Stuffed onions
Stuffed onions
Today we are making stuffed onions! Traditionally in Cyprus, we fill onions with rice and mincemeat, but today I chose to use 2 other staple ingredients of the Cypriot cuisine, bulgur and lentils, and they turned out wholesome and delicious!
Vegan, soy free | Serves 4 | MAIN
Ingredients:
- 120g brown lentils
- 1 bay leaf
- 4 large onions
- 1 carrot
- 2 baby potatoes (optional)
- 1/4 of a parsley bunch
- 70g bulgur
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic granules
- 1/3 teaspoon of each cinnamon, cinnamon, smoked paprika, sumac, chili flakes
- 30ml of olive oil
- Salt & pepper
- 1 tablespoon of tomato paste
- 600ml veggie stock
Steps:
1.Rince and drain the lentils, then place them in a pot, cover with water, add the bay leaf, a generous pinch of salt and boil them for 30min.
2.Cut the sides of each onion, then peel the outer skin and cut them slightly (check video for reference). Place them in a large pot, cover with water, bring them to boil and cook them for 15 minutes.
3.In the meantime, prepare the veggies, peel and grate the carrot, peel and cut the potatoes, chop the parsley.
4.Drain the onions, and set them aside to cool down a bit.
5.Once the lentils are cooked drain them and put them in a large mixing bowl, along with the carrots, parsley, bulgur, tomato paste, all the spices, salt and pepper, the olive oil and mix well.
6.Carefully peel 4-5 layers from each onion and put them aside.
7.Chop 1-2 of the onion hearts and add them into the lentil filling and combine.
8.The other 2 onion hearts, cut them in the middle, place them in a bowl with the potatoes, season with salt, pepper and oregano and set them aside,
9.Fill each onion layer with 2-3 tablespoons of the filling, then roll them and place them in a baking tray.
10.Continue until you have used all the onion layers. If you have any leftover filling, spread it in the baking tray.
11.Add the potatoes and onions, that we cut and seasoned earlier, in the baking tray, to fill any gaps.
12.Mix 600ml of veggie stock with 2 tablespoon of tomato paste, and cover the onions and potatoes.
13.Cover with foil and cook in a preheated oven at 180°C for 40minutes, then remove the foil, turn the potatoes and onions carefully and cook for another 30-40 minutes.
14.I like to serve them with hummus and salad.
Enjoy!
Notes:
You can also reduce the cooking time by using ready cooked lentils.
The potatoes are optional, but I like to add them to fill the gaps.
You can substitute bulgur for quinoa, to make it gluten free.
Did you try this recipe?
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