Karnıyarık (Stuffed Eggplant with Ground Meat) vs Ratatouille

Both dishes lean on eggplant, tomato, bell peppers, onion and garlic, yet they put them to very different use. Karnıyarık slits and scores its eggplants lengthwise, fries them until soft and golden, then fills them with a savory ground-meat mixture seasoned with cumin and black pepper and bakes them in a light tomato-paste sauce, turning the eggplant into a tender vessel. Ratatouille instead dices eggplant alongside zucchini and bell peppers, browns them in olive oil, and simmers everything slowly with tomatoes, thyme and bay leaf until the vegetables are meltingly tender, creating a meatless, herb-scented medley.