Italian Peppers With Bread Stuffing (Sicilian Recipe)
Those Italian peppers stuffed with breadcrumbs are a delicious summer meal. This recipe is a traditional dish of the Sicilian cuisine appreciated throughout Italy.
The stuffed peppers are mainly served as a vegetarian main dish or as a starter to enjoy on all occasions and family dinners.
Useful notes before making this recipe
- The traditional recipe requires a small and slightly squashed type of pepper called Topepo. But it’s kinda difficult to find them outside sicily, even in Italy. So, I used other type instead and they were still delicious!
- This dish can be made a day head and then enjoy at room temperature. No need to reheat.
- For the filling there are some variants, adding chopped olives or anchovies you can get a filling with more flavour. Or adding cheeses like Caciocavallo o Provola in cubes you will get a richer and more complete dish.
- I do not recommend freezing as the filling will get mushy when you thaw them.
The ingredients
- PEPPERS – If you’re lucky enough to get topepo peppers, use those. Otherwise you can make this Italian peppers recipe with red bell peppers.
- TOMATOES – Fresh and the most ripe you can find.
- BREAD – This is a wonderful recipe to use your bread leftovers. As for the crumbs, we used italian breadcrumbs. Use Panko crumbs too if it’s more convenient for you.
- CHEESE – Grated Sicilian pecorino. But it can be used also another types of cheese, like parmigiano.
- CAPERS – The traditional recipe uses Pantelleria capers, Use whatever you have, just make sure to rinse them well to remove the extra salt on salt-preserved capers.
- GARLIC – This ingredient is a key to add flavour to the recipe, you can add as much as you like.
- FRESH HERBS – Basil, parsley, thyme. Finely chopped. Also dried herbs are a nice addition.
- OIL – A good extra virgin olive oil.
How to make Italian peppers Sicilian-style
Place the bread to soak in warm water for about 10 minutes. Squeeze it well with your hands to get rid off the liquid then crumble it inside a large bowl.
Cut tomatoes into small cubes and finely chop garlic along with the herbs and half the capers.
In a small frying pan, over medium heat, fry the garlic and the herbs for a few seconds with 1 tablespoon of oil. Add chopped tomatoes, mix and immediately turn off the heat, allow the mixture to cool down.
Add all the ingredients into the bowl with the bread, add the pecorino and the remaining capers. Season with salt and pepper, then mix for a couple of minutes to combine very well the ingredients.
Trim about 1/2 -inch (1 cm) from tops of peppers. Remove the seeds with a knife then place them in a baking pan and brush them with a little olive oil and sprinkle them with a pinch of salt.
Fill the peppers using a spoon, pressing to compact the filling very well into it.
Sprinkle with the breadcrumbs on top and drizzle with olive oil, cover with the tops of each pepper and bake in a preheated oven at 360°F (180C°) for about 30 minutes.
After 30 minutes, remove the tops and continue baking for another 10 minutes. Your Italian peppers with bread filling are ready!
More italian summer dishes to enjoy
- Zucchini pesto pasta
- La peperonata with potatoes
- Puttanesca chicken
- Italian rice salad
- Vegan puttanesca salad
- Zeppole with zucchini
Italian peppers stuffed with bread
Ingredients
- 4 red bell peppers (or 8 topepo peppers)
- 1 large tomato
- ½ lb Italian bread (cut into cubes)
- ½ cup sicilian pecorino (or parmigiano)
- 2 ½ Tbsp capers (rinsed)
- 1 garlic clove (minced)
- 1 small bouquet of fresh herbs ( such as basil, parsley, thyme)
- extra virgin olive oil
- 1 ½ Tbsp Italian breadcrumbs (or Panko crumbs)
- salt and pepper
Instructions
- Put the bread to soak in warm water for about 10 minutes. Squeeze it well with your hands to get ride of the liquid then crumble it inside a large bowl.
- Cut tomatoes into cubes and finely chop garlic along with the herbs and half the capers.
- In a small frying pan, fry garlic and herbs for a few seconds with 1 tablespoon of oil.
- Add chopped tomatoes, mix and immediately turn off the heat, let the mixture cool down.
- Add all the ingredients into the bowl with bread, add the pecorino and the remaining capers.
- Season with salt and pepper, then mix for a couple of minutes to combine very well all ingredients.
- Trim about 1/2 -inch (1 cm) from tops of peppers. Remove the seeds then place them in a baking pan.
- Brush the peppers with a little olive oil and sprinkle them with a pinch of salt.
- Fill peppers using a spoon, pressing to compact the filling very well into it.
- Sprinkle with the breadcrumbs on top and drizzle with olive oil, cover with the tops of each pepper and bake in a preheated oven at 360°F (180C°) for 30 minutes.
- Remove the tops and continue baking for another 10 minutes.
Nutrition
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Just finished serving this up in a bowl.I have to say that this is delicious. It was also super easy to make, and i’m 14. I would definitely make this again.
I liked the flavors in this a lot, but the method didn’t really work for me. Next time I won’t soak the breadcrumbs in water. It turned the filling into a paste. I tried baking longer at 360 and then increasing the temperature, neither of which helped with the texture. I think the tomato would bring enough moisture that soaking the bread isn’t necessary.