Chorizo & Veg Stuffed Peppers

PORTIONS: 4

Rudi

Rudi Stroebel

2
2
8 years ago

You know when your body is craving a very specific taste sensation but you can’t quite put your finger on it? That was me today. I had a smoothy. Nope. Then eggs on toast. Not that either. I nibbled on some toasted nuts. Urgh!

Then it hit me around 5pm: I would feel like a punch in the face by a fist full of spices dipped in lemon juice. And so I came up with this little gem. The great thing about this dish is that can be done way in advance, which makes it perfect for a large dinner party so that you can spend the evening with your guests. Yay!!!

Ingredients:
Orange bell peppers
Zucchini
Aubergine
Red cabbage
1 x Chorizo sausage
1 Cup cooked, mixed grain rice
Juice from a whole lime or 1/2 a lemon
Toasted sesame seeds
Toasted pumpkin seeds
1 Tsp smoked paprika
3/4 Tsp cumin
1/2 Tsp cayenne pepper
1 Tbsp honey
A hand full of coriander aka cilantro; chopped
2 x spring onions aka scallions; chopped
5 Tbsp soy sauce
100ml white wine
Olive oil

Method:
Bake the chorizo in a piping hot oven for 15mins and put to one side to cool. Remove the skin and chop the meat fine. Don’t discard the fat that has cooked out of the sausage.
Pour the olive oil, soy sauce and honey into a biggish pot and fry all the spices and seeds for 1 min on high. Add the lime juice and vegetables and fry on high for no longer than 3 mins. Add the rice, chorizo and wine and stir it well. Turn the heat down and let it simmer until all the liquid is evaporated. Fold the coriander and spring onions through. Set aside to cool.
Cut the tops off the peppers and remove all the seeds. Stuff the peppers with the mixture and replace the tops. Put them on a baking tray and bake on high for 20mins.

We had it without a side, but for a bigger meal you can add a salad or simply some avocado slices.

Tips:
Don’t worry too much if the peppers blacken a little. It adds a beautiful flavor and doesn’t taste bitter like most things that gets charred.
For a vegetarian option leave out the chorizo. It’s equally tasty.
Careful not to chop the vegetables to chunky; a finer texture works better for stuffing.
If you don’t like peppers you can have the sir fry as is.
Most of the preparation can be done in advance and you can simply pop the stuffed peppers in the oven when your guests are ready to eat.

Enjoy!!!