Elena's Stuffed Peppers
For Linda and Tim
Sorry about the vagueness of this recipe. I’ve never written it down. I just make it. I just know how it should look and taste. Usually, it turns out. In fact, it turns out so well, its been known to cause married couples to fight over the last remaining portion. Also, I never really remember the proportion of peppers to chorizo, or the amount of rice. I think the stuffing mixture should have more meat than rice - that’s where the flavor is. I just make a lot of rice and add it to the meat until it’s the proportion that I like. Leftover rice never hurt anyone. If you have too much stuffing and not enough peppers, the stuffing is delicious by itself.
3 bell peppers, preferably green or red
4 or 5 links uncooked chorizo (you can find Primo brand chorizo at Giant)
3 or 4 servings rice (check the chart on the back of the box for the amount in cups), cooked. Please use orzo if making this for my dad.
A lot of garlic, chopped
A lot of olives chopped, but less than the garlic
A ton of dried oregano
A good amount of hot pepper flakes, I like these stuffed peppers with a delayed kick
Tomato sauce - I used jarred Barilla, the plainer the better. You’ll probably use nearly an entire jar
Fresh flat-leaf parsley
Shredded mozzarella cheese
Salt (you don’t need much)
Pepper (not much)
Preheat oven to around 325-350º.
Slice peppers lengthwise and clean out stem, seeds and ribs. You may have to hollow the pepper out a bit so that you can get a lot of stuffing in it. Place them on a paper towel, all the same side down. Cook on high in the microwave for about 4 minutes. Then, turn the peppers to the other side and cook for 4 more minutes. At the end of the microwave session, the peppers should be rather floppy, but still have some body and texture. Adjust the time in the microwave as necessary.
Remove chorizo from casings and cook in nonstick pan until light brown. Break it up as it cooks. Chorizo is very fatty, so after cooking it, you can drain off a lot of the fat. However, save some for flavor, and because you will still be doing some cooking with it. Now, add the garlic and olives to cook for a few minutes. Add the tomato sauce, rice, parsley, oregano and pepper flakes. Heat the mixture through and adjust seasonings to your taste.
Spray a baking dish with Pam. Spoon chorizo and rice mixture into each pepper half. Don’t be stingy. Place peppers in the baking dish. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until peppers get brown around the edges. You can add a little water here so the peppers steam to get more cooked. Honestly, I’ve been thinking of skipping this baking step and going right to the next one…
Top the peppers with more tomato sauce and sprinkle with mozzarella. Broil until cheese is bubbly, or even brown, if you like it that way.
Makes 6 stuffed pepper halves.
If I liked seafood, I might substitute teeny tiny or chopped shrimp for chorizo or use a combination of chorizo and shrimp in this recipe.
- Elena
Sorry about the vagueness of this recipe. I’ve never written it down. I just make it. I just know how it should look and taste. Usually, it turns out. In fact, it turns out so well, its been known to cause married couples to fight over the last remaining portion. Also, I never really remember the proportion of peppers to chorizo, or the amount of rice. I think the stuffing mixture should have more meat than rice - that’s where the flavor is. I just make a lot of rice and add it to the meat until it’s the proportion that I like. Leftover rice never hurt anyone. If you have too much stuffing and not enough peppers, the stuffing is delicious by itself.
3 bell peppers, preferably green or red
4 or 5 links uncooked chorizo (you can find Primo brand chorizo at Giant)
3 or 4 servings rice (check the chart on the back of the box for the amount in cups), cooked. Please use orzo if making this for my dad.
A lot of garlic, chopped
A lot of olives chopped, but less than the garlic
A ton of dried oregano
A good amount of hot pepper flakes, I like these stuffed peppers with a delayed kick
Tomato sauce - I used jarred Barilla, the plainer the better. You’ll probably use nearly an entire jar
Fresh flat-leaf parsley
Shredded mozzarella cheese
Salt (you don’t need much)
Pepper (not much)
Preheat oven to around 325-350º.
Slice peppers lengthwise and clean out stem, seeds and ribs. You may have to hollow the pepper out a bit so that you can get a lot of stuffing in it. Place them on a paper towel, all the same side down. Cook on high in the microwave for about 4 minutes. Then, turn the peppers to the other side and cook for 4 more minutes. At the end of the microwave session, the peppers should be rather floppy, but still have some body and texture. Adjust the time in the microwave as necessary.
Remove chorizo from casings and cook in nonstick pan until light brown. Break it up as it cooks. Chorizo is very fatty, so after cooking it, you can drain off a lot of the fat. However, save some for flavor, and because you will still be doing some cooking with it. Now, add the garlic and olives to cook for a few minutes. Add the tomato sauce, rice, parsley, oregano and pepper flakes. Heat the mixture through and adjust seasonings to your taste.
Spray a baking dish with Pam. Spoon chorizo and rice mixture into each pepper half. Don’t be stingy. Place peppers in the baking dish. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until peppers get brown around the edges. You can add a little water here so the peppers steam to get more cooked. Honestly, I’ve been thinking of skipping this baking step and going right to the next one…
Top the peppers with more tomato sauce and sprinkle with mozzarella. Broil until cheese is bubbly, or even brown, if you like it that way.
Makes 6 stuffed pepper halves.
If I liked seafood, I might substitute teeny tiny or chopped shrimp for chorizo or use a combination of chorizo and shrimp in this recipe.
- Elena
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