The next time the kids ask for sushi, make this and tell them we have sushi at home. This is Syrian stuffed squash called kusam mashi in Arabic. And it’s basically just these little Mexican squash or gray squash they’re sometimes called. Stuffed with a meat rice filling and cooked in a tomato broth. I like to wash the rice and get it soaking while I work on the squash. For the squash, I cut off the top and the bottom and then starting from the top end, I use my core to measure how far in I can go without piercing the end. And then I use my thumb to mark that spot. That way when I insert the core inside, it’ll stop at my thumb and I won’t pierce the end of the kusa. Once you’ve gotten that middle bit out, you want to go back in and continue to shave down the sides of the kusa so you can make more room for the filling. This is meant to be like a vessel for the filling. Next, I dunk the kusa into a highly concentrated saltwater bath. And the point of this is to soften the kusa so it’s easier to stuff and it’s also less likely to explode while cooking. And now to finish the filling, just drain the water from the rice and then add some ground beef or lamb, salt, pepper, allspice, some tomato paste, and some ghee. Mix it all together. And then I also add chickpeas. The chickpeas are optional. They’re not traditional, but they are just so much better. Trust me, try it at least once. Here you can see how much softer the squash is when you soak it in that salt water bath, which is exactly what we want. Fill each gousa about 2/3 of the way up. You don’t want to overfill it because when the rice expands, you don’t want it to blow up your gussa. And then stack them in a large pot on top of some meat with bones. My favorite cut to use is lamb shoulder chops. Stack them as evenly as possible. And then add a plate on top of them and a small bowl with water to keep them from moving. Fill it with water and cook for 1 hour. In the meantime, here’s what you do with leftover filling. Add it to a pot with a little bit of water. And we’re going to add all the same ingredients we’re going to add to the mashy later. So, we’re going to add some mint, citric acid, and salt. And then we’re going to cover it and let it cook for only about 10 minutes. Eat it with lean. And this is literally the best part of mashing. Back to the regular mashy. I skim off any foam that rises to the top. And then after 1 hour of cooking, I add some garlic and some mint. Let that cook for 15 minutes. And then I add patada or tomato sauce and salt. Let that cook for another 15 minutes. And then make sure you taste the broth and adjust the salt and lemon to your liking. I like to let it sit for about 20 minutes before serving. So that way it can cool down a bit. It’s easier to work with. Pour out the liquid first. This is usually a twoerson job. And then you can go ahead and shimmy the kusa into a tray. If you see broken ones, sh you don’t. And Elsa, huh?
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Kousa ma7shi
4lb grey/mexican squash
2 lbs lamb shoulder chops
Filling:
2 cups calrose rice, soaked 30 mins
1.5 lbs ground beef
1 tbs salt
1 tsp allspice
1 tsp black pepper
1/3rd cup ghee
2 tbs tomato paste
Optional: 1 cup chic peas
Sauce:
3/4 cup passata
1 tbs salt
1 tsp citric acid
2 tbs dried mint
1 whole head of garlic, crushed or minced
Prepare the squash:
Cut off the top & bottom ends. Place your corer against the squash to measure how far in you can go without piercing the end, leave some space at the top and mark the spot using your thumb. Keep your thumb in that spot on the corer, then insert the corer into the squash and it will stop at your thumb. Twist the squash a couple times, until the flesh of the squash releases, remove it, and then continue scraping down the sides of the squash until you have a hollow vessel.
Dip the squash into concentrated salt water, then place upside down to drain. You can do this the day before and refrigerate.
Mix together all the ingredients for the filling, then fill each squash 2/3rd of the way up. The rice will expand while cooking and fill up the rest of the squash.
Stack the squash over the lamb shoulder chops in a large pot. Try to get them in an even layer. Cover with a heat-safe plate, followed by a small bowl or pot with water to prevent the squash from moving. You don’t want this bowl to be too heavy and prevent the squash from expanding while cooking. Fill the pot with water up to the plate, then place on the stove and cook for one hour. Make sure to remove any scum that forms on top.
After 1 hour, add the minced garlic and dried mint and cook another 15 mins. After 15 mins, add the salt, citric acid and Passata or crushed tomatoes and cook another 15 minutes. Taste and adjust salt/citric acid to your taste.
Turn off the heat and let it sit for 20-30 mins before serving the food.
What’s the relevance with the sushi? 😬
This is nothing like sushi, this lady's mental gymnastics scare me 👀
Lol sarma
Two person job. Pshh! Not for Bayan. Girl is strong!
That does look delicious, but this is not comparable to sushi at all
Zucchini
I was searching this recipe we on balkan made it also. But can u tell me name of this knife that u shave squash lol
Wow interesting sushi 😅
Ironically, this seems like more work than sushi.
It might be easier to make sushi at home than this at home😅
Although this looks delicious too
Thats looks amazing ❤
In Bangladesh or east Bengal, we call them "dolma"
girl when i tried making wara'a aenab i put bones with fat and it tastes amazing
Its a squash version of stuffed peppers or stuffed cabbage!
Who's gonna tell her it's not syrian
turkish kabak dolma
That‘s a Zucchini 😅
in turkey we call this kabak dolması
Ehm thats Not from syria but ok
Syrian? 😒
And it is not "kosa mahushy" it is "mahushy kosa" or if you want to say kosa first it will be "kosa mahshia" and I have never heard any one call it that.
And "muhshy kosa" kind of means "stuffed squach".
I LOVE MAHSEE
Looks yummy
I recently moved out on my own, your channel has been a comfort to me and has helped me find the recipes for dishes I loved as a child. Thank you
You would be a laughing stock in syria for putting chickpeas😂
Bro my mom and dad make this and its sooooo good