Salmon stuffed mini peppers and chickpeas in red sauce

The dish is remarkably flavorful. Its ease of preparation and delightful taste make the moderate time investment necessary to create it well worthwhile. I am indebted to Liza Panelim, an amazing Israeli food blogger , for her inspired suggestion to roast the peppers prior to stuffing, which greatly simplifies the process. The sauce and filling are based on my Moroccan mother’s fish balls recipe.

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Ingredients:

For the filling:

1 lb/450 gr fresh salmon

4 garlic cloves

2 slices white bread/3 Tbs bread crumbs

1/4 fresh cilantro bunch – washed

Lemon zest from 1 lemon. 2lb/900 gr mini peppers

Oil spray

For the sauce:

1/2 cup olive oil

2 tablespoon sweet paprika

3 tablespoons tomato paste

1 Serano pepper (optional – spicy)

1 diced tomato

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1 can chickpea (15.5oz/440gr) washed and drained

1/2 bunch fresh cilantro chopped

5-6 smashed garlic cloves

1 slice of fresh lemon

1.5 cup water

Salt to taste

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Instructions:

Wash the peppers and place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Spray with oil and roast at 390°F or 200°C for 10 to 12 minutes till fragrant, puffy, and with roasting color spots on some of the peppers. They will still feel a little firm to touch, but they will keep softening as they cool down. Do not over roast them, or you will dry them. In a meat grinder, grind salmon together with the garlic and the cilantro. If you don’t have a meat grinder, mince the garlic and chop the salmon and cilantro thinly. Soak the bread in water and squeeze to drain well. In a medium bowl, combine all the filling ingredients together and set aside. Warm the oil in a sauté pan on medium/high heat. Add the hot pepper, tomato paste, garlic, paprika, and turmeric. Mix and cook together till the mixture gets darker in color. Add diced tomato and salt, and cook for another 3 to 5 minutes. Add water and bring to a boil. Add chickpeas, slice of lemon, and fresh cilantro, mix well, cover, and reduce the heat to medium/low. Cook for 15 minutes. While cooking, stuff the peppers. Slice each pepper lengthwise. Don’t cut deep, so you won’t penetrate the pepper. Take a small amount of filling with your fingers and stuff the peppers generously. Arrange all the peppers in the pan and water them with the sauce using a spoon. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to medium-low and keep cooking for another 15 minutes. Serve with fresh cilantro, lemon wedges, tahini dressing, and challah bread.

Enjoy!