Forgotten Favorite

As a kid I used to love a veggie and meat recipe but, I forgot about that dish completely. There really is no recipe for it since, it is rather simple. I haven't been making it in ages. A couple of days ago, I had some leftover lamb meat and a bunch of vegetables so, I decided to make it.

It doesn't have to be lamb. It can be any meat you like. 

If anyone is interested:

1 large potato (cubed)

2 eggplants (cut them up in half inch slices)

A big handful of string beans or a bit more. Cut them up about an inch long or a bit longer

2 tomatoes (cubed)

4-5 Cuban or Italian peppers (no hot peppers)

2 zucchinis (half inch slices)

1 onion

2-3 tablespoons tomato sauce or a tablespoon of tomato paste

Olive oil or margarine or butter I like olive oil.

1/2 pound of cubed meat

Salt and pepper to taste

Cut up the eggplants and soak in salt water, set aside.

Cook the cubed meat first with a little oil.

Add chopped onion and tomato sauce or paste, stir thoroughly. 

Lower the heat to a minimum just to simmer.

Add string beans, a little water and cook further about 15 minutes with the lid on.

Wash the eggplants and squeeze them.

Add the eggplants, tomatoes, zucchini, potatoes and peppers, mix well. There should be enough water but not much. So, every once in a while you need to check this. Cook further with the lid on.

If the vegetables are tender enough, you can take it off the stove. If you wait for the next day to consume it, it is even tastier. 

Please do not heat it up in a microwave. Stove top is the way to go. You can serve it with rice.

What makes this recipe so tasty is, minimal heat and the long time to cook it. So, if you have a slow cooker, it could be perfect. However the meat takes the longest time and the beans take slightly longer to cook than other veggies. If you put everything all together, it can get pretty mushy.

You can use more or less meat or any of the vegetables. It really depends on your taste buds. You can make it vegan if you forgo the meat.