Greek Stuffed Vegetables (Γεμιστά)
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Peppers, tomatoes and onions stuffed with a fragrant rice in a rich tomato sauce. A Greek classic.
Serves:6
Equipment
- A roasting dish or tin to fit all the vegetables comfortably
Ingredients
Vegetables
- 3 onions
- 3 large tomatoes
- 3 red pepper I prefer the long red Florina peppers but round bell peppers are more traditionally used
- 3 green pepper
- 4 large potatoes, peeled and quarted
Rice Filling
- approx 350 g short grain rice such as Arborio. The rule of thumb is one tablespoon of rice per vegetable You can also use a glutinous rice or sticky rice
- 1 grated courgette
- 1 grated carrot
- 1 banana mild chilli pepper
- 2 tbsp finely chopped celery and celery leaves optional
- 1 bunch each of mint, basil and parsely or replace parsely with fresh coriader
- 1 generous tsp dill optional
- 3 cloves garlic grated
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 400-500 ml chicken stock or water with either a vegtable or chicken stock cube
- 1 juice of a lemon
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp grated nutmeg
- 4 whole cloves or a generous pinch of powdered cloves
- 5 all-spice berries or ½ tsp powdered all-spice
- salt and freshly ground pepper
- olive oil
To serve
- olive oil
- 1 tbsp basil, coriander or mint leaves
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 180°C.
Vegetable Preparation
- Cut the tops off the onions and remove the inner flesh, keeping only the outer shell. Put the shells into a large baking tray, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grate the spare onion and set aside.
- Cut the stem top of the peppers and clean inside removing any seeds. If you are using bell pepper you can keep the tops as lids. Lightly score inside in the peppers - but don't pierce the skin. Place the peppers with the onions in the baking tray and season as above.
- Cut the stem top of the tomato and carefully remove the inner flesh without damaging the outer skin. Reserve the tops to replace as lids later. Place the tomatoes alongside the peppers and onions, seasoning and drizzling with oil as before. Finely chop the tomato flesh and set aside.
- Toss the potatoes in the lemon juice, 150ml olive oil and oregano. Season generously with salt and pepper. Tuck the potatoes around the vegetables to help keep the peppers upright. Everything should fit snugly into the pan without overlapping. Pour any remaining oil and lemon over the vegetables.
Rice Filling
- Finely grate the courgette, carrot and chill pepper.
- Finely chop all the herbs keeping aside a few basil or mint leaves for serving.
- In a large frying pan, gently sauté the grated onion in olive oil. Add the spices, carrot, celery and courgette. Cook for about 2 minutes, then add the rice and herbs. Coat the rice with oil and let it cook for a further 2 minutes.
- Stir in the tomato paste and chopped tomatoes, then let it simmer for a minute to allow the liquid to absorb. Add 200ml of stock and simmer for 5-7 minutes. Stir if necessary - don't let it stick. You want a thick, yet slightly runny, risotto consistency, but the rice won't be fully cooked - just softened.
Assemby
- Fill all the vegetables two-thirds full of rice, allowing for expansion. Add a couple of teaspoons of stock to each vegetable. Pour the remaining stock around the vegetables and replace the cut off tops (lids!).
- Cover with tin foil and cook for 50 minutes. Remove the foil and continue cooking for an additional 15-20 minutes, or until all the liquid has been absorbed. If using, add the cheese at this point. If the rice and vegetables are not soft - cook for a little longer and add a little more water or stock.
- Drizzle with olive oil and decorate with the basil, coriander or mint leaves.
- Serve with crusty bread and a green salad.
Notes
There is quite a lot going on inside these vegetables. However, but you can also add a small handful of pine nuts and raisins to the rice. These additions are more traditional in the autumn.
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