Everyone knows that sweet (the so-called Bulgarian) pepper is a very useful product. And you can cook it in different ways. And in the cookbooks of many hostesses, dishes from this vegetable already occupy honorable and deserved places, among which are recipes with various fillings. But what if there is no time or just too lazy to start, because this is a rather laborious and painstaking process? It doesn’t matter, you can always cook lazy stuffed peppers as an excellent alternative. The taste is almost the same, the components are the same, but labor is expended several times less. Actually, this, of course, is not a stuffed product in its classical sense - therefore, in quotation marks. Well, are you ready to take advantage of simplified technologies? Then let's go!
"Stuffed" lazy peppers. The recipe is basic
Yes, it’s not for nothing that people say: laziness is the engine of progress! So stuffing is not required at all: know put the ingredients in a pot and carcasses. But for this we need: a kilo of sweet peppers “from sunny Bulgaria”, a kilo of fresh ripe tomatoes, a few carrots, a few onions, a head of garlic, vegetable oil, a spoonful of sugar or honey, 2/3 cups of polished rice. Well, salt and pepper spices to your individual taste - and you can start cooking "stuffed" lazy peppers.
Cooking is very easy!
We wash the rice in cold running water, lay it on a sieve. We boil water in a container, salt, pour in the cereal and cook the rice almost “until ready”, that is, about fifteen minutes. We throw it in a colander.
While we cook rice, we clean vegetables at the same time. We cut bell pepper in medium strips or cubes, onion - finely, and three carrots on a grater coarsely. We press the garlic with the plane of the knife blade and then chop.
In a "family" stewpan with thick walls, heat the oil, put the onions there, fry a little over low heat, until soft. Add to the onions and carrots, fry, stirring to get a golden hue.
We add fresh tomatoes cut into slices or with the same cubes (by the way, in the winter, when you can’t buy fresh ones, you can safely use canned ones, or, at worst - tomato paste), pour in a half glass of water there. Bring to a boil, simmer for another ten minutes.
We put in the stewpan Bulgarian pepper. Gently mix the contents and simmer under the lid for a quarter of an hour. Add boiled rice with garlic and sugar. Salt and sprinkle with spices to taste, cook a couple more minutes on low heat.
Turn off the fire, remove the stewpan from the tile, let it stand under the lid for a while - and you can serve it to the table! Lazy stuffed peppers with rice are excellent in hot and cold.
For the winter and for every day
A similar dish - lazy peppers "stuffed" with rice and carrots with onions, can be prepared for the winter. When vitamins are not enough in the cold season, we will open and pat the near and dear ones. Moreover, in the season (end of summer - beginning of autumn), when the market and the store are full of cheap ripe vegetables, such a dish can be prepared at least weekly until you get bored - but not soon! It is good for those who follow the figure, following a diet, or are a vegetarian by belief. And during the post you can eat it - that's what is universal!
Lazy stuffed peppers: minced meat recipe
But how did we forget about the stuffing, you ask? Of course, lazy stuffed peppers can be cooked with this wonderful ingredient! And the dish will become even tastier and richer. In addition, the stuffing itself can be chosen according to your own culinary preferences. After all, someone likes light chicken (turkey) options, and someone likes fatter (pork and beef assortment or veal). So, we need: a pound of minced meat (it’s better to cook it again yourself, but if you take it in a supermarket, be sure to read the composition), an egg, a glass of rice, tomatoes - 0.5 kg, a couple of medium-sized carrots, onion, spices (it will be good to use a mixture of peppers, there is salt there), salt, vegetable oil. Well, and, of course, fresh bell peppers - a kilogram.
Cooking is quick and easy!
Boil the rice and cool it. It can be cooked until half-cooked, as it will have additional heat treatment.
Fresh peppers are peeled and the stalks are cut. And then cut into strips along the fruit. By the way, you can use a ready-made lecho instead of this ingredient (this will especially be relevant in the winter season), and instead of fresh tomatoes, take tomato paste or tomato juice.
Cut the onion finely, grate the carrots coarsely. Both are fried in a well-heated pan with a small amount of vegetable oil. Cool down. If we use fresh pepper, then it also needs to be preliminarily allowed. And if you take the ready-made lecho for our dish, then just drain the sauce - and you don’t need to fry.
Add rice to the mince, add a little salt, and a little pepper. Enter into the mass and onions with carrots, and then - and pepper. Mix and simmer under the lid over low heat - about ten minutes.
We take our semi-finished product from the tank and cool. Then - the most important lesson: we form small cutlets from the resulting mass. We put them in a baking dish.
In the sauce remaining from the stew, add sour cream (a couple of spoons) while stirring. Pour the "cutlet" with this good and send it to the preheated oven. Bake at a temperature of 170 Celsius - with half an hour. So, now we figured out lazy stuffed peppers (photos are attached).
We take it out of the oven - and onto the table! Serve embellished with freshly chopped greens - dill, parsley, green onion. You’ll just lick your fingers!
In a slow cooker
Stuffed lazy peppers in a slow cooker are easy to cook. No wonder they say that this kitchen appliance was invented exclusively for lazy people. But be that as it may, but a fact: the crock-pot itself will do everything, well, except perhaps in the preparatory work. We take the ingredients almost the same as in the previous recipe. Therefore, we will not list them again. But the way of cooking products is slightly changed, according to the instructions of the kitchen miracle - multicookers.
Cooking is the easiest option.
We take a kilogram of sweet bell peppers and clean them from the inside of the seeds, cutting around the stalks. We cut into small cubes or strips - as your culinary fantasy tells you.
Boil rice until half-cooked in a slow cooker (mode - “Rice” is in many models of various companies).
Peel and finely chop the carrots and onions. In a bowl for a multicooker, drip a little lean oil, turn on the "Frying" mode and lightly fry the vegetables. Add diced fresh tomatoes. Then there is minced meat (let this time it will be dietary - from chicken fillet). After and pic. Stir and simmer (Extinguishing mode) for 15-20 minutes.
Pour chopped sweet pepper on top, salt and add spices. Instead of tomatoes, you can use natural tomato paste.
Stew for another 5-7 minutes. After that, turn off the device and let the dish brew for a bit.
How to serve
This dish is served to the table, laid out in portions, in hot form, decorated with fresh herbs: parsley and dill. For such a meal, you do not even need a side dish. It is prepared quite easily, and the nobility is notable. It is recommended as a “on-duty”, everyday dish (especially in season), but can also be used as a festive one. In general, try to cook - you will not regret it!