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Roman Rice-stuffed Tomatoes Recipe
Roman Rice Stuffed Tomatoes, also known as Pomodori al Riso, are a delicious vegetarian dish perfect for summer. This classic recipe is a staple of Italian, especially Roman, cuisine.To make this dish, you need large, round tomatoes that are ripe but still firm. Tomatoes ripened in the summer sun are especially flavorful and fragrant.
Ingredients
- 6 tomatoes - large such as Tomato on-the-vine kind
- 180 g rice - 6 oz of arborio or carnaroli rice (~1 ½ tablespoons per tomato)
- 2 cloves garlic
- 10 basil leaves
- 4-5 mint leaves
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 5 tablespoons olive oil extra virgin
Instructions
- Wash and dry the tomatoes. With a sharp cutter, cut them to about two-thirds of their height so that you get small caps that you will use as a lid. Keep them aside.
- Then, with the help of a teaspoon and a knife, empty the tomatoes, collecting the pulp and juice in a bowl. Be careful not to puncture the bottom of the tomato.
- Turn the tomatoes upside down and let them drain a bit on a dish towel.
- Now with an immersion blender blend the tomato pulp. If you prefer to have the tomato pieces in the filling, you can also coarsely mash the pulp with a fork.
- Strain the blended pulp through a fine-mesh strainer so that the seeds and stringy residue are removed. Alternatively, a vegetable strainer can be used at this stage. You basically have to use the juice from the tomatoes for this recipe. Set aside.
- Using an electric chopper, mince the garlic - stripped of its center- along with the mint and basil. Add the herbs to the blended tomato pulp.
- Rinse the uncooked rice under running water to remove starch and add it to the tomato juice.
- Add the salt and oil. Stir well and let everything season for about 1 hour. Be careful, this step is critical!
- After the resting time has elapsed, transfer the empty tomatoes to a baking tray lined with baking paper. Fill them with the rice mixture. Add all the sauce as well. Do not overfill the tomatoes; the rice will swell and increase in volume while cooking.
- Close the tomatoes with the caps we kept aside. Drizzle with more oil and season with salt.
- Bake at 200°C (390°F) for about 45 minutes. The tomatoes should wilt and toast, they will be a bit cracked when cooked, and the rice should be cooked but not flaky.
- The Roman rice-stuffed tomatoes are ready! They are great served warm or even at room temperature.
Nutrition
Serving: 100gCalories: 237kcalCarbohydrates: 29gProtein: 3gFat: 12gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 9gSodium: 783mgPotassium: 336mgFiber: 2gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 1.088IUVitamin C: 17mgCalcium: 26mgIron: 1mg
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