Gefülltes Gemüse (stuffed vegetables)
Units
Temperature
Servings
Ingredients
Vegetables
- 2 bell peppers, halved lengthwise, seeds removed rounded
- 2 zucchini, halved lengthwise, centre scooped out rounded
- 4 large tomatoes, tops cut off, centre scooped out and reserved rounded
- to taste fine salt, for salting the hollowed shells rounded
Filling
- 150 g long-grain rice rounded
- 150 g onion, finely chopped rounded
- 2 garlic cloves rounded
- 30 ml olive oil rounded
- 100 g reserved tomato and zucchini flesh, chopped rounded
- 10 g dried oregano rounded
- 100 g shredded cheese, such as Gouda or Emmental rounded
- to taste fine salt rounded
- to taste freshly ground black pepper rounded
Method
Method
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (fan). Salt the inside of the hollowed pepper, zucchini and tomato shells and set them cut-side down on a rack for 10 minutes to drain.
- Cook the rice according to the package until just short of tender, about 2 minutes less than fully cooked, since it will finish cooking in the oven. Drain.
- Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Sauté the onion and garlic for 4 minutes until soft. Add the reserved tomato and zucchini flesh and cook for 5 minutes, until most of the liquid has evaporated.
- Stir in the rice, oregano, half the cheese, salt and pepper.
- Pat the vegetable shells dry and arrange them cut-side up in a baking dish. Fill generously with the rice mixture, mounding it slightly. Top with the remaining cheese.
- Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the vegetables are tender and the cheese is melted and lightly browned.
Notes
- Salt and drain the hollowed shells before filling. Peppers, zucchini and tomatoes all release water as they bake; salting draws some of it out in advance so the finished dish isn’t watery.
- Undercook the rice slightly before filling. It absorbs moisture and finishes cooking in the oven; fully cooked rice can turn mushy by the time the vegetables are tender.
- Tomatoes cook faster than peppers and zucchini, so check them a few minutes early if baking all three together, and remove any that collapse before the rest are done.
- Leftovers reheat well in the oven or microwave for a day or two.
Ingredient substitutions
- Rice can be swapped for bulgur or quinoa, cooked the same way.
- A handful of pine nuts or currants in the filling is a common Mediterranean addition.
- Ground meat browned with the onion turns this into a heartier, non-vegetarian version.