Ingredients:

  • 4 red, yellow, or orange peppers (or a mixture)
  • 2 tablespoons olive or rapeseed oil
  • 150 g white basmati rice
  • 3 sundried tomatoes, diced
  • 1 small onion, finely diced
  • 6 chestnut mushrooms, diced
  • 3 garlic cloves, chopped, grated, or crushed
  • 9 black olives, stoned and roughly chopped
  • ½ teaspoon dried chilli flakes
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 handful parsley, finely chopped, plus extra for garnish
  • 50 g cheddar cheese, grated

Instructions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 220°C / 200°C fan / gas mark 7 / 425°F.
  2. Cut the peppers in half lengthways and remove seeds and membranes. Drizzle olive oil in a roasting tray, roll each pepper in oil, and arrange cut-side up. Roast in the oven for 20 minutes.
  3. Cook the basmati rice according to package instructions.
  4. In a pan, gently fry the diced onion for 3 minutes until soft. Increase heat and add diced mushrooms; sauté for 2 minutes until browned. Lower heat, add garlic, olives, chili flakes, sun-dried tomatoes, salt, and pepper; fry for 1 minute. Turn off heat and stir in chopped parsley.
  5. Once the rice is cooked, mix it with the onion mixture. Add a handful of grated cheddar and stir until combined.
  6. Remove peppers from the oven and evenly fill each with the rice mixture. Top each pepper with additional cheddar cheese.
  7. Return stuffed peppers to the oven and bake for another 15-20 minutes until tops are golden brown and bubbling.
  8. Garnish with extra parsley and serve with a simple side salad.