Skip to main content

Lockdown 2.0. Use it or lose it! Spanish-ish stuffed peppers.



I made this last night, principally because we had a batch of red peppers that were beyond date code and getting to the stage where they had lost their shine and developed a severe case of the wrinkles.

It was then a case of using up whatever else we had in the fridge or the larder.

By a process of elimination, aided by online search, I ended up with a sort of Spanish/Mexican style dish, so really mozzarella was the wrong cheese but it still worked pretty well.

The jar of nduja was just sitting there in the fridge, with a couple of tablespoons left in the bottom, begging to be used up and the flavours worked well together.

The verdict was that it was pretty good. We also had a pile of home made oven baked skinny fries, to use up the bag of Maris pipers that were starting to grow in the larder. We coated them in a combo of sweet and spicy Spanish paprika, crushed garlic granules and salt and pepper. 


INGREDIENTS

4 small to medium red peppers 

1/4 teaspoon salt, plus more for the peppers 

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper, plus more for the peppers

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for the baking dish

1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

Pinch red pepper flakes

1 400g tin chopped tomatoes

1 1/2 cups cooked brown rice

Handful of black olives halved

2 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander leaves and tender stems

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice (from 1 to 2 limes)

I ball mozzarella chopped

Nduja (optional)


For serving: sour cream or creme fraiche, guacamole, coriander, mojo verde and lime wedges (optional)



INSTRUCTIONS


Cook the rice according to the instructions on the pack.


Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and heat the oven to 180c. Lightly coat a baking dish with oil and set aside.


Trim the stems of the peppers, if needed, then halve them lengthwise. Remove the ribs and seeds. Arrange the peppers cut-side up in the prepared baking dish. Season generously with salt and pepper.


Heat the oil in a large nonstick frying pan over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onion and salt and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, cumin, paprika, pepper flakes, and black pepper, and cook for 1 minute more. Add the tomatoes and their juices and simmer for 3 minutes more.


Stir in the rice, the coriander and lime juice. Taste and adjust the seasonings, if needed.


Fill the peppers with the rice mixture, pressing down to pack them tightly. Pour 1/2 cup water into the baking dish and cover it tightly with foil. 

Bake until the peppers are tender, 40 to 45 minutes. Uncover and increase the heat to  200c. Sprinkle the olives, cheese (and nduja if using) on the peppers and continue baking until the cheese is melted, about 10 minutes.


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Crack potatoes courtesy of Ottolenghi. Harissa and confit garlic roast potatoes

Another recipe from Ottolenghi's Simple, another recommendation from Will Saunders.   I know its the middle of summer but who doesn't love a roastie? These little tinkers are so good that they are like crack, class A calories. The clever bit is the addition of semolina and caraway seeds which adds a new level of crunchiness to add to the delicious warm heat of Harissa. Heres the recipe These make a lovely, spicy change from the traditional Sunday roasties. They’re especially good with spiced roast meat. Serves six to eight. 2 large heads garlic, cloves separated and peeled 130g goose or duck fat 4 sprigs fresh rosemary  6 sprigs fresh thyme  2kg maris piper potatoes, peeled and cut into 5cm chunks 40g ground semolina 2 tsp caraway seeds, toasted and lightly crushed 2 tbsp rose harissa Flaky sea salt Heat the oven to 150C/300F/gas mark 2. Put the garlic, fat and herbs in a small ovenproof pan or saucepan for which you have a lid. Cover and roast for 40 minut

Nigel Slaters deceptively brilliant monkfish

Lisa discovered this recipe in her favourite Nigel book. It is one of those fish, 'but not as we know it Jim' recipes. Not just because Monkfish is the fish that can best impersonate meat but also because of the marinade ingredients that are more often featured with lamb. It's not difficult to do but the flavour is a revelation, which makes it a perfect recipe in my book. This can be cooked on a grill pan or a barbecue. Ingredients 3 bushy sprigs rosemary, leaves finely chopped 4 anchovy fillets 2 large cloves garlic salt and freshly ground black pepper 1 large lemon, juice only 3 tbsp olive oil 800g/1½lb monkfish fillet Method Pull the leaves from the rosemary stalks and chop them finely, then tip them into a bowl large enough to take the fish. Rinse the anchovy fillets and smash them to a rough pulp with the flat edge of your chopping knife. Peel the garlic, crush it flat, then smash it to a purée in the same way. Stir together the herb, anchovy and garlic, adding a grind

Sea Bass on mushroom potatoes with salsa Verde

I felt the overwhelming need to cook something new on Saturday night. I didn't want the tired and tested I wanted to explore new culinary waters. However combined with this desire was an equal and opposing force, driven by being absolutely knackered, that meant it had to be simple too. I returned to one of Jamie's early books, to a recipe that IO had meant to do on countless occasions but never quite got round to. I have done several versions of Sea Bass on a bed of potatoes, some that I have written about on this blog. The one question I would have is about the thickness of the potatoes and the length of time they need to be cooked through ... in my oven I reckon they need about 10 minutes more than the recipe suggests. I would suggest a bit of a trial run if you are going to do it for a dinner party ... however once you have given it a whirl I think this makes for a very easy recipe for a crowd. Here's the recipe. Roasted slashed fillet of sea bass stuffed with herbs, bak