10 servings
AuthorMyHorioTotal Time2 hrs 30 minsDifficultyIntermediateStuffed peppers yemista (in Greek yemista means 'filled') is a nutritious and very delicious recipe that uses fresh peppers as the base vegetable that is stuffed with an aromatic meat and rice mixture. They are slowly baked in the oven until they are fork tender and nicely browned.
Feel free to use other vegetables along with or instead of green peppers, such as tomatoes, zucchini, or eggplant.
To make stuffed peppers yemista:
In a large sized saucepan or dutch oven, add a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil and the chopped onions. Sauté on medium heat until the onions are translucent.
Add ground beef and ground pork. Sauté until meat is no longer pink. Drain fat if necessary.
Mix in rice, garlic, salt, pepper, cinnamon, mint, oregano, and chopped parsley.
Add the whole jar of passata to the meat mixture.
Fill the empty passata jar with water, put the lid on and shake, so that all the tomato sauce is incorporated in the water.
Pour the water into the meat mixture. Add the olive oil.
Simmer, stirring occasionally, for 20 - 30 minutes.
Turn the oven on to 400F (180C).
Clean and cut the tops off the peppers, removing the seeds and ribs. If you are also using tomatoes, scoop out the insides and add them to the meat sauce.
Place the peppers (without the tops) in a large roasting pan. Fill the pepper cavities (and tomato cavities) to overflowing with the sauce mixture. Place pepper and tomato tops back on.
Spoon the leftover meat sauce onto the bottom of the roasting pan. If you'd like to add potatoes, peel and cut two or three potatoes into wedges and tuck them around the peppers. Turn the potatoes in the sauce until the potatoes are covered in sauce.
If the meat sauce is too thick, add a bit of water so the potatoes can absorb the liquid. Drizzle olive oil on top of everything.
Cover with heavy duty foil and cook in the 400 degree oven for an hour. After an hour, remove the foil and reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees. Add extra water if needed, and continue baking for another hour or until the edges on the peppers are slightly charred.
The peppers will be wrinkly and you should be able to pierce them very easily with a fork. If you've added potatoes, make sure they have cooked through.
Remove the tray from the oven.
Let them sit for 10 - 15 minutes before serving.
These can also be served warm instead of hot.
If so, let the peppers cool for 30 - 60 minutes.
Serve with feta cheese (slabs or crumbled), a simple salad, and fresh bread.
See more delicious main meal recipes here.
Enjoy!
Ingredients
Directions
To make stuffed peppers yemista:
In a large sized saucepan or dutch oven, add a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil and the chopped onions. Sauté on medium heat until the onions are translucent.
Add ground beef and ground pork. Sauté until meat is no longer pink. Drain fat if necessary.
Mix in rice, garlic, salt, pepper, cinnamon, mint, oregano, and chopped parsley.
Add the whole jar of passata to the meat mixture.
Fill the empty passata jar with water, put the lid on and shake, so that all the tomato sauce is incorporated in the water.
Pour the water into the meat mixture. Add the olive oil.
Simmer, stirring occasionally, for 20 - 30 minutes.
Turn the oven on to 400F (180C).
Clean and cut the tops off the peppers, removing the seeds and ribs. If you are also using tomatoes, scoop out the insides and add them to the meat sauce.
Place the peppers (without the tops) in a large roasting pan. Fill the pepper cavities (and tomato cavities) to overflowing with the sauce mixture. Place pepper and tomato tops back on.
Spoon the leftover meat sauce onto the bottom of the roasting pan. If you'd like to add potatoes, peel and cut two or three potatoes into wedges and tuck them around the peppers. Turn the potatoes in the sauce until the potatoes are covered in sauce.
If the meat sauce is too thick, add a bit of water so the potatoes can absorb the liquid. Drizzle olive oil on top of everything.
Cover with heavy duty foil and cook in the 400 degree oven for an hour. After an hour, remove the foil and reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees. Add extra water if needed, and continue baking for another hour or until the edges on the peppers are slightly charred.
The peppers will be wrinkly and you should be able to pierce them very easily with a fork. If you've added potatoes, make sure they have cooked through.
Remove the tray from the oven.
Let them sit for 10 - 15 minutes before serving.
These can also be served warm instead of hot.
If so, let the peppers cool for 30 - 60 minutes.
Serve with feta cheese (slabs or crumbled), a simple salad, and fresh bread.
See more delicious main meal recipes here.
Enjoy!