Punjene paprike
Serbian peppers stuffed with mince and rice in tomato sauce
When late-summer markets in Novi Sad and Belgrade fill up with pale yellow and light green peppers, Serbian kitchens make big pots of punjene paprike to eat for several days. The peppers are packed with seasoned beef and pork mince and rice, stood upright and simmered slowly in a light tomato sauce until meltingly soft. They are served with a dollop of sour cream and bread to mop up the sauce. This recipe contains pork. The easy mistake is stuffing the peppers too tightly: the rice swells and splits them, so leave the top 2 cm empty. Chef's tip: plug each pepper with a slice of potato or tomato before simmering, so the filling stays inside.
- Total time
- 105 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
For the peppers
For the sauce
To serve
Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Cut the tops off 10 pale or green bell peppers and pull out the seeds and ribs. Keep the tops.
Step 2: Warm 2 tbsp sunflower oil in a pan and soften 1 onion for 5 minutes. Stir in 2 tsp sweet paprika off the heat and leave to cool slightly.
6 minStep 3: Mix 14 oz beef mince, 10 ½ oz pork mince, 4 oz short-grain rice, the onion, 1 egg, 3 tbsp fresh parsley, 2 tsp salt and ½ tsp ground black pepper with your hands until even.
Step 4: Fill each pepper loosely, leaving 2 cm at the top, then plug with a slice of 1 potato. Stand them upright, snugly, in a wide pot.
Step 5: Mix 3 cups tomato passata, 2 cups water and 1 tsp sugar and pour around the peppers; it should come about three-quarters of the way up. Tuck in 2 bay leaves.
2 minStep 6: Bring to a simmer, cover and cook very gently for 60–70 minutes, until the peppers are soft and wrinkled and a grain of rice from the centre is fully tender. The filling should reach 160°F.
70 minStep 7: Rest for 10 minutes, then serve 1–2 peppers each with the sauce and 6 tbsp sour cream. They taste even better the next day; refrigerate within 2 hours and reheat until piping hot.
10 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 390 kcal
- Protein
- 24 g
- Carbs
- 28 g
- Fat
- 20 g
- Fibre
- 4 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does punjene paprike take?
- About 105 minutes in total: 30 minutes to prepare and 75 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of short-grain rice?
- Any long-grain rice, same amount.
- What can I use instead of onion?
- 2 shallots per onion.
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