About this recipe

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Why you’ll love it

Sweet peppers, savory rice, mushrooms, toasted walnuts, tomato sauce, garlic, and paprika make this Balkan fasting dish warm, colorful, and deeply satisfying. 🍅

Ingredients

• Peppers 🌶
• 🌶 8 medium bell peppers, mixed red and yellow (1.1 kg / 2.4 lb)
• 🫒 20 ml olive oil (1 tbsp + 1 tsp / 0.7 fl oz)
• 🧂 3 g fine sea salt (½ tsp / 0.1 oz)
• Rice mushroom filling 🍄
• 🫒 35 ml olive oil (2 tbsp + 1 tsp / 1.2 fl oz)
• 🧅 180 g onion, finely chopped (1½ cups / 6.3 oz)
• 🥕 120 g carrot, grated (1 cup / 4.2 oz)
• 🍄 250 g mushrooms, finely chopped (3 cups / 8.8 oz)
• 🧄 4 garlic cloves, minced (4 cloves / 0.7 oz)
• 🍚 170 g short-grain rice, rinsed (1 cup / 6 oz)
• 🌰 80 g walnuts, toasted and chopped (¾ cup / 2.8 oz)
• 🍅 30 g tomato paste (2 tbsp / 1 oz)
• 🌶 6 g sweet paprika (2½ tsp / 0.2 oz)
• 🌫 1 g smoked paprika (½ tsp / 0.03 oz)
• 🌿 20 g fresh parsley, chopped (½ cup loose / 0.7 oz)
• 🧂 7 g fine sea salt (1¼ tsp / 0.25 oz)
• ⚫ 2 g black pepper (1 tsp / 0.07 oz)
• 💧 180 ml vegetable stock or water (¾ cup / 6 fl oz)
• Tomato paprika sauce 🍅
• 🍅 500 g crushed tomatoes (2 cups / 17.6 oz)
• 💧 300 ml vegetable stock or water (1¼ cups / 10 fl oz)
• 🫒 25 ml olive oil (1 tbsp + 2 tsp / 0.85 fl oz)
• 🌶 4 g sweet paprika (1½ tsp / 0.14 oz)
• 🧄 2 garlic cloves, minced (2 cloves / 0.35 oz)
• 🍃 2 bay leaves
• 🧂 4 g fine sea salt (¾ tsp / 0.14 oz)
• Finish 🌿
• 🌿 15 g fresh parsley, chopped (⅓ cup / 0.5 oz)
• 🫒 10 ml olive oil for finishing (2 tsp / 0.3 fl oz)
• 🍋 10 ml lemon juice, optional (2 tsp / 0.3 fl oz)

Preparation

• Prepare the peppers 🌶 Heat the oven to 190°C (375°F). Cut the tops from the peppers and remove the seeds. Brush the peppers lightly with olive oil and season inside with salt.
• Cook the vegetables 🍄 Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add onion and carrot, then cook for 7 min until soft. Add mushrooms and cook for 8 min more, until their liquid evaporates.
• Build the filling 🍚 Add garlic, rice, walnuts, tomato paste, sweet paprika, smoked paprika, parsley, salt, and black pepper. Stir for 2 min so the rice absorbs the flavor.
• Add moisture 💧 Pour in 180 ml stock or water and cook for 5 min, stirring often. The filling should be moist but not watery. The rice will finish cooking in the oven.
• Make the sauce 🍅 In a baking dish, mix crushed tomatoes, stock, olive oil, paprika, garlic, bay leaves, and salt. Spread the sauce evenly across the bottom.
• Fill the peppers ✨ Spoon the rice mushroom filling into the peppers, leaving a little space at the top so the rice can expand. Place the peppers upright in the sauce and add their tops back on.
• Bake covered 🔥 Cover the dish with foil and bake at 190°C (375°F) for 45 min, until the peppers soften and the rice becomes tender.
• Finish uncovered 🌶 Remove the foil and bake for 15 min more, until the peppers are glossy, lightly wrinkled, and the tomato sauce thickens around them.
• Rest and serve 🌿 Rest for 10 min. Finish with parsley, olive oil, and a small squeeze of lemon if you want a brighter sauce. Serve warm with bread.

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