I stuff, therefore I am – Stuffed Peppers
The opportunity to use any type of stuffing puts you firmly on the road to culinary greatness! It matters not if what you are stuffing is a chicken, turkey, zucchini or pepper, stuffing is transcendent. By stuffing a stuffing you are opening the door to rich fusions of flavour that go well beyond the sum of the stuffing and that which is stuffed. Say that 10 times fast! Ingredients meld so well when they are in such close quarters that you are almost guaranteed that the dish will be brought to the next level. What is even more exciting is that the number of foods that can be stuffing and the number of foods that can be stuffed is endless. All it takes is a little inspiration and you can take the stuff ing and the stuffed, like the stuffed pepper for example, to the next level.
With very little effort a great meal can be made with just a few ingredients nestled wonderfully in a bell pepper. When that sweet and crunchy pepper is turned into a roasted and caramelised dreamboat of flavour it transforms the dish and the other ingredients into pure deliciousness. My stuffed peppers often fall on the side of vegetarian or vegan, but have no fear meat lovers, there is plenty of room for chicken, beef, sausage or what ever your heart desires.
Here is how I do my stuffed peppers…
- 2 red, orange or yellow bell pepper
- 1 medium zucchini
- 2 medium tomatoes
- 1 block soft tofu
- 1 clove of garlic
- 1 red onion
- 1 cup mixed olives like
- 1 bunch of fresh basil
- olive oil
- 1 large ball of fresh mozzarella cheese (optional)
- dried oregano
- salt and pepper
- Preheat the oven to 400F.
- Slice the pepper in half from top to bottom. Finely dice the zucchini. Dice the tomatoes. Dice the tofu in very small cubes. Finely chop the garlic. Chop 8-10 basil leaves leaving a few leaves for garnish. Thinly slice the red onion
- In a medium glass bowl, mix the zucchini, tomatoes, tofu, garlic, and basil. Add a few teaspoons of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Toss all the ingredients together.
- Place the pepper halves in a 9×9 baking pan. Rub the inside and outside of the pepper halves with a little olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
- Fill the peppers halves with the vegetable/tofu mixture.
- In a small bowl, toss the onions slices with olive oil. Season with a little salt. Sprinkle the onion over and around the pepper halves.
- Place the pan in the oven and bake 40 minutes. After 40 minutes of baking, pour the olive into the pan. Bake another 5-10 minutes until the peppers are softened, the onions are roasted through and the olives are hot.
- Remove the peppers from the oven.
- Tear up the ball of mozzarella.
- Serve the stuffed peppers on a plate topped with roasted onions, mozzarella cheese, olives and a few freshly torn leaves of basil. Sprinkle with a little oregano and, if desired, a dash of olive oil.
- Serve hot! Enjoy!
- For a vegan option omit the cheese.
Stuffed peppers are so easy and delicious. Any number of ingredients can be added, too. Changing the tofu for some cooked, crumbled italian sausage could never hurt! Of course, stuffed peppers are a perfect choice when there are leftover grains or rice in the fridge. Grains like farro, freekeh or couscous would make perfect additions. Even beans would be delicious. Just make sure grains and beans are cooked before stuffing and baking. The flavor options are endless ranging from tex-mex to herbs de provence and everything in between.
Keep Eating! Keep Innovating!
How do you make your Stuffed Peppers? Let us know all about it in the comments or on Facebook.
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