Stuffed Pepper with Tomato Sauce (Töltött paprika)

In Hungary we make this dish mainly in the summer when the yellow wax pepper is in season. You can substitute green peppers for them if you can't find yellow wax peppers. You can also use bell peppers but their skin is thicker, so they will need more time to cook. There are always arguments about whether you should eat the cooked peppers or only the stuffing. For the stuffing I used pork (this is the original version) but I think it's fine with ground chicken or turkey too. . The consistency of the tomato sauce should be like a nice, creamy soup. Ingredients (for 6) 7-8 yellow wax pepper (Sometimes available on Farmer's Markets) 500 gr (1lb) ground pork 12 gr (about 1cup) rice 1 onion /finely chopped 1 egg 2 garlic cloves /crushed 1 jar (750ml) thick tomato juice (use Passata if you can find it) 3-4 tsp tomato paste 2 tbsp sugar 3 tbsp flour 6 tbsp oil 4 potatoes (cut into wedges) 1 bunch celery leaves (optional) salt, pepper, paprika 1. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a saucepan, add the chopped onion and cook gently until it's soft. Remove from the heat 2. Cut the stem of the peppers off and deseed them 3. Place the ground pork in a large bowl, then season with 2 tsp salt, 1 tsp black pepper and 1 heaped tsp paprika 4. Add the crushed garlic, 1 egg, the pre-washed rice and the softened onion 5. Using your hands mix everything together, until it's well combined 6. Fill the peppers with the meat mixture (do not over-stuff them as the rice will expand) 7. If you have meat-mixture left, make some meatballs from it 8. Heat 4 tbsp oil in a large saucepan, add the flour and cook stirring until it's golden brown 9. Gently pour the thick tomato juice into the pan, add a little water and mix well 10. Add 3-4 heaped tsp tomato paste, and season with salt, sugar and black pepper. (and also add the celery leaves if you haves some – it's optional) 11. Mix together /it should look like a nice creamy soup 12. Add the stuffed pepper and meatballs, cover, and cook on low heat at least 1 hour. 13. Check it sometimes, gently stir and turn the peppers over. 14. After 1 hour of cooking the peppers should be soft and the meat cooked through 15. Meanwhile cook the potato wedges in boiling salted water. When it's cooked, drain them in a colander 16. Now, serve the stuffed peppers and meatballs with the tomato sauce and the boiled potatoes on side. 17. ENJOY! /The music is based on a Hungarian folk song, played and made by my husband, MrStick© 2016 - (all rights reserved)/