Stuffed Red Bell Peppers that'll stuff you!

Before we move on to a most delicious recipe, modified, twisted and turned to meet my own very selfish persuasions, there are some things you need to know.

I like stuffed peppers, whether we’re talking about the justly famous Mexican dish of  “Chile Relleno,” or the traditional American variety, using bell peppers.

I’m also the serendipity kind, awkwardly inspired by what ever happens to jump into my field of view at the local market.  I walk in thinking pot roast and see bell peppers on sale.  The rest follows as naturally as foamy beer on a mustache.

Just to be clear, for recent high school graduates, that last bit was a special type of metaphor called a simile.   Also, I do not have a mustache.

Red bell peppers suit my taste buds better than the green variety.  Slightly sweet.  Silky smooth, with no acrid aftertaste.  Sometimes I just do a rough chop and eat ‘em as a snack food.

Back to constructing a luscious, one item meal for your wife and desperately hungry children, or that special someone whom you want to impress by stuffing peppers, while leering stupidly and trying not to dribble wine down the front of your shirt.

Stuffed Red Bell Peppers

4 Large red bell peppers

2 Tablespoons olive oil

2 Cups chopped green onions, both white and green parts

6 Tablespoons chopped, fresh cilantro

4 cloves freshly minced garlic

2-3 Cups cooked rice

1 Tablespoon paprika

Salt to taste or 1 ¼ teaspoons

1 Teaspoon ground black pepper

¼ Teaspoon allspice (about 3-4 shakes)

2 Cups tomato sauce (I use the boxed type, as opposed to the canned)

¾ Lb ground beef

¾ Lb ground pork

¼ Teaspoon cayenne pepper (as with the allspice above)

2 Eggs, beaten

Cut about ½ inch off the top of each bell pepper and scoop out the seeds.  Remove and discard the stems.  Roughly chop the flesh of the tops.

Make the rice.

Parboil the red bell peppers for 3 minutes, then remove from the water and place them upside down on a paper/tea towel to dry.

Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC)

In a skillet, cook the beef/pork to the ‘just losing the pink’ stage and set aside.  Don’t wash that skillet yet!  Use it for the next part!

Heat the oil and beef/pork drippings in the skillet and add the onions, chopped pepper tops, cilantro, and garlic.  Add a dash or two of salt and pepper.  Cook until the onions are well wilted, about 5-8 minutes.  Put in a large bowl and mix in the rice and spices.  Allow to cool about ten minutes.

Add the beef/pork, beaten eggs and 1 to 1 1/2 Cups of tomato sauce to the mixture.  Mix well, adding more salt and other spices to taste.

Stuff the peppers with the filling mixture, mounding it on top.  Place the stuffed peppers in a baking dish small enough for the peppers to stand upright without falling over.

Sprinkle on some Parmigiano-Reggiano and they're ready for the oven!

Surround the stuffed peppers with any extra filling.  Add a dollop of tomato sauce to the top of each pepper and to any extra mounds of filling.  Generously sprinkle the tops of the peppers with grated Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Put the peppers in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until the tops are browned.

Serve hot.  Expect screams of joy and boisterous demands for more wine.

Note:  I use only Italian Parmigiano-Reggiano.  Call me a snob, but I like to know what I’m eating.  In my not so humble opinion, American processed food is so adulterated as to be unrecognizable from the original.  I have to say, there may be some boutique American cheese makers who do a magnificent job, but in the main, the big bullies on the supermarket shelves are to be avoided.