This traditional Syrian dish, originally from Damasucs, is a family favorite. Indulgent, decadent and delicious, it’s such a pleasure to prepare and eat.
I wrote out my Tete’s (grandma’s) recipe after we cooked Ablama together last time I was in Damasucs. Hope you enjoy!
Ingredients:
- 1 kg small Lebanese Zucchini
- 400 g beef mince (replace with chickpeas and thinly-diced tomatoes for vegetarian option)
- Gee
- Sunflower or Canola oil (for deep frying)
- 1 Onion
- 1 kg Greek yoghurt
- 1 egg
- Bharat (Arabic 7 Spice mix)
- Salt
- Pepper
Instructions
- Remove the insides of the zucchinis. You can use a special took, or just a thin knife. Keep the cores on the side. Make sure you’re not removing too much core so that the Zucchini keeps its consistency during cooking.
- Wash the Zucchinis and place them upside down on a tray to dry
3. Fry the minced meat with the diced onion in some gee. Add a good amount of spice mix and salt until well cooked. Leave on the side to cool.
4. Once the zucchinis are dry and the meat is cool, stuff the zucchinis with the meat and close the hole with a bit of the core.
5. Heat up a large pan of the oil and deep fry the stuffed zucchinis until golden. Pat the zucchinis dry on paper towel and place on a glass plate to cool.
6. While you wait for the zucchinis to cool, strain the yoghurt through a metal strainer into a big pot. Once strained, mix one raw egg in it. Stir until egg is dissolved well. You can replace the egg with a tablespoon of cornflower if desired.
7. Heat up the yoghurt slowly until it starts to softly boil. Then dunk the stuffed zucchinis in the yogurt and add some more salt and gee.
8. Cook on low heat until yoghurt hardens
9. Serve with rice, freshly sliced radish and capsicum
10. Sahtein!