Sheikh El Mahshi (شيخ المحشي )
Sheikh El Mahshi is a delicious and very popular Middle Eastern dish. The eggplant is stuffed with ground meat and cooking in tomato sauce.
servings
Ingredients
- 4 large eggplants Sliced into ½ inch strips, see photo
- ¼ cup vegetable oil for brushing the eggplants
Meat Stuffing
- 2 lbs. ground beef
- 1 medium red bell pepper petite diced
- 1 medium onion petite diced
- 1 tbsp. black pepper
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- ¾ tsp. salt
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
- ¼ cup cilantro chipped
- 2 tbsps. garlic minced
- 1 tsp. 7 spice
Tomato Sauce
- 2 tbsps. olive oil
- 3 medium tomatoes sliced
- 2 tbsps. garlic minced or finely chopped
- 1 small onion sliced
- ¼ cup cilantro chopped
- 2 tbsps. tomato paste
- 1 6 oz tomato sauce
- 2 cups. water
- ¾ tbsp. salt
- 1½ tsp. black pepper
- 3/4 tsp. 7 spice
Instructions
- Slice the eggplants. Sprinkle with some salt and let it rest for 10 minutes then pat them dry.
- Place on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Brush generously with oil and bake for 15 minutes in a pre-heated 400 degree oven. Remove afterwards and let it cool.
- Meanwhile prepare the meat stuffing. Finely dice a medium onion. You will also need to finely dice a red bell pepper, chop some cilantro, and mince some garlic.
- Heat 1 tbsp. of olive oil in a frying pan and sauté the onions until translucent in color. Add in the garlic, cilantro and bell pepper. Sauté on medium-low heat for about 2-3 minutes and
then add in the ground beef, salt and spices - Mix everything together to break up the ground beef and continue cooking the beef until it's fully cooked and the water has dried down. Turn off the heat and add in some toasted pine
nuts. (optional, but recommended) - To prepare the tomato sauce, slice the onion and tomatoes, and finely chop the garlic and cilantro. In a skillet, heat a couple tablespoons of olive oil, or any kind,
and fry the onions until they start obtaining a golden color. - Add in the garlic and cilantro and continue stirring to cook those for another 30 seconds. Add in the tomato and cook until tender, then add in the tomato paste, 2 cups of
water and tomato sauce. - Season with salt, black pepper, and 7 spices. If you
don't have 7 spices, you can use a tiny bit of all spice (about 1/2 tsp. along
with 1/2 tsp. of cinnamon). Let the sauce simmer for about 3-5 minutes on low,
then turn off the heat off - Transfer the sauce to a baking dish (or if you are using an oven safe skillet, you can keep them there and baking in it. Place a piece of eggplant on a cutting board or flat surface and top with some ground beef. Fold to roll carefully without ripping. Place the rolled eggplant in the baking dish.
- Repeat the steps to finish the rest of the eggplants. Bake in a pre-heated 400 degree oven for 40 minutes. Remove and garnish with chopped parsley and pine nuts. Serve with vermicelli rice or plain white rice
Notes
If you want to make this recipe healthier, you can bake the eggplants in the oven instead of frying.
Add cayenne pepper to stuffing to make it spicy.
Nutrition
Calories: 521kcal | Carbohydrates: 29g | Protein: 25g | Fat: 36g | Saturated Fat: 15g | Cholesterol: 81mg | Sodium: 1298mg | Potassium: 1410mg | Fiber: 11g | Sugar: 15g | Vitamin A: 1724IU | Vitamin C: 41mg | Calcium: 100mg | Iron: 5mg
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