talkhealth Blog

I love a good stuffed pepper! Peppers are a great source of nutrients such as vitamin C and fibre. This recipe uses couscous instead of rice (which you may have used in stuffed peppers previously). Couscous is so quick to prepare – pour boiling water or stock onto your dried couscous, cover, and it cooks in 5-7 minutes just by soaking in the water. No hob required. I often use couscous as an alternative to rice because it’s so quick and convenient – which is especially important as a busy working mum. It’s also cheap (no expensive packets of pre-spiced couscous required – I pay approx £1 for 500g box and make my own). My kids love it too, which is a bonus. This recipe would work perfectly served as a main course with added vegetables or salad. Alternatively, you could serve 1/2 pepper per person (i.e. make this recipe go four ways) for your next dinner party. I have included nutritional content at the end of this blog, as well as recipe variations you may wish to try.

Ingredients

• 60g dried couscous

• 90ml of boiling water

• 1/2 teaspoon of bouillon powder (or 1/2 stock cube)

• Small onion, chopped

• 1 garlic clove, crushed (or 1/4 teaspoon dried powdered garlic)

• 4 lean bacon medallions, chopped (unsmoked have lower salt content)

• 100g frozen sweetcorn

• 2 large peppers

• 50g cheddar cheese, grated

Method

• Turn on the oven to 200 degrees C (gas mark 5)

• Start by preparing the couscous. Weigh the couscous into a bowl, and add the bouillon/stock and boiling water. Give it a quick stir, then cover for 5-7 minutes. I just use a plastic kid’s plate to cover by bowl. No need for fancy equipment

• Meanwhile heat a little oil in a saucepan and add the chopped onion, garlic and bacon and saute for around 5 minutes until they’re a nice colour. Remove from heat and set aside

• Once the couscous has been covered for 5-7 minutes, remove the lid (or plate), and stir in the frozen sweetcorn, bacon, onion and garlic

• Prepare and de-seed the peppers. You can either slice the tops off and remove the seeds, or slice them in half lengthways, and remove the seeds (I did the latter)

• Arrange the peppers on a baking tray / ovenproof dish, and stuff them with the couscous, bacon and vegetable mix

• Sprinkle the grated cheese on top of the peppers and bake in the oven for around 1/2 an hour

Servings    –    This recipe will serve 2 adults as a main meal, or make 4 starters

Cost per serving    –    Approx £1.05 per serving (I buy 3 large pepper for 89p in my local Lidl)

Nutritional information   –   Per serving, this recipe provides:

• 350kcal
• 11.4g fat
• 32g carbohydrate
• 26g protein
• 6.3g fibre

Tips / Serving suggestions   –   

• I served our stuffed peppers with a large flat mushroom each (baked with garlic and a drizzle of olive oil) and some curly kale

• You could use rice instead of the couscous

• There are an array of alternative vegetables you could use – courgette, aubergine, mushrooms and spinach would all work well – feel free to experiment with your favourite vegetables

• You could use feta or goats cheese instead of cheddar

+950

  

Annemarie Aburrow

Annemarie graduated from the University of Southampton in 2003 with a first class honours in Physiology with Nutrition. She went on to study a Postgraduate Diploma in Dietetics at Cardiff Metropolitan University, leading to registration as a Dietitian. Between 2005 and 2013, Annemarie worked for the NHS in a wide variety of clinical and community roles. More recently, she has specialised in health promotion and prescribing support. She has particular experience in obesity management (both adults and children), diabetes, nutrition for the under 5s and nutritional supplement prescribing. In 2013, Annemarie left the NHS to set up her private practice 'Expert Dietitian'. She now works as a freelance Dietitian, offering private consultations in Hampshire, telephone and Skype appointments, corporate nutrition consultancy and bespoke training. She has a growing portfolio of project work, including working with her local council to provide nutrition training and expertise to Early Years settings, article writing, work with schools and running training/workshops. Annemarie is a member of the British Dietetic Association (BDA) and is registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC).