Stuffed vegetables in tomato sauce

By Birgitta

This recipe is taken from The Iraqi Cookbook, the first of its kind to be published in Europe. In Iraqi this dish is known as sheikh mahshi

Ingredients

• 500 g of a mixture of small aubergines, courgettes and cucumbers
• 500 g minced meat
• 375 g fresh tomatoes or chopped tomatoes
• 2-3 tbsp tomato purée
• 1 bunch flat parsley, chopped
• 1 tsp mixed spices and a dash of salt
• A squeeze of lemon

Details

Servings 4
Adapted from guardian.co.uk

Preparation

Step 1

Cut the ends off the vegetables and put aside to use later as lids if you wish. Core the vegetables using a corer. Dice the flesh. Cook the minced meat lightly, add the chopped parsley, salt, spices and diced vegetables, add a little water and cook for a few minutes.

Either fry the cored vegetables, allow to cool then fill with the stuffing or fill them before frying. Put the stuffed vegetables in a pan. Mix the chopped tomatoes with the tomato purée, a squeeze of lemon juice and 2 cups of water, sprinkle with salt and black pepper. Pour the mix over the vegetables in the saucepan. Bring to the boil, turn the heat down and simmer until the vegetables are soft.

Serve hot with rice topped with roasted almonds, accompanied with salad or pickles.