Hünkarbeğendi

Hünkarbeğendi is braised lamb stew spooned over a smoky, cheese-enriched eggplant purée. It's the Ottoman palace dish known as "the sultan's delight," reportedly created for a sultan's guest to eat with a spoon alone, no knife needed for either half of the plate.

What it actually is

Cubed lamb braises slowly with onion and tomato until it falls apart into a rich, dark stew. Separately, whole eggplants are charred directly over a flame until the skin blisters and the flesh turns smoky, then scooped out and beaten smooth with milk, butter and a hard cheese (traditionally kaşar) until it becomes a thick, pale, faintly smoky purée. The stew is spooned generously over a bed of the purée just before serving.

The purée does double duty: it's rich enough to be a dish on its own, but its whole purpose here is to be a bed for the stew, never served as a separate side.

How it's served

• Purée on the bottom, stew spooned generously on top, never served in separate dishes.
• Immediately after the purée is made, since it loses its smooth texture and smoky aroma if it sits too long.
• With rice pilaf on the side, if a starch is added at all — the purée itself already carries the role a starch usually plays.

Writing it on a menu

• Flag dairy clearly; the purée is built on milk and cheese, easy to miss under a name that sounds meat-forward.
• Say that the eggplant is charred over open flame, not roasted in an oven; the smokiness is a defining flavour, not incidental.
• Mention the lamb specifically, and whether a beef version is available as an alternative.
• Note that it's a dish assembled at the last moment; the purée doesn't hold well once made, which affects how far ahead a kitchen can prep it.