Beautiful bell peppers with a spiced lentil and rice stuffing, inspired by a meaty recipe from Yotam Ottalenghi’s Jerusalem. This plant-based wonder is delicious served with a fresh salad and some Greek yoghurt. It could also be a great starter to a middle-eastern themed dinner party.
Middle-Eastern stuffed peppers
Peppers stuffed with a spiced lentil and rice stuffing and with hints of fresh dill, delicious served with a fresh salad and some plain Greek yoghurt. Inspired by a recipe from Yotam Ottalenghi's Jerusalem.
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup uncooked Basmati rice
- 2/3 cup uncooked green or brown lentils
- 2 onions
- 1 tbsp olive or canola oil or use non-stick spray for frying onion
- 1/2 tsp each ground allspice, cinnamon, cardamom, turmeric
- 1 tsp each ground cumin + coriander
- 15 g chopped fresh dill about 1/2 handful chopped
- 250 g cherry tomatoes halved
- 4 Red bell peppers Green or yellow will work too
- 1 cup vegetable stock low sodium or home-made preferably
- plain Greek yoghurt for serving
Instructions
- Add your lentils and rice to a microwaveable bowl with about 2 cups boiled water and a pinch of salt, then microwave on high for about 5 minutes to precook. Remember that these will still cook inside the peppers later.
- Meanwhile, chop and fry one of the onions in 1 tbsp oil (or non-stick spray) until tender. Add splashes of water if the onion begins to stick.
- Mix all the spices together in a small bowl and then add them to the onion, frying for an additional minute.
- Turn the heat off, drain the lentils and rice (if any fluid remains), then add the fried onions + spices to the precooked rice + lentils. Add the fresh chopped dill and combine.
- Next, make the onion and tomato bed for your peppers to rest on while cooking. Chop the onion and place it in a medium pot, along with the halved cherry tomatoes. Cover the bottom of the pot evenly with the raw onion and tomatoes.
- Prep your peppers by cutting the top of the pepper off to make a 'lid' and remove the seeds, keeping the lid aside for later.
- Place the stuffing inside the peppers and put lids back on, then place them upright on your onion / tomato bed in your pot.
- Cook for about 50 minutes on low heat. You can cook the peppers for slightly longer or shorter depending on how firm you want them. Serve with a blob of Greek yoghurt and enjoy!
Notes
Nutritional information per stuffed pepper: 212 kcal; 4.1g fat; 43.7g carbohydrate, 10.8g fiber, 9.7g protein