Anytime I have to use a sweet pepper in a recipe, I am always reminded of my days in cookery class in secondary school. They seemed to be in everything we had to prepare, from salads to soups. But then again, we used a variety of cooking texts from both England and the Caribbean, so it stands to reason that we also refer to this lovely vegetable as a bell pepper (which is its proper name) or even a capsicum (that's the Australian way of saying it if you didn't know).
Whatever we choose to call it, the bell pepper is a sweet, crunchy vegetable that registers at a complete zero on the Scoville scale (used to measure the heat of various types of peppers). Bell peppers are botanically fruits, but are generally considered in culinary contexts to be vegetables. Here at home we are accustomed to seeing sweet peppers in different colours, including red, yellow, orange and green.
According to Wikipedia, beside the colours mentioned above, there are also rare white, rainbow (between stages of ripening) and purple bell peppers, depending on the variety. Red, yellow, and orange peppers all come from different seeds and are different cultivars of pepper. Red peppers are simply ripened green peppers. Green peppers are less sweet and slightly more bitter than yellow or orange peppers, with red bell peppers being the sweetest. The taste of ripe peppers can also vary with growing conditions and post-harvest storage treatment; the sweetest are fruit allowed to ripen fully on the plant in full sunshine, while fruit harvested green and after-ripened in storage are less sweet.
Compared to green peppers, red peppers have more vitamins and nutrients. Red peppers have twice the vitamin C content of green peppers. Also, one large red bell pepper contains 209 mg of vitamin C, which is three times the 70 mg of an average orange. All in all, Trinbagonians love them in many dishes, and they are very easy to prepare. Raw or cooked, they add a certain sweet crunch to salads and in are excellent in vegetable stir fry dishes. This week though, I'm revisiting one of those school kitchen classics, and it's none other than the Stuffed Sweet Pepper. Also, you can check out how to make a lovely version of a Greek Salad, and this one uses both the red and the green sweet peppers in its preparation.
Have fun cooking!
Stuffed Bell Pepper
Ingredients:
4 medium-size sweet bell peppers
(yellow, orange, green, or red)
1 pound extra-lean ground beef
2 tablespoons vegetable oil, separated
1 clove garlic, minced
2 stalks chive, chopped
1 pimento pepper, minced finely
1-inch piece of ginger, peeled and grated
1/4 cup minced onion
1 medium carrot, shredded
1/2 cup cooked brown rice (optional)
1/4 teaspoon dried seasoning
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup shredded cheese, divided into
4 portions for topping peppers
Ketchup (optional)
Method
1. To prepare the peppers, cut the tops off each one and
pull out the centre ribs and seeds to make room for
the stuffing.
2. Chop up enough of the tops (minus the stems) to make
1/3 cup. If the pepper does not stand up straight,
slice a little off the bottom of the pepper to level it out.
3. Place the peppers in a baking dish that's been lightly
sprayed with cooking spray; set aside to prepare the
stuffing.
4. In a large frying pan over medium heat, brown ground
beef in one of the two tablespoons of vegetable oil.
Cook until all liquid has evaporated and the meat has
changed colour.
5. In another pan (and using the second tablespoon of
vegetable oil), sauté the garlic, chives, pimento pepper,
ginger, onion and carrot; cook for another 2 to 3 minutes
or until the vegetables are tender.
6. Add these to the cooked beef, along with the ½ cup of cooked rice (if using). Season with salt and pepper
to taste.
7. Stuff the cooked beef mixture into the peppers.
8. Drizzle the tops with a little ketchup or shredded cheese.
9. Bake in a 350°F oven for approximately 20 to 30 minutes.
10. Remove from oven and serve immediately.
Greek Salad
(Yield: 4 servings)
Ingredients
3/4 cup red bell pepper, chopped
3/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 cup cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped
1 head romaine lettuce, sliced into 1-inch strips
2 firm medium sized tomatoes, sliced into wedges
1/2 cup sliced red onion
12 large green pimento stuffed olives (use whole or halved)
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons white wine vinegar
Salt to taste
Method
1. In a large bowl, combine the red bell pepper,
green bell pepper, cucumber, romaine lettuce
tomatoes, red onion, and olives.
2. Whisk together the oil and vinegar.
3. Before serving add the oil and vinegar,
feta cheese and salt.
4. Gently toss together and serve.
