🥒 Punjene Tikvice (Stuffed Zucchini)
Punjene tikvice are zucchini hollowed out and stuffed with ground beef, rice and parsley, then baked in a light tomato sauce. The zucchini becomes soft and mild, soaking up the tomato, while the filling stays savoury and herby. The dish is a summer favourite in Balkan home cooking, served hot with its sauce.
Diets
Allergens
None of the 14 major allergens in a typical recipe.
What it is made of
Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 medium zucchini
- 400 g ground beef
- 80 g rice, rinsed
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 3 tbsp chopped parsley
- 400 g chopped tomatoes
- 1 tbsp oil
- Salt and black pepper
Method
- Halve the zucchini lengthways and scoop out the centres, chopping the flesh.
- Mix the beef, rice, onion, parsley, salt and pepper.
- Fill the zucchini halves and place them in a baking dish.
- Mix the tomatoes with the chopped zucchini flesh, oil and 200 ml water and pour around.
- Cover and bake at 180 °C for 50–60 minutes until the rice is tender.
How to make it lighter
- Use lean ground beef to cut the fat.
- Add more parsley and zucchini flesh to the filling and less rice.
- Serve with a cucumber or tomato salad on the side.
History
Stuffed zucchini belongs to the wide family of stuffed vegetables shared across the Balkans, Turkey and the Middle East. It is a common seasonal dish in Bosnian, Serbian and Croatian homes when zucchini is plentiful.
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Values are estimates per 100 g for a typical recipe; home and restaurant versions vary. Diets and allergens are worked out from the ingredients of a typical recipe — always check with whoever cooked the dish. Not medical advice. Nutrition data: Me Nutrition dish database v13. How we count →