Go Back

Middle Eastern-style Stuffed Peppers

Ground nuts and rice mixed with sweet and savory ingredients make a hearty, meatless main dish.
Prep Time1 hour
Cook Time1 hour 20 minutes
Course: Main Dish
Cuisine: Middle Eastern
Keyword: stuffed peppers
Servings: 6
Calories: 572kcal
Author: A. JoAnn

Ingredients

  • 3 c. cooked rice
  • 6 bell peppers
  • 1 c. cashews or walnuts, coarsely ground
  • 1 c. raisins, dried apricots (chopped), and/or craisins
  • ½ c. onions, chopped
  • 2 ½ tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp garlic, chopped
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ½ tsp black pepper
  • tsp cayenne pepper optional
  • 2 tsp coriander, ground
  • 2 tsp cumin, ground
  • 2 tbsp dried oregano
  • 1 tsp cinnamon, ground
  • c. mint, fresh, chopped substitute 1 tbsp dried if necessary
  • ¼ c. lemon juice
  • 2 ½ c. tomato puree

Instructions

  • Cook 1 1/2 c rice to make about 3 c. cooked rice. Cool.
  • Preheat oven to 400°.
  • Finely chop or coarsely grind nuts. Set aside.
  • If using dried apricots, chop the into small pieces.
    if using dried apricots, chop into small pieces
  • Clean and hollow out the peppers. Slice a thin bit from the bottom of each pepper so that they will stand upright. Try not to pierce through the bottom of the peppers. Set peppers in a baking dish.
  • Heat 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil in a heavy skillet. Add the onions and saute about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and saute briefly until fragrant but not brown.
  • Add remaining olive oil, salt and pepper, dried fruits, and dried seasonings to the pan. Stir and continue to saute about 1 minute.
  • In a large bowl, combine cooked rice with cooked onion mixture. Stir in fresh mint, lemon juice, and ground nuts.
    wash mint in a colander
  • Taste and adjust seasoning as desired.
    mix ingredients for stuffing in a large bowl
  • Stir about 1 c. tomato puree into the bowl and mix thoroughly.
  • Firmly pack peppers with stuffing.
  • Pour remaining tomato puree into bottom of baking dish around the stuffed peppers. Add 1/2 c. water.
  • Bake for 30-45 minutes, occasionally basting tops of peppers with tomato juice.
    basting will keep stuffing moist
  • Check that stuffing is heated through to the center. Serve immediately, or store in refrigerator and reheat at 350°.