Mehshi Malfouf

Mehshi Malfouf — stuffed cabbage rolls — is a cornerstone of Lebanese winter cooking. Cabbage leaves are softened and tightly rolled around a filling of spiced rice and minced lamb, one by one, then packed tightly in layers with whole garlic cloves, fresh tomatoes, and lemon. They slow-cook until the cabbage is silky-tender and the rice has absorbed all the fragrant cooking juices.

The flavour is deeply savoury with a bright lemon note running through it — the garlic mellows and sweetens during the long cook, the tomatoes break down into a rich, slightly sweet sauce, and the tight rolls hold everything inside. Like all Lebanese mahashi (stuffed dishes), the quality is entirely in the rolling: each one must be tight, even, and holding its shape through an hour or more of cooking.

Mehshi Malfouf is hearty, warming, and deeply satisfying — the kind of dish people request on cold evenings. Made right only with patience and practice, it's one of the most rewarding expressions of Lebanese home cooking. Each tanjara serves 4–5 people.