Equipment
Ingredients
Peppers
- 6 bell peppers, tops removed and cored
Pork and Rice Filling
- 500 g ground pork
- 100 g long grain white rice, uncooked
- 1 yellow onion, finely diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 egg, beaten
- 10 g kosher salt
- 3 g black pepper, freshly ground
Tomato Broth
- 800 g crushed tomatoes
- 500 ml vegetable broth
- 10 g granulated sugar
- 2 bay leaves
Sour Cream Finish
- 200 g sour cream, room temperature
- 10 g fresh dill, finely chopped
Nutrition (per serving)
Method
Using a chef's knife and cutting board, slice the tops off the bell peppers and remove the core and seeds. Trim the bottoms slightly if needed so they stand upright, being extremely careful not to cut through the flesh into the inner cavity.
In a mixing bowl, combine the ground pork, uncooked white rice, finely diced yellow onion, minced garlic, beaten egg, kosher salt, and black pepper. Mix thoroughly by hand until uniformly combined.
Firmly pack the pork and rice filling into each prepared bell pepper. Leave a small gap of about one centimeter at the top, as the rice will expand as it absorbs moisture during cooking.
In a large Dutch oven, combine the crushed tomatoes, vegetable broth, granulated sugar, and bay leaves. Bring to a gentle boil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally.
Carefully place the stuffed peppers upright into the bubbling broth. Reduce heat to low, cover with a tight-fitting lid, and simmer gently for 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes, or until the pork reaches an internal temperature of 74C/165F and the rice is completely tender.
Remove the Dutch oven from the heat and carefully transfer the cooked peppers to a serving platter. In a small bowl, temper the sour cream by whisking in two to three ladles of the hot tomato broth until smooth. Pour this mixture back into the Dutch oven and whisk gently to create a creamy sauce.
Spoon the warm, creamy tomato sauce generously over the stuffed peppers and garnish with freshly chopped dill before serving.
Chef's Notes
- Puncturing the bottom of each bell pepper with a fork or paring knife two or three times allows the flavorful tomato broth to seep into the filling, seasoning the meat from the bottom up.
- For the softest, most cohesive filling, you can parboil the white rice for 5 minutes and let it cool before mixing with the pork. This guarantees the rice will be fully tender by the time the pork is cooked.
- To ensure your peppers stand upright in the pot, carefully shave a tiny slice off the bottom of each pepper to create a flat base, but be extremely careful not to cut through to the inner cavity.
- The small amount of sugar in the broth is crucial; it does not make the dish sweet, but rather neutralizes the harsh acidity of the cooked tomatoes to create a rounded, mellow sauce.
Storage
Refrigerator: 4 days — Store submerged in the tomato sauce to prevent the peppers and filling from drying out.
Freezer: 3 months — Freeze without the sour cream to prevent the sauce from splitting upon thawing and reheating.
Reheating: Thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Reheat gently on the stovetop over low heat or in a microwave until the internal temperature reaches 74C/165F.
