Hunky B (real name Hunkar Begendi aka ox cheek stew & aubergine puree).
Serves 4
Spotify Playlist - Sups
Tipple of choice - A full bodied red. Or if you want to go all in, a glass of Raki
Hunkar Begendi (lovingly referred to in my home as Hunky B) is a traditional Turksih dish of smoked aubergine puree traditionally topped with a lamb stew. However, the first time I ate this in Turkey they subbed the lamb stew with steak and I have had it in many a Turkish restaurant with a beef stew. Basically, if you aim for a smokey aubergine puree with delicious red meat on top and you can’t go wrong.
When I was a student, two of my girlfriends and I decided we really wanted a holiday. We definitely couldn’t afford a holiday but we were drunk in our local and agreed, that was what student loans were for but we should set ourselves a budget. We were so smug when we found a deal that was too good to be true. We soon learnt our lesson… :
● The hotel had an onsite restaurant whose daily special was a chip butty (nothing wrong with a chip butty but it wasn’t really the Turkish culture we had been dreaming of).
● We were terrorised daily by an 11 year old with a nipple ring called Dan Rico - he kept throwing our books in the pool and shouting ‘reading is for losers’.
● When we tried to escape Dan Rico, every street within a 5 mile radius was lined with pubs called The Rovers Return and The Queen Vic that advertised specials of Fish & Chips or Pie & Mash.
● The drinks were only served in fish bowls. I’m still not entirely sure why.
By the end of the week we were desperate for some authentic Turkish food. We knew we had struck gold when we found a small restaurant on the outskirts of town and saw the queue of stray cats outside.
We sat down and asked for whatever they recommended and that was the night we all fell in love with Hunky B. Even now, ten years later, my girlfriends always ask me to cook it when we meet up and it takes us straight back to that hilarious, awful yet wonderful holiday.
In the recipe below I have used ox cheeks which are so delicious and cheap and pretty easy to come by nowadays but you could also use diced lamb shoulder or stewing steak.
What you need :
● 2 ox cheeks or 500g diced lamb shoulder or stewing beef
● 150g plain flour (100g for seasoning the meat, 50g for your roux)
● 300ml milk
● 50g of grated hard cheese. (I use parmesan but if you are able to find a traditional hard turkish cheese then you’ve won)
● 4 large aubergines
● 50g butter
● 500ml of good quality beef stock
● 250ml port
● 1tbsp beef dripping
● 1 onion
● 1 large carrot
● 1 stick of celery
● 1 clove of garlic
● 2 tbsp tomato puree
● Dash of brandy
● Pinch of ground cinnamon
● Sprinkling of fresh thyme
● 1 anchovy fillet (don’t worry if you don’t have one - not worth buying a whole jar)
● 1 bay leaf
● Fresh parsley (to garnish)
How you do it :
This dish is about the long game and it is so worth it. Preheat oven to 150.
Trim off any excess fat from the cheeks (if using) then dice and toss the meat in the seasoned flour.
Melt the beef dripping in a frying pan and brown the meat all over. Remove the meat from the pan and put to the side.
Finely dice your carrot and onion and slice your celery and garlic. Throw it into the frying and cook until soft and lightly caramelised.
Increase the heat and put your meat back in along with the tomato puree, give it a stir to make sure everything is coated and cook for a couple of minutes.
Deglaze the pan with the brandy making sure you scrape the bottom to get all the tasty bits off. Then add in your port, stock, herbs and anchovies and bring to the boil.
Cover pan with a lid and put into the oven for 2 hours. After the time is up, check the meat - it should be tender and beginning to fall apart. Once you have hit the sweet spot, turn the oven off but leave the pan in there for a further 30 minutes to let the flavours infuse.
Aubergine puree: you can cook this in advance and reheat it when it’s time to serve or if bringing it all together at the same time, begin you puree once the meat has been in the oven for 90 minutes.
First off you want to get your aubergines super charred and smokey. I do this by placing a metal cooling rack over a gas hob and laying the aubergines on top. Keep an eye on them and keep turning them. You are looking for them to blister and then sort of deflate as the flesh inside becomes really soft. Don’t be scared of the skin charring, it just adds to the flavour. If you don’t have a gas hob then place them on a baking tray in a hot oven for around 20-30 mins. It will work just the same but you won’t get that smokey flavour that is synonymous with the dish.
Once your aubergines are done slice them open lengthways scooping out all the flesh into a ball. If you get flecks of burnt skin in there, don’t stress, it just adds to the flavour.
In a saucepan melt the butter and then slowly beat in your flour and allow it to cook out for around 2 minutes.
Whisk in the milk gradually until smooth.
After all the milk is incorporated stir in your aubergine and cook for around 5 minutes or until the mixture has thickened.
Finally stir in your grated cheese and allow to melt.
Check the seasoning and if you are like me, add in another 50g of cheese because let’s face it, you can never have enough cheese.
Serve the stew on a bed of aubergine puree and garnish with freshly chopped parsley.