Stuffed Bell Peppers Asian Style

I love stuffed peppers! My Mother made green bell peppers stuffed with ground beef and other goodies in the pressure cooker with a little meatloaf left over. I did that, too. I wanted something more this time, not the typical “meatloaf”. I had a bag of bell peppers from Costco that I needed to use, red, orange and yellow. I was in a “make it lite” mood and here’s what came out. The yellow and orange peppers seem to be sweeter than the red or green. I like the contrast of the sweet bell pepper, the savory meat and rice and the garlic/ginger/szechuan pepper flavors. Umami! This only takes 1 LB of meat, but will stuff 4 peppers. I stuffed two and froze the rest of the stuffing for another time. I halved the peppers and had four servings for reasonable adults and children. (Teenagers are another matter!)

STUFFED PEPPERS ASIAN STYLE

Preheat oven to 350

1/2 LB good ground beef
1/2 LB ground pork with sage and black pepper (I make my own) you could use a nice sausage
1 rasher country bacon cut in half
2 bell peppers, orange & yellow deseeded, tops cut off and diced
1/4 C caramelized yellow onions
2 T garlic, minced
1 T fresh ginger, minced
1/4 C grated carrot
1 egg
1/2 – 1 tsp crushed red pepper (to your taste)
1 tsp szechuan pepper, crushed
1/4 C chopped cilantro
1/2 – 1 C cooked basmati or jasmine rice
1 T or so to taste of each: oyster sauce, hosin sauce, soy sauce or seasoning sauce, fish sauce
1/2 – 1 tsp sesame oil (Yeo’s is my favorite)

Saute the diced bell pepper tops, garlic, ginger and carrot in a little canola oil until soft. Drain. Mix everything together well but the pepper shells and the bacon. Divide into quarters and stuff two peppers. Reserve the rest for later or make two more peppers. Layer a half rasher of bacon over the top of each stuffed pepper and place in a baking dish upright. Cover with a lid or some foil.

Cook for 1 hour, basting with the pan juices several times. Let sit for at least 15 minutes after cooking with the lid off. Slice in half and serve with more pan juices. The cooked halves can be refrigerated and cooked in a toaster oven or the microwave for another meal. They are still good!

Tags: cooking wisdom, Food, Frugality, Recipe, Teaching