Kabak Dolması- Turkish Stuffed Zucchini

Kabak Dolmasi is a traditional Turkish dish made by stuffing zucchini with a mix of rice, ground beef, herbs, and spices, then cooking them in a tomato paste sauce. This Turkish version of stuffed zucchini hits so many notes of flavorful spices and herbs. They are perfect for a Mediterranean themed dinner party, especially served with yogurt.

Ingredients:
Zucchini Stuffing
▢6 Zucchini (kusa)
▢½ cup Rice, short or medium grain
▢1 small onion, chopped
▢½ cup Parsley, chopped
▢1 Green bell pepper, chopped
▢½ lb Ground beef
▢1 tbsp Tomato paste
▢¼ cup Olive oil, extra virgin
▢1 tsp Kosher salt
▢½ tsp Black pepper
▢½ tsp Aleppo pepper
▢1 tsp Dried mint
▢2 Tomatoes, sliced in chunks
Sauce
▢1 tbsp Olive oil
▢2 tbsp Tomato paste
▢1 tsp Aleppo pepper
▢1 tsp Dried mint
▢2 cups Boiling water
Serve with
▢Yogurt

Instructions:
Cut the top of the zucchini and slice off a bit of the end so they can stand. Carefully empty them using an apple corer or a small spoon.
Place the rice, onion, parsley, green bell pepper, ground beef, tomato paste, olive oil, salt, black pepper, Aleppo pepper and dried mint in a bowl and mix using a spoon or your hands. Make sure all the ingredients are well combined.
Stuff the zucchini with the filling and make sure to do it loosely and leave ½ inch empty at the top because the rice expands while cooking.
Place a chunk of tomatoes on top of each zucchini.

Place the stuffed zucchini upward standing in a pot.
To make the sauce, mix the olive oil, tomato paste, Aleppo pepper, dried mint and water in a bowl or a measuring pitcher. Pour over the zucchinis in the pot and cover.
Cover with a lid and cook over medium high heat until it comes to a simmer, this would take about 20 minutes.
Then uncover and cook for 1 hour to 1 hour and 30 minutes. The stuffed zucchini is ready once you can easily insert a knife into the side.
Serve warm with yogurt.

stuffed zucchini. Turkish style. This is known as kabak dul masi. In the other parts of the Middle East is probably known as kusa. These are so delicious and perfect for warmer weather. I love making these with ground beef or lamb, but you can of course make them vegetarian by just adding a little bit more rice. As for the flavors, we have tomato paste, some dried mint, Aleppo pepper, and also don’t forget to add some olive oil to just make the feeling smoother. Once you want to feel the zucchini, make sure that you’re not really pressing it down because the rice is going to cook and become larger. So, make sure to give it enough space to do that. And then the sauce is very simple. It’s just tomato paste, water, and some spices. It takes about an hour to an hour and a half for this stuffed zucchini to cook. Give this a try and make sure to