Hünkar Beğendi is a very old traditional Turkish dish. The sultan orderes his chefs to create a special dish for his special guests .After tasting many of the dishes that his chefs prepared, this new creation quickly becomes the Sultan's favorite. ‘Hünkar beğendi’ (‘The sultan liked it’) was thus named and served to the Empress. Thanks for sharing this recipe with us dear greek friend.

Thanks for sharing this recipe. It's very very tasty ☺️ 🇹🇷🇬🇷🇹🇷🇬🇷🇹🇷🇬🇷

Akis .... thank you for sharing dishes which are common in Greece and Turkey.... both countries have a common past und culture ... we should be proud together ❤ 👏 💜 💕

I can just sit and listen to Akis talking the whole day. He is like one of those friends that keeps you company in the kitchen. He just makes a person smile everytime😊

I've made this twice now, and Akis' face at 12:05 is exactly right. That eggplant puree is AMAZING and people WILL go crazy for it.

I'm cooking that today, I hope my turkish husband will like that 🥰 thank you so much for such amazing recipe and making that look so simple 🙏🩷

You really cooked the meat perfectly Akis, and my grandma cooks this dish very tasty, love from İstanbul

Thank you for introducing a Turkish recipe from your popular channel!

It is maid by palace's cook for the French guest Princess Eugenie. Therefore béchamelsauce in this dish. The cook served the new dish first to the King and he gave his consent to serve . Hünkar = King / beğendi = liked / "The King liked it". The original version of this dish is the same with yoghurt instead of French béchamelsauce and it is called "Ela nazik" or "Ali nazik". Ela/Ali = a male name / nazik = gentle / "gentle Ali". The same King/Hünkar composed classical music. For his songs search for: Sultan Abdülaziz - Valse davet, Sultan Adülaziz - Gondol Şarkısı (la gondolle barcarolle) or Sultan Abdülaziz - Sultan'ın polkası. officially it is said that he killed himself. But today we know, he was probably murdered. A photo published at the beginning of the 00's with that Hünkar/King and two men. It is alleged those two men were his murderers.

Fantastic as always! Please show more classic Turkish and Greek recipes. Also a few popular African dishes as it is still unexplored in global popularity but surely they must be good, we have eaten a few like Moroccan meat balls, Dorro wot.

This is amazing, thanks for sharing! 😃 Greetings from Serbia! 🇷🇸❤️🇬🇷

You are the best Akis I done for new year the Melzanosalad from you, absolutely very tasty 😋 all my guests loved that,thank you Akis for sharing those nice recipes with us 😊

Thank you Akis, for teaching such an amazing recipe! In my wife’s words, “This will get you pregnant!” It’s a real winner, and so unique! It’s the latest in a string of your recipes that are now part of my weekly dinners! The lemony pea stew, and the baked giant beans are favorites! Keep up with great work!

I'm definitely saving this recipe to try it out soon. The combination looks very interesting and something quite new for me. I love trying out different cuisines.

Thank you neighbour for making this dish so close to the original. Lots of love from Milano, I will prepare this dish to my Italian guests❤️

I made this tonight and it is AMAZING. I never would have thought of cumin and cinnamon together but wow, is that good. Along with the cheesy bechamel sauce! Guys, you have to try this.

Çok güzel. Ellerinize sağlık! 🇹🇷 💕🇬🇷

I couldn t imagine my life with out you Thank you so much for help and effott which you are giving to me. Love from Serbia ❤️❤️❤️

Thank you Akis for sharing 🇹🇷🇬🇷

One of the best dishes🥰

This Turkish recipe looks yummy and the way you cooked and presented it is so inviting...thank you Akis for all your recipes especially with your greek and Meditteranean recipes they look good and healthy. You're one great chef vlogger.

This looks amazing!! Totally making this! Thanks, Akis! ❤️❤️❤️

I had this dish in Istanbul, but with lamb shanks. Amazing!

if you dont know, hünkarbeğendi is not meaning of hünkar's delight. meaning is "hünkar liked this" :D . btw you cooked amazing I hope you ate this with joy 2 years ago.

Thank you Akis!!

Ohhh I’m going to try this on Sunday, thank you!

So good to see you back.

Love your recipes!!

Love at first sight

Wow, Happy New Year! I have tried many of your recipes, never disappointed - this one -real different, on my list!!!!

Absolutely love love love this recipe 😍😋🙏

Thank you akis❤️you are awesome 👍🏼

Spot on ingredients and execution! Has been my family's favorite use of beef for the last 2 years since I made it for the first time. My version is baked at the end like you served it with the string cheese 'tel' on top. Love your recipes! Cheers from Bulgaria!

It is truly an amazing recipe. I had tried it in a restaurant in Athens and have since made it at home a few times. So aromatic! Thanks for sharing Akis!

Looks delicious! I have been living in Turkey for a few years, but I have never tried this dish! I am going to correct that mistake! Thank you! 🤗

We love you Akis 🥂

Thanks a lot Akis!!! Definitely a new recipe to try at home. And yes, I love you even more 😍🥰

Akis has been in more kitchens for his channel than I’ve ever seen.

I didn’t grow up eating eggplant, however I love it now! Just picked some up at the farmer’s market. Definitely going to try this! Thank you! From South Texas. 😋🍆💐💖

That looks amazing.

Love this recipe! the eggplant is brilliant idea !

Why no 5 million subscribers this man is amazing

Amazing recipe. Gotta try it.

eventhough I follow your channel I missed this part 🙁. However thank you for this recipe. Many loves from Turkey you are simply the best 🥰🥰🥰👋👋👋

I had a friend with a Turkish wife.. oh my .. wonderful dishes.

well, that is going on my "list" of things to make very soon! Thanks Akis!

Congratulations AKIS you are very strong and very spectacular video...🔝🔝💪💪❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️🇮🇹🇬🇷👍

never tried this, thanks for sharing I will give this one try

Looking forward to making this dish egg plant beef !! My kind of living !! Thank you happy New Year my friend. Health happiness and good times ahead !

You are giving us all some seriously amazing cooking and recipes Akis. This is one to try for sure,seeing the crossover between turkish & greek cuisine, as well as trying to teach us greek phrases Perhaps some more recipes like this from the area or perhaps some of those you cooked on your food tour but translated to for us. Thanks man👌👌😀.

Akis rules!! You rock man i love you ❤

Oh god I want that NOW!

One more time you did it very tasty and in your own special way, God bless your hands :) realized that I haven't cooked this for a long time, gonna do it for tomorrow:) @14:00 ahaha maybe we should change the name: "Akis beğendi" :)

My Greek favorit chef

Wow, what an interesting dish! I will try it sometime. I enjoy your channel and would love to see more videos with recipes that has either fennel or artichoke-two underrated Mediterranean veggies🥰

Thank you komşu

Omg, love you Akis! Can you try Lebanese cuisine?

Looks yummy 😋

Akis masallah 🤞

Είσαι ο καλύτερος!😁♥️

Amazing as always 😍❤️EXCELLENTRecipe👍🏻🌶

Eggplant ?! Count me in 😍

Wow amazing 😍

Ok akis I found you last night your explanation is amazing I subscribed you after 2 video you are amazing

I made yesterday beef braised with carrots, if I knew you were gonna cook something similar today I’d wait, but next time I’ll definitely try your recipe :D

As a turkish self acclaimed amazing cook,you did well😋😍🤩😘😀 greeting to lovely neighbor greek 😀we have so much common,dont lwt get the politics crawl under your skin .and congrats to newly dad😍🤗

I made a sauce with leftover lahmacun meat and served over the eggplant. It was delicious.

😍You just made baba ganoush. Smart twist with the bechamel Akis 👍

That’s it I’m going straight to plaza to eat😊

This looks amazing! Akis, I would love for you to make a traditional Yemeni dish and do your own twist on it- I'm certain the outcome will be spectacular! Lots of love from a British Yemeni!

Thank you Akis. Awaiting for octopus receipe with Khios gum

Miam miam ! 🇨🇵👍

Oooh yuuumm!😍 That is a darn right gorgeous dish!😋 So doing this!🙏 I am a Pacific Islander and two of our diet staples are Tapioca and Coconut Milk. I would love to know how you would incorporate these two in a dish! Like a Pacific/Mediterranean style dish!😍 Would you do it with a Bechamel sauce!??Idk! But I would absolutely love if you could put something together!🙏🙏🙏

This looks so delicious! Im definitely going to make it. By the way, would love to see Lakis one day in your video!

Po,po,po,po, Aki, mou trehoune ta salia (I'm drooling...) You're a discovery for me! I saw you for the first time on TV today! That rather silly programme where the person brings the chef a few items and you have to cook it all in twenty minutes and one team is green peppers and the other is tomatoes --- all this because I can't remember the name of the programme... Anyway, you're terrific! Yassou, levendi mas! And thanks for your delicious cooking!

yumiiiiii

What a stunning recipe, and like many other Turkish dishes it has an interesting story too. My imagination is now saying maybe the sultan liked it so much that he overate and then it was Hünkar Bayildi....(I'm not sure if this translates correctly - I mean 'the sultan swooned')

Καλημέρα χρόνια πολλά καλη χρόνια μπράβο σας

Yummylishes delicious 👌

💞💞

delish ... let us meet Lakis

💖💖💖💖

Have some lamb- this will also work? So hungry now, but need to grab eggplant at market tomorrow.😋

Hello Akis, I really want to try out this recipe but only have electric stove so no flames to burn the eggplant, any trick you could suggest? Sorry if someone already asked.. love your channel! ❤

Akis try beğendi with octopus 🤤

❤❤❤👍👍

Very nais! There should a link to the video from the recipe on the page :) So you can find the video for the recipe

Akis! Cook pomegranate lamb biryani!

🇹🇷❤️🇬🇷

what do you suggest instead of red wine beverage? I can't drink it

Υγεία σου Ακι… Is there a reason you did not add eggs into the Beshemel? My recipes call for eggs in the beshemel when I make mousaka or “pastichio”. 🇬🇷🇺🇸

Can you cook your version of Karniyarik?

I totally get the sprinkle of sugar in the tomato sauce, but wouldn't put honey in my grilled aubergines.

Are your cookbooks available in English?

We were living under the same roof for hundreds of years then they seperated us.Turkish and Greek are siblings and neighbours not enemies.

There is only one word for this: "Decadent". I wonder, is there a vegetarian variant?

I’m not going crazy with Turkish food but Greek food yes

“Actually its a Turkish recipe but ehh…”. Haha funny. Love the but eh. 👍🏽😅

Rustic so much better.. making this dish with lamb.. LOL can you see that 😻 traditional Greek dish I don't know anything with seafood or a fusion something else new recipes anything like you can spend a little bit more time explaining like this is good

I am sure this recipe will be very delicious, however, AUTHENTIC, TRADITIONAL Hünkar Beğendi (Sultan Liked) is made with lamb shoulder cut into chunks and seasoned with salt, red pepper paste, finely-diced garlic, finely-diced tomatoes, tomato paste, thyme, and oregano. No cumin is used. Wine with alcohol is NEVER used. Lamb stock is used instead of plain water. Also, the eggplant MUST be flame roasted, peeled by hand, and should NEVER be touched by metal, like a knife or other metal utensils, but roughly mashed with a wooden pestle and then sprinkled with fresh lemon juice into it to maintain the light colored flesh of the eggplant (otherwise it will turn dark brown/black which is considered unappetizing by Turkish standards for eggplant.) Kasseri cheese is the traditional cheese for this recipe. This is NOT to say your recipe is bad, it's just not an authentic traditional recipe for Hünkar Beğendi. Once you change the recipe, it no longer is Hünkar Beğendi. Rather, I would call this "Grecian Sultan's Delight."