Stuffed Peppers With Orzo

Submitted by Chef mariajane

"Orzo is a barley-shaped pasta frequently used in recipes as a substitute for rice. Here it cooks in the stuffing mixture, saving the step of cooking the pasta separately."

 

• Ready In: 15mins
• Ingredients: 11
• Serves: 4

ingredients

• 2 2 large yellow bell peppers (sweet ) or 2 large green bell peppers (sweet )
• 12 12 ounces ground turkey or 12 ounces ground pork
• 1⁄3 cup onion, chopped
• 8 ounces stewed tomatoes
• 1⁄3 cup orzo pasta
• 1 1/2 teaspoon dried basil or 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1⁄2 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1⁄2 cup water
• 1⁄4 teaspoon salt
• 1⁄4 teaspoon pepper
• 1⁄2 cup kasseri cheese, shredded or 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated

directions

1. Halve peppers lengthwise, removing stems, seeds and membranes. Immerse peppers in boiling water for 3 minutes. Remove and sprinkle insides with salt. Invert peppers on paper towels to drain well.
2. In a skillet cook lamb, turkey or pork and onion for 5 minutes, or until meat is brown and onion is tender. Drain fat. Stir in stewed tomatoes, uncooked pasta, mint, basil, or oregano, allspice, water , salt and pepper. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 7-8 minutes, or until pasta is al dente. Stir in 1/4 cup of the kasseri or Parmesan cheese. Fill peppers with meat mixture.
3. Place in a 2-quart square baking dish along with any remaining meat mixture. Bake in a preheated 375F oven for about 15 minutes, or till heated through. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Let stand for 1-2 minutes before serving.

Reviews

[eabriggsnh]

Delish! i added baby bella and shitake mushrooms to this dish (cooked down first).

 

[FrenchBunny]

I forgot I made this on Saturday. I just saw the pics in my camera. This was an excellent stuffed pepper recipe. I loved the addition of the orzo. It added a great flavor and texture. I had used pork for my meat. I also used one red and one yellow pepper, just for some nice color. I couldn't find kasseri cheese at all here, (no surprise) so I used freshly grated parmesan . That really worked out well. I also added some garlic because I love it so much. It is great that this was so quick to put together. I got it all ready for the oven so my daughter was able to just pop it in for me. Just took an extra 5 or 10 minutes to heat so 25 instead of 15. I probably had enough mixture left for another pepper so I did as suggested and just put in the dish. But I will say everyone just loved it. Served it with some garlic mashed potatoes. But took the picture before I added the salad to the plate..old age..I am forgetting..I will keep this to make again that is for sure. My DD's BF was over for dinner and he loved it as well. He never tried it before and truly enjoyed this. Thanks so much for the post of this recipe Chef mariajane.