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Real Recipes From Real Home Cooks ®

elsie's eggplant dirty rice

BrnJune avatar
Recipe by
Brenda Forbes
@BrnJune
Red Rock, TX

My Mother was Cajun so our family called this "dirty rice" even though it is not the traditional recipe. My Mother, Elsie Forbes, made this often and we all LOVED it. My mother passed away in 1988 but having her recipe, I tried many times to duplicate it; but it never tasted the same. Finally tonight (25 years later) I was able to make it as good as my Mama's! (I did not take a photo but will do so another time.) The amount of onions and other seasonings are "to taste". I lightly added black pepper when I added the meat, when adding the eggplant, and at the end with the other spices.

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yield 4 serving(s)
prep time 10 Min
cook time 50 Min
method Stove Top

Ingredients For elsie's eggplant dirty rice

  • 1 lg
    eggplant, peeled**, cut in approx. 1/2" pieces
  • 1 lb
    ground beef (or turkey)
  • 1 lg
    yellow onion, diced
  • 3/4 c
    rice, uncooked
  • 2-3 clove
    garlic, chopped
  • salt & black pepper, to taste
  • 2-3 Tbsp
    olive oil (or canola oil)
  • 1/8 - 1/4 tsp
    cayenne pepper, ground

How To Make elsie's eggplant dirty rice

  • 1
    Start rice cooking in a small sauce pan.
  • 2
    While the rice is cooking, on medium to medium high temperature, in a medium sized (10-12") cast iron skillet place oil. When the oil is heated (not smoking), add chopped onion and saute. After the onions are slightly cooked, reduce heat to medium and add ground beef (or turkey) to cook. Do not over-stir.
  • 3
    ** Peeling the eggplant is optional. Since posting this recipe, I often leave the peeling on the eggplant for extra fiber/nutrition. Chop the eggplant into approximately 1/2" size pieces and add to meat when it is about three-fourths of the way cooked. Cover mixture and let it continue cooking on medium heat until the eggplant is tender. Again, do not over-stir.
  • 4
    When the rice is cooked, stir in approximately 2 cups of the cooked rice to the eggplant and meat mixture. Add chopped/crushed garlic, salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper. Cover and continue cooking on LOW heat for approximately 10-15 minutes to allow flavors to blend.
  • Last Step: Don't forget to share! Make all your friends drool by posting a picture of your finished recipe on your favorite social network. And don't forget to tag Just A Pinch and include #justapinchrecipes so we can see it too!
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