Bell peppers are one of my favorite vegetables to cook with because their fragrance alone makes me excited to eat! I love the flavors they carry and you can use them in so many different dishes. Their bright colors make for beautiful presentations of food and I definitely took advantage of that in this tasty dinner. I gave the traditional Middle Eastern stuffed peppers a little twist by creating these peppers that I baked, as a side dish for dinner. I filled the hollowed peppers with rice, ground beef, corn, tomatoes, cheese, and a blend of spices. During the bake, the flavors of the filling for absorbed into the skin of the pepper making and it was so delicious! This is one of the best ways I have had it, coming in a close second to Middle Eastern stuffed peppers!
I chose to use Pepper jack cheese in this recipe but you can swap it for cheddar, mozzarella, or Italian!
If you like a crunchier bell pepper, bake this for 30 minutes. However, if you like a softer exterior for this dish, simply cover the peppers and bake them for about 45 minutes.
For the start of this week, I chose to stick with a simpler dinner since I had a lot going on. I picked up some fresh bell peppers at the grocery store and knew exactly what I wanted to use them for. I used Basmati rice simply because I feel that's what goes best with stuffed vegetables. It has such a nice flavor and also picks up the spices in the rest of the dish.
While making the filling for this recipe, I decided to double it up and freeze it so that I could use it again during Ramadan. It's much easier on me because now I know that this filling is evenly spiced and all I have to do is defrost it and throw it into some peppers! This recipe that I'm going to share with you all makes around 4 bell peppers, however if you want to freeze some, double it like I did!
Prep Time: 5 minutes Serves: 4 People
Cook Time: 50 hours
Total Time: 55 minutes
INGREDIENTS
4 Bell Peppers, any color
1/2 cup Cooked Basmati Rice
1/2 lb. Lean Ground Beef
1/2 Yellow Onion, diced
2 Cloves of Garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. Mint, minced
7 oz. Canned Diced Tomatoes
1/2 Tbsp. Worcestershire Sauce
1 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. 'Savory' seasoning
1/2 tsp. Cumin
1/2 tsp. Black Pepper
1 cup of Pepper Jack Cheese, divided
1 can Tomato Sauce
INSTRUCTIONS:
In a large skillet, cook the ground beef until it is cooked through with no pink. Add in the onions and saute them with the ground beef for about 5-7 minutes .
In the meantime, trim off the tops of the bell peppers and remove any seeds or flesh from the inside. Set them in a greased deep dish baking tray.
Add in the garlic to the onions and ground beef and cook for another minute until fragrant. Remove the skillet from heat.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Pour in the diced tomatoes, mint, corn, rice, Worcestershire sauce, salt, savory seasoning, cumin, black pepper, and 1/2 cup of the pepper jack cheese.
Mix the ingredients evenly. Spoon the mixture into each green pepper, filling them to the top. Once filled, top the peppers with the rest of the cheese and garnish with some dried parsley.
Pour the can of tomato sauce on the bottom of the tray so that the peppers are sitting on the sauce.
Bake in the oven for 30-45 minutes, based on your preference in the pepper's texture.
Serve and enjoy!
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