Stuffed peppers with lentil and mushroom ragù
Boiled stuffed peppers with a rich filling of lentil ragù, mushrooms and feta, bound with rice. Potato-round caps and a sauce thickened with tomato purée at the end.
About this recipe
A meat-free take on classic stuffed peppers, boiled on the hob. The filling starts from the lentil ragù and is built up with mushrooms and spinach sautéed until properly dry, feta for salt, and rice that binds everything and swells as it cooks. Instead of a classic cap, each pepper gets a round of potato, and the boiling water turns into a sauce thickened with tomato purée at the end.
The filling uses the lentil ragù. → Lentil ragù
Ingredients
- neutral oil for frying, enough to generously cover the base of the pan
- 2 large onions, finely chopped (or 1 leek, or 2 bunches of spring onions)
- salt and pepper, to taste
- water for boiling
- 8 fleshy peppers (red or green)
- 1 kg mushrooms, boiled and finely chopped
- 500 g fresh spinach, washed — optional
- 200 g tinned tomatoes (passata or chopped) — half a tin
- 2 tbsp tomato purée
- 500 g lentil ragù, defrosted
- 1 cup uncooked rice (your choice)
- 200 g feta — **original:** regular feta / **vegan:** vegan feta
- fresh herbs (thyme, parsley, dill) — 1 bunch of each, or 1 tbsp of each dried
- 2 potatoes, cut into rounds
- 2 tbsp cornflour or plain flour
- To serve
- soured cream — **original:** regular soured cream / **vegan:** Greek-style soy yoghurt
- 1 chilli
Method
1. Sweat the onion
Cover the base of the pan with a generous layer of neutral oil. Once hot, add the onion (or leek, or spring onions) and a little salt. Cook until it has released most of its water.
2. Prepare the peppers
Meanwhile, with a sharp knife cut around the stem of each pepper, leaving a little rim — this way the pepper holds the potato round on its own as a cap. The cut-out piece of pepper still attached to the stem: clean it, chop it finely and add it to the softened onion.
With a teaspoon, scoop out the ribs inside the peppers and rinse them of any bits.
3. Sauté the mushrooms and spinach
After a few minutes, add the mushrooms and sauté until all the water they release has evaporated. Then, if using, add the spinach and sauté again until the water has completely gone. You want a fairly dry mixture before the next step.
4. Add the ragù and tomatoes (20 min min.)
Add the lentil ragù and the tinned tomatoes to the dry mixture. Adjust with water if needed and simmer for at least 20 minutes. The final consistency should be a thick sauce — the rice will thicken it further once added.
5. Season and add the rice
Take the pan off the heat and let it cool slightly, about 15 minutes. Add the feta, herbs, salt and pepper — the filling should be lightly salted. Finally, stir in the uncooked rice.
6. Fill the peppers
Using a spoon, fill each pepper, leaving a little space at the top (the filling swells as it cooks). Set a round of potato on top as a cap.
7. Pack the peppers into the pan
Arrange the peppers on the base of a pan, packed as tightly as possible — ideally in a single layer, or in two full, tightly-packed rows. If there are gaps, the water can dislodge the peppers and the filling will come out during cooking.
Pour in water to cover ¾ of the peppers (if in a single layer), or to halfway up the second row.
8. Boil the peppers (1 hr + 30 min)
Put over a high-medium heat until the water starts to boil, then lower to medium. Boil covered for 1 hour, then a further 30 minutes uncovered.
9. Thicken the sauce (15-30 min)
In a mug, mix the cornflour (or flour) with the tomato purée until smooth, then pour it over the water remaining in the pan. Simmer for a further 15-30 minutes, semi-covered, then take off the heat.
10. Serve
Serve with soured cream and a chilli alongside.