EPISODE 4: MAKSIMIR

Stuffed peppers

(for 4 people)

Ingredients:

- 8 small red or green peppers (or combination)
- 300 g of ground meat (half beef, half pork)
- ½ small red onion, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon of rice
- 1 egg
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 4 tablespoons of olive oil
- 1 stalk of celery, finely chopped
- 4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped or grated
- 1 fresh hot chili pepper, deseeded and finely chopped
- 1000 g of strained tomatoes (tomato purée)
- 200 g of water
- 1 tablespoon of brown sugar
- 1 bunch of fresh chives, chopped

In a pan, heat the olive oil and sauté the chopped celery, garlic and chili pepper (if using) until they soften. Add the strained tomatoes, water, brown sugar, salt and pepper.

Cook for about 10 minutes. Set the sauce aside and prepare the peppers. In a bowl, mix the ground meat, chopped onion, egg, rice, half of the chives, salt and freshly ground black pepper. Cut off the tops of the peppers at the stems and remove the seeds. Briefly blanch them in boiling water to soften them a little.

Once they’ve cooled, fill them with the prepared meat mixture and arrange them side by side in a pot with the tomato sauce, with the open side facing up. Cover them and let them simmer over low heat for about 45–60 minutes. Stuffed peppers are best served with mashed potatoes.