Gemista (Stuffed Vegetables) with rice and ground meat

Hi there! Its been a while since my last post here. Last 6 months have been really demanding and left me with no time for cooking and blogging. Seems like things calming down and I finally can back to what I love so much... being in the kitchen! 

Gemista (literally means filled, stuffed) is a dish that s very common in Greece, especially in summer, when peppers and tomatoes are in their pick. The stuffing contains almost always rice combined either with groung meat or just herbs. 

 

Ingredients (for 10 vegetables)

Peppers and tomatoes for stuffing
300 gr. minced meat
10 tbsp rice (1 for each vegetable)
1 onion, chopped
1 handful chopped parsley
3 tbsp tomato sause
1/2 tsp red pepper
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp salt
olive oil
1 large potato, cut into slices 

 

How to Make

In a saucepan heat the olive oil and add the onion. Let it soften and add the minced meat. Mix and stir continuously until the mince gets whitened and disolved. Add the sauce, parsley and spices and cover with water. Let it boil for about half an hour.

Now, its time to empty the vegetables. Wash them well, empty them and sprinkle a little salt inside.
Then, add the rice and 1.5 glass of boiling water. Boil for 10 minutes until rice is tender, stirring intermediary and continuously to prevent sticking. Add a little more water if needed. Once the rice is ready, cover with a clean towel and the lid, remove from the heat and set aside for another 10 minutes.

 

Fill the vegetables with the stuffing and put them in a pan close one to another. Put the potato cuts where there are gaps, sprinkle with little salt, olive oil and 1 cup of water and cook in the oven at 200C for about an hour. At half time, use 2 spoons to turn the peppers around so that they can be cooked evenly both sides.

 

In Greek here.

Youvarlakia (Greek Meatballs) Avgolemono (in Egg-Lemon Sauce)

This is one of my favourite soups. These days is really cold here, so we enjoyed them even more!

Ingredients (Serves 2)

for the meatballs
250-300 gr. ground pork
1 large onion finely chopped
1 handful parsley finely chopped
1-2 garlic cloves finely chopped
2-3 tbsp white rice
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp salt
flour

for the soup
3 tbsp white rice
1 carrot in small cubes
1-2 tbsp olive oil
1/3 tsp. ground black pepper
1 tsp salt

for the egg-lemon sause
juice of 1 lemon
1 egg

How to Make

Kneat well all ingredients for the meatballs (except flour) and leave it for a while in the fridge (about 1 hour). In a pressure cooker or a simple pot put 5 cups water (or chichen broth), and the rest of the soup ingredients except the rice. Let it boil.

Prepare the meatballs in small balls and cover them with flour. When the water starts boiling, put the meatballs in. If necessary, add boiling water to cover the meatballs fully. Close the pressure cooker and secure the pressure regulator. Heat until you start to hear sizzling, then reduce the heat to medium, and set your timer for 15 minutes. Alternatively, cook in a pot for about 40 minutes until the meatballs are cooked.
 

When ready, remove the meatballs. In boiling water add the rice and let it cook for 10-15 minutes. Then, turn off the heat and in a large bowl beat well the lemon juice and the egg. Slowly ladle half of the hot broth into theegg-lemon mixture to temper them, whisking constantly. Whisk the egg-lemon mixture into the broth and stir constantly, just long enough to thicken the soup. Add the meatballs. Do not boil. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
 

Find it in Greek here.