Kousa Mihshi (stuffed zucchini)
Ingredients
- 2 lbs of small zucchini (10-12 zucchinis)
- ½ lb ground meat (beef) –Optional—Or keep vegetarian
- 2 cup of short uncooked grain rice
- ¾ cup of white onion (chopped)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
- 2 tbsp. tomato paste
- 1 cup parsley, chopped
- ½ cup cilantro, chopped
- 1 tbsp. dried mint
- 2 tsp of salt (as desired)
- 1 tsp. of black pepper as desired)
- Swish chard leaves or cut potatoes (to close the opening of the stuffed zucchini)
- For Tomato Sauce
- 12 oz. can crushed tomatoes
- 8-10 cups of water for cooking
- 1 teaspoon of dried basil
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Wash zucchini, remove stem with knife (1 inch below the stem). Hollow out zucchini using small apple corer or a special corer that you can buy from Middle Eastern store. Rinse Zucchini from the filling and let drain on paper towels.
- To make filling: in a deep skillet, on medium heat, add oil and statue onions and garlic until light golden in colour. Add rice and stir for a 2-3 minute. Add tomato paste, stir. Add the spices, fresh parsley and cilantro and meat, stir for a couple of minutes to combine then turn off heat. Allow to cool down.
- To fill zucchini: Add filling to hollowed out zucchini, half way (2 tablespoons of the filling). Close the opening of the stuffed zucchini with a green leaf of Swiss chard, potato or even the removed tops you took off from the zucchini. arrange stuffed zucchini in deep pot.
- To make the sauce: Empty 12 oz. of crushed tomatoes into a bowl; add desired salt, pepper, dried Basil. Add 8-10 cups of water to crushed tomatoes mix well and add to the pot to fill it halfway through the zucchini. Place on stove bring to a boil, reduce heat and cover for 30-40 minutes. Serve warm, Enjoy!
