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Mahshi
Egyptian mixed vegetables stuffed with herby tomato rice, simmered in tomato broth
Mahshi is the pride of the Egyptian home kitchen: a big pot of courgettes, small aubergines, peppers and tomatoes, hollowed out and stuffed with short-grain rice, tomato, onion and a fistful of dill, parsley and coriander, then packed tightly and simmered in tomato broth. It turns up for Friday family lunches and on feast days, and making it is often a shared afternoon job around the kitchen table. Some families add minced meat to the stuffing; this version is the everyday vegetable-and-rice one. Chef's tip: fill each vegetable only three-quarters full; the rice swells as it cooks, and overstuffed vegetables burst and leave hard, undercooked rice in the middle.
- Total time
- 120 min
- Difficulty
- hard
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
For the vegetables
For the stuffing
For the cooking broth
Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Cut the tops off 6 small courgettes and 6 small aubergines (baby or Italian) and hollow them out with a corer or a thin teaspoon, leaving walls about 5 mm thick. Twist the cores from 4 small peppers. Slice the tops off 4 firm tomatoes and scoop out the insides; chop the tomato flesh and keep it for the broth. Go slowly: a hole in the side means the stuffing escapes.
Step 2: Mix 14 oz short-grain rice (Egyptian or pudding rice), 2 onion, 3 tomatoes, 2 tbsp tomato paste, 1 oz dill, 1 oz flat-leaf parsley, 1 oz fresh coriander, 1 tsp dried mint, 1 tsp ground cumin, ½ tsp ground allspice, 1.5 tsp of the 1 ½ tsp salt, ½ tsp black pepper and 3 tbsp of the 3 tbsp sunflower or olive oil. The mixture should look wet and very green.
Step 3: Spoon the stuffing loosely into the vegetables until each is three-quarters full. Do not press it down. Put the tomato and pepper lids back on.
Step 4: Pour the rest of the 2 tbsp sunflower or olive oil into a wide, heavy pot. Pack the stuffed vegetables in standing upright, very tightly, so they hold each other up; tomatoes and peppers go on top or in the gaps.
Step 5: Mix 3 cups vegetable stock or water, 1 cup passata (sieved tomatoes), 3 cloves garlic, the chopped tomato flesh and the rest of the ½ tsp salt. Pour it over the vegetables until it comes about two-thirds of the way up. Lay a heatproof plate on top to keep them from floating.
Step 6: Bring to a boil over a medium-high heat, then cover, turn the heat to low and simmer for 45–50 minutes, until the rice in the middle of a courgette is soft and fluffy and most of the broth has been absorbed. If the pot dries out before the rice is done, add a little hot water down the side.
50 minStep 7: Turn off the heat and leave covered for 10 minutes. Lift the vegetables onto a platter with a spoon and serve warm with plain yoghurt or a baladi salad. Leftovers reheat well.
10 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 420 kcal
- Protein
- 9 g
- Carbs
- 78 g
- Fat
- 9 g
- Fibre
- 9 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does mahshi take?
- About 120 minutes in total: 60 minutes to prepare and 60 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of small courgettes?
- Cucumber, same weight (raw dishes only).
- What can I use instead of firm tomatoes?
- Tinned chopped tomatoes: a 400g tin for about 6 tomatoes (in cooked dishes, not salads).
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