Name: Greek Gemista Stuffed Tomatoes and Peppers with Potatoes
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 95 min
Total time: 135 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Greek
Ingredients: 6 large firm-ripe tomatoes; 4 red bell peppers; 1 1/2 lb yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks; 1 cup medium-grain rice, such as Arborio, rinsed; 1 yellow onion, finely grated; 3 cloves garlic, minced; 1 small zucchini, coarsely grated; 1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped; 1/4 cup fresh mint, chopped; 2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided; 1 tbsp tomato paste; 1 tsp sugar; 1 cup water, hot; to taste salt and black pepper

Greek Gemista Stuffed Tomatoes and Peppers with Potatoes

4.8 from 491 home cooks Free

Summer tomatoes and red peppers hollowed out and packed with herby rice that cooks in their own juices, baked alongside potato chunks that soak up the tomato and olive oil pan sauce. Make it in August when tomatoes are cheap and heavy; it tastes even better at room temperature the next day.

Prep

40 min

Cook

1 hr 35 min

Total

2 hr 15 min

Serves

Level

Medium

Cuisine

Greek

Method

Step 1: Heat the oven to 400F. Slice a lid off the top of each tomato, keeping the lids, and scoop the pulp into a bowl with a spoon, leaving walls about 1/4 inch thick. Cut the tops off the peppers, pull out the seeds and ribs, and keep those lids too.
Step 2: Blend or finely chop the tomato pulp. Sprinkle the insides of the tomato shells with a pinch of salt and a pinch of the sugar, which seasons them and tames any sharp acidity.
Step 3: Warm 1/3 cup of the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat and cook the onion, garlic and zucchini for 6 minutes, until the moisture cooks off and the pan smells sweet. Stir in the rice for 1 minute, then add the tomato pulp, tomato paste and remaining sugar and simmer 5 minutes, just until the rice has drunk most of the liquid but is still firm.
Step 4: Take the pan off the heat, fold in the parsley and mint, and season boldly with salt and pepper. Spoon the filling into the tomatoes and peppers until about three-quarters full, since the rice swells in the oven, and replace the lids.
Step 5: Stand the vegetables snugly in a large roasting pan and wedge the potato chunks into the gaps. Season the potatoes, drizzle everything with the remaining olive oil, and pour the hot water into the pan rather than over the vegetables.
Step 6: Cover with foil and bake 45 minutes. Uncover, baste with the pan juices, and bake another 40 to 45 minutes, until the potatoes are golden at the edges, the pepper skins are wrinkled and a grain of rice from the center is tender.
Step 7: Rest the pan for at least 20 minutes before serving so the rice absorbs the last of the juices and the tomatoes firm up enough to lift out whole.

Kitchen note

Par-cooking the rice with the tomato pulp for just five minutes gives it a head start, so the filling finishes tender at the same moment the peppers soften instead of staying crunchy in the middle.