My grandma made stuffed peppers for Sukkot. Unfortunately they weren’t my favorite dish because bell peppers and my stomach don’t get along, even when I was a kid.
But I did love what she put on the insides. It was sort of a Turkish-style filling. The family wasn’t Turkish, they were from Romania, which was part of the Ottoman Empire when she was a girl, and a lot of the food she made was influenced by the fabulous cuisine of Turkey.
I realized later in life that using red, orange and yellow peppers made all the difference to my digestive system. They are much easier going down than the green ones my grandma always used! So, I’ve made and enjoyed her recipe from time to time over the years.
But this year I decided on a whole new stuffing based on quinoa instead of rice. It’s nothing like grandma’s but is very tasty and it reminds me of her anyway.
Veggie and Quinoa Stuffed Peppers
4 large bell peppers
1/4 cup quinoa
1/2 cup chicken or vegetable stock or water
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 chopped carrots
1 medium onion, chopped
1 large clove garlic, chopped
1 cup ground veal, beef or turkey
2 packed cups chopped spinach
1 cup corn kernels
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cut the top of the peppers to remove about 1/2-inch from the top. Reserve the caps. Reach inside the peppers and remove the stringy flesh and the seeds. Place the peppers open side up in a large pot. Fill the peppers with water, then carefully fill the pot with water to cover the peppers. Bring the water to a boil over high heat. Cover the pan. Reduce the heat to medium. Cook for 3-4 minutes. Remove the peppers with a slotted spoon and let cool. Place the quinoa and stock in a saucepan, bring to a boil over high heat, reduce the heat to low, cover the pan and cook for about 15 minutes or until all the liquid has been absorbed and the quinoa is fluffy. Set aside. Heat the olive oil in a sauté pan over medium heat. Add the carrots, onion and garlic and cook for 3-4 minutes, to soften them slightly. Add the veal and spinach and cook, breaking the meat into smaller pieces, for 3-4 minutes or until no longer pink. Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in the corn and quinoa and stir to distribute the ingredients evenly. Mix in the eggs, thyme and salt and pepper to taste. Spoon equal amounts of the mixture inside the peppers. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 25 minutes. Remove the cover and bake for another 10-15 minutes or until the peppers are tender.
Makes 4