Upside-Down Rice with Eggplant and Lamb

Makloubeh — with fried eggplant, meat, spiced rice, and nuts — is widely prepared around the Middle East. Some cooks add cubes of lamb or other meat over the eggplant, while others use ground meat (or both).

Presentation is what makes this special, and shows off the skill of the cook: the ingredients must be piled gently, so as to cook evenly and allow flavors to mingle, but also firmly, so that when the finished dish is flipped onto its serving platter, the makloubeh shows its artf