Stuffed Eggplant with Spiced Lentils, Rice, and Tomato-Pepper Sauce

Preheat the oven and line a large baking tray. Halve 1800 g eggplant lengthwise, score the cut sides deeply without piercing the skin, and brush them with 60 ml olive oil and 6 g salt. Roast the eggplant until the flesh is very soft, the edges are lightly browned, and the skins look wrinkled and slack. When ready, let the eggplant cool just enough to handle, then gently press the centers to create deep cavities while keeping the shells intact.

Rinse 220 g red lentils and 180 g rice until the water runs clearer. Add the 220 g red lentils and 180 g rice to a saucepan with 900 ml water and bring to a gentle simmer. Cook until the lentils are tender and the rice is just cooked through, with the grains still holding their shape and the pan nearly dry. Spread the mixture on a tray or large plate so the steam escapes and the texture stays separate rather than sticky.

Heat 50 ml olive oil in a wide pan over medium heat. Add 350 g onion and 20 g garlic, both finely chopped, and cook slowly until the onion is soft, glossy, and beginning to turn pale gold without browning too fast. Stir in 200 g red pepper and 250 g tomato, both finely diced, then cook until the vegetables collapse and the mixture looks jammy and concentrated.

Add 40 g tomato paste, 8 g cumin, 6 g paprika, 2 g cinnamon, 3 g black pepper, and 8 g salt to the pan and cook until the tomato paste darkens slightly and smells sweet and savory. Fold in the cooked lentil-rice mixture, then add 40 g parsley, 12 g mint, and 30 ml lemon juice. Stir gently until the filling is cohesive, moist, and fragrant, with no wet puddles in the pan and a spoonable but structured texture.

In a saucepan, heat 30 ml olive oil over medium heat. Add 200 g onion and 250 g red pepper, both finely chopped, and cook until softened and lightly sweet. Stir in 300 g tomato, 30 g tomato paste, 4 g paprika, 4 g salt, and 400 ml water, then simmer until the sauce thickens enough to coat a spoon while still flowing easily around the stuffed eggplants.

Arrange the roasted eggplant halves snugly in a large baking dish. Spoon the lentil-rice filling firmly into each cavity, pressing the filling enough to shape neat mounds but not so much that the eggplant skins tear. Pour the tomato-pepper sauce around and partly over the stuffed eggplants so the tops stay visible and the base of the dish is fully covered with sauce.

Bake the stuffed eggplants until the sauce is bubbling at the edges and the tops of the filling are lightly bronzed. The dish is ready when a spoon slides easily through the eggplant, the filling feels set rather than loose, and the sauce has thickened into a rich layer around the vegetables. Rest the baking dish briefly so the filling settles and the sauce clings better when served.

Scatter 20 g parsley and 8 g mint over the hot stuffed eggplants just before serving. Let the herbs soften from the heat so they smell fresh but not raw, then spoon the sauce over each portion. Serve while the eggplant is silky, the filling is warm all the way through, and the sauce is glossy and well blended.