LENTIL STUFFED BELL PEPPER

    LENTIL STUFFED BELL PEPPER

After my retirement when I was leaving Botswana in 2011 for good, I stayed in a hotel for 3 days. The hotel was very good, a 4 star one, but I was not sure whether I will get vegetarian food or not for my three day stay. I have experienced, in my long stay in Africa, that to get vegetarian food was always a problem.

So I made a request at the reception, to see the head chef of their main restaurant. We both, me and my husband, were thinking that we will request the head chef to prepare some vegetarian food for us in those three days.  After meeting the chef, I realized that he was my old student to whom I taught few years ago! He assured us that he will prepare nice vegetarian dishes for us, which was a big relief.

We both were totally amazed and impressed with his cooking in those three days. He prepared a variety of vegetarian dishes for us. This stuffed bell pepper was one of his best preparations. When he brought this dish to the table I could not believe that this is a vegetarian dish. The taste was awesome. Most of the filling was of lentils with some potatoes and onion with spices.   

Later I tried this dish in my kitchen basing on the taste of that day, it came out remarkably good. Thanks to that chef for offering me the dish. Now it is regularly made in my kitchen.

                    

RECIPE

INGREDIENTS

• 8 red/orange or green bell pepper of medium size
• 1 cup whole brown Lentil
• 200 grams potatoes (2 medium sizes)
• salt and black pepper to taste
• 2 teaspoon coriander powder
• 2 tablespoon oil for coating the bell pepper
• 200 grams grated mozzarella cheese

   METHOD

• Rinse, remove the stem of the pepper, cut half way through, and put it aside.
• Wash and rinse the lentils 3-4 times in water. Put in a pressure cooker with 1 and ½ cup of water, add salt and boil for 5-7 minutes after the whistle on a medium flame. Leave it to cool.
• Boil the potatoes, and after cooling them chop finely.
• In a big bowl, add potatoes and boiled lentils, salt, black pepper, dry coriander powder and mix thoroughly. The filling is ready.
• Take all the bell peppers and coat the outer skin with oil or spray them with oil. Stuff this filling in all the peppers. Heat the oven to 200 degrees C.
• Arrange the peppers standing in a tray. Bake the pepper for 20 -25 minutes till the pepper is tender from outside.
• Individually on each pepper sprinkle the cheese on top leave it for another 5 minutes in the oven so that cheese can melt and brown a little on the outside.

Serve hot as soon as it is out of the oven. This is a full meal, can be served with toasted bread or dinner bun, with any drink of your choice. This can be served to 6-8 people.

I am sending this recipe as my blog entry for Weekend Recipe linkup party, and Bake of the week  party, and with Food Year linkup March, and with My Legume Love Affair , and with bake fest party,and with Credit crunch munch under pressure cooker cooking, and with real food Friday

And with Cook blog share,and for First blog Anniversary, and for Meatless Monday, and with What'd you do this weekend.





























I am also sending this recipe as my blog entry for Tasty Tuesday event at creative kids, and with Tasty Tuesday at HonestMum.com., and with Hearth and Soul Hop event, and Friday Free For All February, and with Thursday link party, and Recipe of the week.