Sheikh Mahshi is a Middle Eastern dish consisting of tender stuffed vegetables cooked in a tangy, flavorful sauce. There are many variations and names for this dish, including Sheikh El Mahshi and Mahashi. This dish is usually served with vermicelli rice.
Sheikh Mahshi is loved and prepared by many Middle Eastern cultures, including Egyptians, Iraqis, Lebanese, and Assyrians.
Another popular variation of this recipe is called kousa mahshi, which is prepared with stuffed zucchini. Still another variation, Kusa bel laban, is features stuffed zucchini cooked in a yogurt sauce.
My mom, however, always used a combination of eggplant, bell peppers, and potatoes, which is how I prefer it!
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😍 Why You'll Love This Recipe
- This sheikh mahshi recipe is easy to make and makes an impressive dish to serve to your family and friends!
- You can stuff your favorite vegetables including zucchini, tomatoes, and onions. If you don't like any of the veggies in this recipe, substitute with the ones you like!
- Mahashi tastes even better the next day!
🛒 What You Need For This Recipe
🔖 Ingredients & Substitutions
- Vegetables: You'll need 3 to 4 small eggplant (or 2 medium eggplant that you can slice into 2 servings each). You'll also need 3 to 4 small to medium bell peppers, and 3 medium potatoes.
- Meat: I prefer to use ground beef, but mince meat can also be used. For a lower fat option, you can use ground turkey.
- Spices & Seasoning: Sea salt, black pepper, paprika, allspice, and curry. I prefer this hot curry, but you can use mild curry if you prefer.
- Sauce: The simple sauce is made with tomato paste, water, salt, and citric acid. Citric acid is added to give the tomato sauce a tangy flavor, but it can be replaced with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice.
- Oil: Olive oil, avocado oil, or vegetable oil can be used.
*A full list of ingredients can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
🔪 Helpful Tools
- A vegetable corer is very helpful for coring the eggplant. This tool is also very handy for coring zucchini when making Iraqi dolma.
- A sharp knife or an apple corer may be used as an alternative.
- A wide, shallow pot like this one.
🍆 How to Make Sheikh Mahshi
Begin By Preparing the Filling
Step 1: Brown ground beef and diced onion for approximately 5 minutes over medium heat. Once browned, add minced garlic, chopped parsley, and filling seasoning. Cook for a few more minutes, then set aside to cool.
Prep Vegetables
Step 2: Remove stems from eggplant and slice in half length-wise (unless using small eggplant). Slice ½" section from the flat end of each eggplant section, which you will use to cover the filling. Core eggplant using a coring tool, or a small knife.
Pro Tip: You can mix the eggplant flesh with the filling or fry it with the carved potato flesh and either stuff it in a Middle Eastern bread or mix it into rice.
Step 3: Slice the peppers around the stems (save stems to use as caps). Remove seeds from the inside of the peppers.
Step 4: Next, slice a thin section off of each potato and scoop out the flesh, creating a space for the filling.
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Pro Tip: Don't toss the potato flesh, you can either add it on top of the vegetables before adding the sauce to the pot, or fry it along with the eggplant flesh and serve over rice.
Step 5: Add a few tablespoons of oil to a skillet and fry the vegetables on all sides. The potatoes should be slightly browned and the eggplant and peppers are softened.
Assembly Instructions
Step 6: When the vegetables are cool enough to handle, stuff them generously with the meat filling, then top with their lids to keep the meat from spilling out. Arrange the stuffed vegetables into a pot.
Prepare Sauce
Step 7: Add water, tomato paste, salt, and citric acid to a saucepan and whisk until smooth. Bring to a boil then remove from heat.
Cook Vegetables
Step 8: Pour hot sauce over the vegetables. Bring to a boil once more over medium heat. Cover the pot and simmer over low heat for 40 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender and the sauce has thickened.
🍽 Sheikh Mahshi Serving Suggestions
Add rice to each plate, then top with a few stuffed vegetables and drizzle sauce. A side of pickled vegetables (torshi) and fresh herbs (basil, cilantro, parsley), scallions, and radishes can also be served on the side.
🤷🏻♀️ Recipe FAQs
Sheikh mahshi translates to the sheik (or best) of all stuffed dishes. The filling is made with meat, while other stuffed vegetable recipes, for example stuffed grape leaves, are filled with rice and herbs or a mixture of rice, herbs, and meat, making them more economical!
Egyptian mahshi or mahashi is prepared with various vegetables that are stuffed with a mixture of rice and herbs (dried mint, fresh dill, parsley, and cilantro). The mixture is seasoned with black pepper and salt. Diced onion and oil are also added to the filling mixture.
Sheik mahshi freezes very well, so don't hesitate freezing the leftovers. Defrost frozen sheikh mahshi, in the fridge the day before you plan on eating it. Then heat in a saucepan on the stovetop, microwave, or reheat in the oven at a low temperature. You may want to make more sauce so the veggies don't dry out.
👩🏼🍳 Pro Tips
- You can skip frying the vegetables before stuffing them, but you may need to extend the cooking time.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- For a lower carb option, you can serve this sheikh mahshi recipe without rice or with cauliflower rice instead.
- Leftovers can also be frozen for up to 3 months.
🍅 Related Recipes
If you enjoy this sheikh mahshi recipe, check out these other related recipes!
📖 Recipe
Sheikh Mahshi (Meat-Stuffed Vegetables)
Ingredients
Filling
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 medium onion (diced)
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 cup Italian parsley (chopped)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon curry powder (hot or mild)
- 1 teaspoon allspice (or Arabic 7 spice)
- 1 teaspoon paprika
Vegetables
- 3 medium potatoes
- 3 small eggplant (or 2 medium)
- 3 medium bell peppers
- 2 tablespoon vegetable oil
Sauce
- 6 ounces tomato paste
- 3 cups water
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon citric acid
Instructions
Filling
- Brown ground beef and diced onion for approximately 5 minutes over medium heat. Once browned, add minced garlic, chopped parsley, and filling seasoning. Cook for a few more minutes, then set aside to cool.
Prep Vegetables
- Remove stems from eggplant and slice in half length-wise (unless using small eggplant). Slice ½" section from the flat end of each eggplant section, which you will use to cover the filling. Core eggplant using a coring tool, or a small knife.
- Slice the peppers around the stems (save stems to use as caps). Remove seeds from the inside of the peppers.
- Next, slice a thin section off of each potato and scoop out the flesh, creating a space for the filling.
- Add a few tablespoons of oil to a skillet and fry the vegetables and on all sides. The potatoes should be slightly browned and the eggplant and peppers are softened.
Assembly Instructions
- When the vegetables are cool enough to handle, Stuff them generously with the meat filling, then top with their lids to keep the meat from spilling out. Arrange the stuffed vegetables into a pot.
Prepare the Sauce
- Add water, tomato paste, salt, and citric acid to a saucepan and whisk until smooth. Bring to a boil then remove from heat.
Cook Vegetables
- Pour hot sauce over the vegetables. Bring to a boil once more over medium heat. Cover the pot and simmer over low heat for 40 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender and the sauce has thickened.
Notes
- You can mix the eggplant flesh with the filling or fry it with the carved potato flesh and either stuff it in a Middle Eastern bread or mix it into rice.
- Don't toss the potato flesh, you can either add it on top of the vegetables before adding the sauce to the pot, or fry it along with the eggplant flesh and serve over rice.
- You can skip frying the vegetables before stuffing them, but you may need to extend the cooking time.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- For a lower carb option, you can serve this sheikh mahshi recipe without rice or with cauliflower rice instead.
- Leftovers can also be frozen for up to 3 months.
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