MEHSHI MALFUF
LEBANON | SYRIA | JORDAN | PALESTINE
In Syria this dish is simply called malfuf, which in Arabic means both “cabbage” and “rolled,” an apt name. A word of advice here. Cabbage leaves are prone to break while raw and they tear easily after they are blanched, so be gentle as you prise them free. If you can find one, use a flat-head cabbage: The leaves are more tender and they will make nicer stuffed leaves. You can use the same stuffing with qara’ (Cucurbito pepo or C. lagenaria), a type of marrow related to zucchini (see Variation).
SERVES 4 TO 6
FOR THE STUFFING
½ cup (100 g) Egyptian or Calasparra rice
5 ounces (150 g) lean ground lamb
2 medium tomatoes (7 ounces/200 g total)
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground allspice
½ teaspoon finely ground black pepper
Sea salt
FOR THE CABBAGE
1 head cabbage (about 3¼ pounds/1.5 kg), preferably a flat-head cabbage
2 medium tomatoes (7 ounces/200 g total), cut into medium-thin slices
3 or 4 lamb bones (optional)
Sea salt
TO FINISH AND SERVE
7 large cloves garlic, minced to a fine paste
1 tablespoon ground dried mint
2 tablespoons lemon juice
Sea salt
1¾ cups (16 ounces/450 g) Greek yogurt, for serving
1. To make the stuffing: Rinse the rice under cold water. Drain and put in a large mixing bowl. Add the ground lamb, then squeeze the fresh tomatoes with your hands over the meat and rice, extracting as much juice and pulp as you can. Line the bottom of the pot in which you will cook the stuffed leaves with the skins. Season with the cinnamon, allspice, pepper, and salt to taste and mix well. Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary.
2. To prepare the cabbage leaves: Cut off the cabbage leaves, one by one, cutting as close to the core as you can. Gently remove each, making sure you do not break them. Discard any damaged outer leaves.
3. Fill a large pot with boiling water and salt to taste, place over high heat, and bring back to a boil. Plunge in a few leaves and blanch for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the leaves have softened. Carefully remove with a slotted spoon to a colander. Put a few more in the pot. Add more boiling water if necessary. Blanch and drain as with the first batch and continue until you have blanched all the leaves.
4. Shave the thick ribs off the leaves without breaking the leaves and if some leaves are too big to make a medium roll, cut them across in two, taking where the rib thins down to become pliable as the dividing line. Pile the leaves one on top of the other on your work surface with the glossy sides down.
5. Line a large pot with the cabbage ribs, then the sliced tomatoes and the bones if you are using them—they will make the sauce richer.
6. To stuff the leaves: Lay one cabbage leaf at a time on your work surface, glossy side down, and with the cut side nearest to you. Spread 1 to 1½ teaspoons stuffing depending on the size of the leaf in a thin raised line across the leaf, about ½ inch (1 cm) inside the edge nearest to you and the same distance from the other edges. Roll the leaf over the stuffing fairly loosely in order to leave enough room for the rice to expand during cooking. Lift and place onto the bones and tomatoes, loose side down.
7. Continue filling, rolling, and arranging the leaves, side by side, doing one layer at a time until you have finished both leaves and stuffing. If you have any leftover leaves, simply lay them over the rolled ones. If you have any leftover stuffing, cook it as a side dish: Put it in a small pan, add an equal amount of water, and cook for 15 to 20 minutes, or until tender.
8. Pour some water in the empty stuffing bowl, swirl it around to extract the last bits of flavoring, and pour over the stuffed leaves until you barely cover them. Add salt to taste, bearing in mind that the stuffing is already seasoned, and place an overturned heatproof plate over the leaves to stop them from unrolling during cooking. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then cover, reduce the heat to medium-low, and let bubble gently for 30 minutes, until it is time to add the garlic/mint mixture.
9. Put the garlic, mint, and lemon juice in a small bowl. Add salt to taste, and mix well. Uncover the pot and remove the plate covering the cabbage leaves. Stir the garlic and mint mixture into the cooking juices, tilting the pot to bring enough juice to the surface. Taste to check if you need to add any more salt. Cover and continue cooking for another 15 to 20 minutes, until both cabbage leaves and filling are tender. It is a good idea to taste one stuffed leaf to make sure it is done before taking the pot off the heat. Let sit for a few minutes off the heat.
10. Gently lift the stuffed leaves—you might have to use two spoons for the long-rolled leaves so as not so break them—onto a serving platter. Pour some sauce into a sauceboat and serve hot with a bowl of yogurt on the side.
STUFFED QARA’: For this recipe, choose 8 to 10 small qara’, about 8 inches (20 cm) long, with a lovely pale green color that indicates freshness. Cut off and discard the stem ends, leaving most of the narrow top end on, and cut the bottoms of the marrows. Peel the skin off and use a corer to core the marrow from the wide bottom end, leaving walls about ⅛ inch (3 mm) thick. Rinse the cored marrows under cold water, and let drain. Make the stuffing as directed. Fill up to three-quarters of the marrow, leaving enough space for the rice to expand during cooking. Cook and finish as for the stuffed cabbage.