Let the karnıyarık cool completely, then store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat in the oven or microwave until heated through.

Freezer: Freeze the cooked stuffed eggplants for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating in the oven.

Make ahead: You can prepare the ground beef filling 2–3 days in advance and keep it refrigerated. When you're ready to cook, simply roast the eggplants, fill them, and bake as directed.

Why We Roast the Eggplants

Traditionally, karnıyarık is made by frying the eggplants before stuffing them. We prefer roasting them because it's easier, less messy, and uses much less oil while still giving you soft, tender eggplants.

If you'd like to make it the traditional way, pat the soaked eggplants very dry before frying. Then shallow-fry them in enough oil to cook both sides until tender. There's no need to deep-fry them.

Ground beef stuffed eggplants baked in tomato sauce garnished with parsley in a baking pan.

Want to Make It Vegetarian?

It's easy to turn karnıyarık into a vegetarian meal. Simply replace the ground beef with cooked green lentils or use a combination of lentils and extra vegetables, such as mushrooms or finely chopped zucchini.

The rest of the recipe stays exactly the same. The stuffed eggplants are just as delicious served warm or at room temperature.

If you're looking for a traditional meat-free alternative, try our İmam Bayıldı recipe, another classic Turkish stuffed eggplant dish made with onions, tomatoes, and olive oil.

Turkish ground beef stuffed eggplants with tomato sauce garnished with parsley on a white plate.

FAQs

Can I fry the eggplants?

You can definitely fry the eggplants and traditionally they are actually prepared in this way. However, we prefer roasting them as it is a much healthier cooking option and is also much less work.

Can I cook it on the stove?

You can also make these on the stove, however, again, baking them in the oven is much easier and allows you to prepare accompaniments in that time. Roasting them also creates a nice caramelized flavor and gives an overall better-tasting dish.

Is this a freezer-friendly meal?

These stuffed eggplants can be frozen and they freeze very well. Wrap each stuffed eggplant in plastic wrap, then foil, and place them inside a freezer-safe container. Store them in the freezer for up to 2-3 months.

Are karniyarik and moussaka the same?

These are not the same dishes. They have almost exactly the same ingredients, but they are prepared in different ways. Moussaka uses chopped cooked eggplants that are then combined with a ground beef mixture – it isn’t a stuffed recipe. It can also be cooked on the stovetop or baked in the oven.

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📖 Recipe

4.60 from 5 votes

Turkish Stuffed Eggplant Recipe Karniyarik

By Zerrin & Yusuf

Turkish Karnıyarık is a classic comfort food made with roasted (or fried) eggplants stuffed with a flavorful ground beef filling and baked in a simple tomato sauce. Perfect served with rice pilav or bulgur pilav and cacık.

Yields: servings

PRINT PIN

PREP 30

COOK 50

TOTAL 1 20

INGREDIENTS

For eggplants:

5 pieces eggplants
5 tablespoons olive oil

Filling:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion finely chopped
3 cloves garlic finely chopped
200 g ground beef
¼ cup green pepper finely chopped
½ cup tomatoes finely chopped
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
½ cup parsley finely chopped

Sauce:

1½ cups water hot
2 tablespoons tomato paste

INSTRUCTIONS

Eggplants:

Preheat the oven to 200C/400F.
Peel the eggplants lengthwise, leaving some stripes of the skin. Using a knife, make a slit on each eggplant but don’t cut it all. Don’t remove the stems.
Place the eggplants on an oven grill or on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush them with olive oil, about 1 tablespoon olive oil for each. Bake them until tender, for 30 minutes.