Stuffed Pepper Recipe From Provence

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A great tasting recipe from Provence, in the south of France, perfect for using up any scraps of vegetables and meat. You can add breadcrumbs, rice, couscous, quinoa, Bulgar wheat etc.

This recipe uses left over bread as bulk, with whole beaten egg. Other stuffed vegetables can be presented at the same time, courgettes etc. to form a harmony of taste and color. In this case any flesh removed from the vegetables, before stuffing (not seeds, pith and skin) would be cooked to form part of the stuffing and distributed evenly amongst the vegetables.

Perfect served with a strong, Provençal, tomato sauce, recipe shown separately. Please note that I have not given precise quantities, as this depends upon what you have available and how you like it, for example I would use several cloves of garlic and maybe add a little chilli, to remind me of the balmy years I spent in Provence, but you may prefer a more delicate taste. Use your imagination, the variations are endless.

4 peppers,
Large onion,
Tomatoes (skinned and seeded), or you can use a tin.
Garlic,
Provençe herbs (fresh or dried),
Left over beef or lamb, finely chopped, though any meat can be used (buy minced meat if no leftovers are available) why not try a fish stuffing?
White of bread, soaked in milk or water and squeezed out
1 whole egg.

Cut off the stalk end of the peppers, leaving a large cavity for stuffing, remove the seeds and white pith. Chop the onion/s and garlic and melt the chopped onion in oil, in a skillet, until tender but not browned, add the garlic and herbs.

Pour boiling water over the tomatoes, to make it easier to skin and seed them, chop roughly and cook for a few minutes, with the onion mixture. Add the meat, mix well and heat through for a minute or two if already cooked, or until the meat loses its pinkness, if raw. Off the heat add white of bread and a whole egg, mix well and use to stuff the peppers. Sprinkle over breadcrumbs or grated cheese, drizzle a little olive oil and stand in a baking tray with 1 or 2 cups tomato sauce.

Preheat the oven to 325ºF/160ºC/ gas 3, and bake for 45 min-1 hr until the peppers are tender and the top browned.

Serve with a well flavoured tomato sauce.