Roman Stuffed Tomatoes
My Roman Stuffed Tomatoes are packed with a delicious blend of herbs and rice and baked with potatoes until tender. These tomatoes are meant to be served at room temperature or chilled, making them an excellent make-ahead recipe!
Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 6 large Beefsteak tomatoes
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 cup (200g) Arborio rice
- 1/4 cup minced flat-leaf Italian parsley
- 1/4 cup chopped basil leaves
- 4 teaspoons dried oregano divided
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1/4 cup (60g) passata
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed hot red pepper flakes
- 6 tablespoons (90ml) extra virgin olive oil divided
- 2 1/2 pounds (1.1kg) Yukon Gold potatoes cut into small wedges
Instructions
- Cut off and save the top 1/3 of the tomatoes. With a paring knife and spoon and core out the pulp and seeds being careful not to cut through the tomato. Place all of the juice and pulp into a bowl. Discard any hard bits of the pulp then blend or puree with an immersion or regular blender. Add the pureed tomato, rice, passata, garlic, parsley, basil, 2 teaspoons of oregano, and the crushed red pepper to a bowl and mix well. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Let the rice sit for at least 1 hour to soak and absorb the juices.
- Preheat oven to 375°F and set the rack to the middle level.
- Place the potato wedges into a 9x13" baking dish and drizzle a 1/4 cup of the olive oil onto them. Season with salt and pepper and the remaining 2 teaspoons of oregano.
- Place the hollowed out tomatoes on top of the potatoes and season the insides with salt. Spoon the rice mixture into each tomato, leaving at least a 1/4" of space at the top. Place the saved tomato tops on top of each tomato and drizzle or brush the remaining olive onto the outsides and tops of the tomatoes. Any remaining rice mixture can be drizzled onto the tomatoes or placed at the bottom of the baking dish.
- Cover the baking dish tightly with foil and bake for 1 hour then remove the cover and bake for another 25-50 minutes or until the rice is tender and the tomatoes are soft but not falling apart.
- This dish is best served at room temperature or cold but can be eaten right away too. Enjoy!
Notes
- Cooking time. The size of the tomatoes and how ripe they are can substantially alter the cooking time. After the 1st hour of baking, continue to cook uncovered until the rice is tender and the tomatoes are starting to shrivel (anywhere from 25-50 more minutes).
- Fresh tomatoes. Use the ripest and freshest tomatoes you can find. Any large tomato can be used.
- Soaking the rice. Soaking the rice does two things. It hydrates the rice which will speed up the cooking time but more importantly the garlic and tomato flavor will be better absorbed into the rice. Soaking overnight will make better stuffed tomatoes.
- Rice ratio. Typically 2 tablespoons of uncooked rice per tomato is the optimal amount but for very large beefsteak tomatoes 2.5-3 tablespoons is recommended.
- Extra filling. Leftover filling can be poured onto the potatoes or put onto the bottom of the baking dish. The rice will become crispy and is delicious.
- Leftovers. Roman stuffed tomatoes can be saved in the fridge for up to 3 days and are better eaten cold the next day than hot or warm right out of the oven.
Nutrition
Calories: 471kcal | Carbohydrates: 73.6g | Protein: 8.5g | Fat: 17.6g | Saturated Fat: 5.6g | Sodium: 805mg | Fiber: 10.5g | Sugar: 8.7g | Calcium: 54mg | Iron: 3mg
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