Zucchini fatteh (Fattet Makmour)
A classic Syrian dish made with zucchini, fried pita bread and tahini yoghurt sauce. The first layer is crunchy pita bread pieces mixed with homemade tomato and onion sauce, topped with yoghurt tahini sauce, stuffed zucchini, and sprinkled with crunchy nuts, fresh parsley and pomegranate seeds.
Ingredients 26
1 kg zucchini
Filling
3 tbsp ghee
2 onions, diced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
200 g minced beef (minced lamb)
salt and pepper, to taste
1 cup medium-grain rice, washed and soaked in warm water for 1 hour, then drained
2 tomatoes, crushed
1⁄2 cup olive oil
1 bunch parsley, chopped
Tomato Sauce
1⁄4 cup olive oil
1 kg onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tbsp chilli paste, optional
2 tbsp tomato paste
black pepper, salt and sweet paprika powder, to taste
200 g tomato puree
1 kg fresh tomato, peeled, chopped
1 lemon, juice only
2 tbsp pomegranate molasses
500 ml water
Tahini Sauce
1 kg natural yoghurt
3 cloves garlic, crushed
8 tbsp tahini
3 lemons, juice only
salt, to taste
Crispy Bread
Arabic flatbread, roughly chopped into squares
sunflower oil, for frying
To Serve
3 tbsp ghee, extra
raw nuts, pine nut, cashew, almond, pistachio, chopped
parsley, chopped
pomegranate seeds
pomegranate molasses
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Method 10
To prepare the , cut the top and scrape the inner flesh using a corer or tablespoon.
In a medium-sized frying pan, heat the and sauté the and until caramelized. Add the , season with salt and pepper, and cook until browned. Stir in the , then remove the pan from the heat and transfer the mixture to a bowl. Let it cool slightly, then add the and , mixing well. Finally, drizzle in ½ cup of olive oil and combine thoroughly.
To stuff the , use your hands to scoop small amounts of the cooked stuffing into the hollowed zucchini shells. Fill to the top without packing the too tightly.
Brush the with and air-fry at 180°C for 20 minutes, until golden brown. In the original recipe, the zucchini is traditionally deep-fried.
Before preparing the tomato sauce, peel the ripe by placing them in boiling water for a couple of minutes, then peel them under cold running water. Chop the tomatoes.
In a non-stick pot, sauté the sliced , crushed , chopped , and (if using) until caramelized. Stir in the , , , black pepper, salt, and sweet paprika until well combined. Pour in 500 ml of and add the . Add the stuffed zucchini to the pot and simmer in the sauce for 30 minutes, or until the rice is fully cooked.
To make the tahini sauce, mix the , , , and until well combined. Add salt to taste.
Fry the chopped Arabic flatbread in sunflower oil in a pan until golden and crispy. Set aside on some baking paper to absorb the excess oil.
To assemble, take a large plate and layer with the crispy flatbread, tomato/onion sauce, then the tahini sauce, and top with the stuffed .
To garnish, heat the nuts in until golden and drizzle it all over the fatteh zucchini. Top with parsley, pomegranate seeds and some more onion from the sauce, if you like.
Racha Syrian Kitchen's tips
This chilli paste is ready-made in a jar from chillies only. It is available from Middle Eastern grocers and shops.
This dish should be served immediately after assembling, as the crispy bread softens quickly and will lose its crunchy texture.
