Chef John's Stuffed Peppers

Submitted by AmyZoe

"Wow. These are terrific. I've never made stuffed peppers before, but I was not disappointed with this recipe. I'm glad I made some extra filling so I can make it again very soon. I used turkey and a spicy sausage, but I'll post the recipe as written. My rice was a wild rice, but any rice will work fine. Recipe courtesy of www.allrecipes.com."

 

• Ready In: 1hr 50mins
• Ingredients: 18
• Serves: 8

ingredients

• 1 cup uncooked long grain white rice
• 2 cups water

• Sauce

• 1 onion, diced
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 cups marinara sauce
• 1 cup beef broth
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1⁄4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

• Peppers

• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 1⁄4 lb hot Italian sausage, casing removed
• 10 ounces diced tomatoes
• 1⁄4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1 pinch ground cayenne pepper
• 4 large green bell peppers, halved lengthwise and seeded
• 1 cup parmigiano-reggiano cheese

directions

1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. Bring rice and water to a boil in a saucepan over high heat.
3. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the rice is tender, and the liquid has been absorbed, 20 to 25 minutes. Set the cooked rice aside.
4. Cook onion and olive oil over medium heat until onion begins to soften, about 5 minutes. Transfer half of cooked onion to a large bowl and set aside.
5. Stir marinara sauce, beef broth, balsamic vinegar, and red pepper flakes into the skillet. Cook and stir 1 minute.
6. Pour sauce mixture into a 13x9 inch baking dish and set aside.
7. Combine ground beef, Italian sausage, diced tomatoes, Italian parsley, garlic, salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper into bowl with reserved onions and mix well.
8. Stir in cooked rice and Parmigiano Reggiano. Stuff green peppers with beef and sausage mixture.
9. Place stuffed green bell pepper halves in the baking dish over tomato sauce.
10. Sprinkle with remaining Parmigiano-Reggiano and cover baking dish with aluminum foil. Bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes.
11. Remove aluminum foil and bake until the meat is no longer pink, the green peppers are tender, and the cheese is browned on top, an additional 20 to 25 minutes.