Bell peppers stuffed with saffron rice, chorizo and manchego, baked until bubbling and golden.
This dish takes the core flavors of Spanish saffron rice — smoked paprika, chorizo, saffron — and packs them into baked peppers topped with melted manchego, a nod to the way Spanish home cooks often use stuffed vegetables (pimientos rellenos) as a way to turn a rice dish into a complete, easy-to-portion meal. The filling itself is essentially a simplified paella base, cooked most of the way on the stovetop before it's packed into the peppers to finish in the oven.\n\nThe important technique here is fully cooking the rice filling on the stovetop first, not relying on the oven to cook raw rice inside the peppers — raw rice packed into a pepper and baked rarely cooks evenly, while a fully cooked filling just needs enough oven time to soften the pepper itself and melt the cheese on top.\n\nServe hot from the oven with a wedge of lemon on the side — the acidity cuts through the richness of the chorizo and melted manchego.
Serves 4
Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Place pepper halves cut-side up in a baking dish and roast 10 minutes.
Heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add chorizo and cook 3-4 minutes until it releases its fat, then add onion and cook 5 minutes until soft.
Stir in garlic, smoked paprika and saffron and cook 1 minute, then add rice and tomato, stirring to coat for 1-2 minutes.
Pour in stock, bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook 16-18 minutes until liquid is absorbed and rice is tender.
Cook the rice fully before stuffing the peppers — packing in undercooked rice and hoping the oven finishes it usually leaves a hard, chalky center.
Fill the roasted pepper halves with the rice mixture, mounding generously, and top with shredded manchego.
Bake 15-18 minutes until the cheese is melted and lightly golden. Top with parsley and serve hot.
Cook the rice completely on the stovetop before stuffing — this is the single most important step for even texture throughout the peppers.
Pre-roasting the peppers for 10 minutes before stuffing keeps them tender rather than crunchy after the shorter final bake.
Grate the manchego yourself rather than using pre-shredded cheese — it melts noticeably smoother.
Swap manchego for a smoked Spanish cheese like idiazábal for an even more pronounced smoky flavor.
Add chopped roasted red peppers to the filling for extra sweetness and color.
Make it vegetarian by skipping the chorizo and using extra smoked paprika plus sauteed mushrooms for umami.
Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Reheat covered in a 350°F (175°C) oven or in the microwave until warmed through.
Pimientos rellenos, or stuffed peppers, appear across Spanish regional cooking with fillings ranging from rice and meat to salt cod, and are a common way Spanish home cooks turn a rice or meat dish into a self-contained, easy-to-serve meal. This version borrows its flavor base directly from Spain's saffron-and-chorizo rice tradition.
A sharp aged cheddar or an aged gouda both melt well and provide a similar rich, savory topping, though the flavor won't be quite as distinctly Spanish.
That usually means too much stock was used or the rice simmered too briefly; cook it until the liquid is fully absorbed and the rice looks dry on top before stuffing the peppers.
Yes — make the filling and stuff the peppers up to a day ahead, refrigerate, then top with cheese and bake fresh right before serving.
Per serving (380g / 13.4 oz) · 4 servings total
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