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Simmered Stuffed Mini Peppers
Colorful and healthy simmered stuffed mini peppers are a great make-ahead dish for meal prep or bento. These go well with steamed rice and miso soup for a simple Japanese meal.
When I spot beautiful mini peppers at the grocery store, I can’t resist buying a packet or two to make this delicious simmered stuffed mini peppers dish.
I prefer using ground pork for the meat stuffing, but if you can’t eat pork, you can always use ground chicken. Alternatively, if you want to keep the dish vegetarian-friendly, you can use crushed firm tofu, which works beautifully as a substitute.
Please note that the stuffing contains an egg, and the main ingredient for the sauce is dashi stock, so even if you use tofu instead of meat, the dish is not strictly vegetarian.
Ingredients for simmered stuffed mini peppers
For the peppers and the pork stuffing, we need:
- mini peppers
- ground pork
- onion
- garlic
- ginger
- egg
- panko (Japanese bread crumbs)
- black/white ground pepper
- soy sauce
- sake
- katakuriko (potato starch), or use cornstarch
For the sauce, we need:
- dashi stock, or use a mix of water and dashi granules
- soy sauce
- mirin
- sugar
I always add sliced scallions for garnish, but you can omit this or use another garnish.
Prepare the pork stuffing and stuff the peppers
Prepare stuffing
Add ground pork, onion, garlic, ginger, egg, panko, pepper, soy sauce, and sake into a bowl. Mix well to make the pork stuffing.
Stuff mini peppers
Cut the top and core the peppers. Use a small teaspoon to stuff each pepper with the meat stuffing. Coat the exposed meat with katakuriko.
Cook and server the mini peppers
Sear meat
Heat a frying pan over medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot, add a teaspoon of oil and sear the exposed meat until brown.
Add sauce
Turn the peppers so they rest on their side. Add sauce, and lower the heat to medium. Partially cover the pan and simmer for 8-10 minutes or until the sauce is thick.
Serve
Transfer the mini peppers to a serving plate, garnish with sliced scallions, and serve immediately.
FAQs
Q: What can I serve with the stuffed peppers? A: I usually serve this dish with steamed rice, miso soup, and a salad or a vegetable dish.
Q: Can I make this dish in advance?
A: Yes! The stuffed peppers are great for meal prep and are suitable for bento. Leftovers can stay in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Q: What can I use to replace ground pork?
A: You can use the same amount of ground chicken or crushed firm tofu.
Simmered Stuffed Mini Peppers
Ingredients
- 350 gram mini peppers
- 150 gram ground pork
- 1/4 onion, finely diced
- 3 garlic, minced/grated
- 1 inch ginger, minced/grated
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoon panko/bread crumb
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sake
- 1 tablespoon katakuriko (or cornstarch)
- Sauce
- 100 ml dashi (or 100 ml water + 1/4 teaspoon dashi granules)
- 1/2 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon mirin
- 1 tsp sugar
- Garnish
- 1 scallion, thinly sliced
Instructions
- Prepare stuffing: Add ground pork, onion, garlic, ginger, egg, panko, pepper, soy sauce, and sake into a bowl. Mix well to make the pork stuffing.
- Stuff mini peppers: Cut the top and core the peppers. Use a small teaspoon to stuff each pepper with the meat stuffing. Coat the exposed meat with katakuriko.
- Sear meat: Heat a frying pan over medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot, add a teaspoon of oil and sear the exposed meat until brown.
- Add sauce: Turn the peppers so they rest on their side. Add sauce, and lower the heat to medium. Partially cover the pan and simmer for 8-10 minutes or until the sauce is thick.
- Serve: Transfer the mini peppers to a serving plate, garnish with sliced scallions, and serve immediately.
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