Kousa Mihshi (Lebanese Stuffed Squash)

Name: Kousa Mihshi (Lebanese Stuffed Squash)
Yield: Serves 4
Cuisine: Middle Eastern
Ingredients: ½ cup, long-grain white rice; 8 ounces, ground lamb; 2 tablespoons, extra-virgin olive oil, divided; 1 teaspoon, table salt; ½ teaspoon, pepper; ¼ teaspoon, ground cinnamon; 2 tablespoons, extra-virgin olive oil; ½ teaspoon, pepper; ¼ teaspoon, ground cinnamon; 1 , small onion, chopped coarse; 2 , garlic cloves, minced; 2 pounds, tomatoes, cored and chopped coarse; 2 tablespoons, tomato paste; 2 teaspoons, cider vinegar; 1 teaspoon, table salt; 6 , zucchini (6 to 7 inches long and at least 1½ inches wide); 2 tablespoons, extra-virgin olive oil; ¼ cup, fresh parsley leaves; 2 cups, plain whole-milk yogurt

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By Dominique Khoury

Appears in Cook's Illustrated July/August 2022

Zucchini stuffed with spiced lamb and rice and braised in cinnamon-accented tomato sauce is a Lebanese favorite that transcends its simple ingredients.

SERVES4

TIME2¼ hours

has video

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS

Kousa mihshi, which translates as “stuffed squash” in Arabic, is a satisfying yet light preparation that's popular across the Levant. The dish consists of hollowed-out zucchini filled with a mixture of spiced ground lamb and rice and slowly...

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