Italian Stuffed Frying Peppers Cubanelles
Italian stuffed frying peppers are made with cubanelles which are long, green peppers that are somewhat horn-shaped. This is a recipe that my mom made over the years and is one of my favorite recipes she taught me how to make.
So, why are cubanelles called frying or fryer peppers?
Cubanelle peppers are called frying peppers because they are often used for frying. They have a thinner skin than bell peppers and a mild, sweet flavor that makes them perfect for frying and sautéing. When cubanelle are cooked, they quickly become tender and slightly caramelized, making them a popular ingredient in many Mediterranean dishes.
Besides stuffing them, I do remember my mom frying them and adding them to sandwiches. I have fond memories of my mom making these sandwiches for family outings and road-trip vacations. But now that I make these Italian stuffed peppers, I think they make an amazing sandwich on a hard roll.
How to Make Italian Stuffed Frying Peppers
So, friends, let’s dive into the recipe. To make these Italian stuffed frying peppers, I make ham stuffing, using deli ham slices, which is quite different from stuffed bell peppers which are typically made with rice or ground beef. But having been brought up in an Italian household, this was our only kind of stuffed pepper.
To start, preheat the oven to 365 F. Next, gather up your peppers, ham, tomato, onion, egg, breadcrumbs, olive oil, American cheese, grated cheese, and seasonings. You’ll also need some tomato sauce, but not till the peppers are almost done cooking.
Cut the tops off the peppers, separate them from the center stem, and rinse. Don’t throw the tops of the peppers out, as you’ll want to cut them up and use them in the stuffed frying peppers!
Clean the seeds out of the rest of the pepper, rinse, and set them aside. On a cutting board, chop up the ham, tomato, onion, and pepper tops, then add them to a bowl. Crumble up the American cheese and add it to the mixture. Next, add the breadcrumbs and seasonings, then mix well.
In a separate bowl, beat the egg, then pour it over the stuffing mixture. Add a 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil and mix the stuffing together.
Take another 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil and grease the sheet pan. Loosely stuff the peppers with the stuffing and place them onto the greased sheet pan.
Pour the remainder of the olive oil over the stuffed frying peppers and bake uncovered for about 25 minutes. Check the peppers by poking them with a fork to see how much they are tenderizing.
At around 25 minutes they should be slightly browned. (Note: if the pan is becoming too caramelized, add two tablespoons of water to the bottom of the sheet pan before continuing cooking.)
After 25 minutes, pull the peppers out of the oven, top them with tomato sauce, tent them loosely with foil, and bake for another 20 minutes.
Remove from the oven and serve them warm. You may also add more warm sauce to the Italian stuffed frying peppers right before serving them.
Italian Stuffed Frying Peppers Cubanelles Recipe
Ingredients
4 frying peppers (cubanelles)
5 slices of imported boiled ham or honey ham
1 plumb tomato
1/2 onion
1 egg
1 slice of American cheese
1 teaspoon grated cheese
Salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder to season
2–1/2 TBS olive oil
1/4 cup breadcrumbs
3/4 to 1-1/4 cups tomato sauce
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 365 F.
- Gather up your peppers, ham, tomato, onion, egg, breadcrumbs, olive oil, American cheese, grated cheese, and seasonings. You’ll also need some tomato sauce, but not till the peppers are almost done cooking.
- Cut the tops off the peppers, separate them from the center stem, and rinse. Don’t throw the tops of the peppers out, as you’ll want to cut them up and use them in the stuffing.
- Clean the seeds out of the rest of the pepper, rinse, and set them aside.
- On a cutting board, chop up the ham, tomato, onion, and pepper tops, then add them to a bowl.
- Crumble up the American cheese and add it to the mixture. Next, add the breadcrumbs and seasonings, then mix well.
- In a separate bowl, beat the egg, then pour it over the stuffing mixture. Add a 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil and mix the stuffing together.
- Take another 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil and grease the sheet pan. Loosely stuff the peppers with the stuffing and place them onto the greased sheet pan.
- Pour the remainder of the olive oil over the stuffed frying peppers and bake uncovered for about 25 minutes. Check the peppers by poking them with a fork to see how much they are tenderizing.
- At around 25 minutes they should be slightly browned. (Note: if the pan is becoming too caramelized, add two tablespoons of water to the bottom of the sheet pan before continuing cooking.)
- After 25 minutes, pull the peppers out of the oven, top them with tomato sauce, tent them loosely with foil, and bake for another 20 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and serve them warm. You may also add more warm sauce to the Italian stuffed frying peppers right before serving them.
How to Make Italian Stuffed Frying Peppers Appetizers
Occasionally, I turn my Italian stuffed frying peppers into appetizers using the same recipe as above. I just cut the cubanelle fryer peppers in half. and stuff each half as shown above.
I still check them after 25 minutes, knowing that they may cook quicker than whole stuffed peppers and the stuffing may brown quicker.
After checking them I cover them with foil, but I do not add any sauce. I just continue to check them every 10 minutes until the stuffing is lightly browned and the pepper is tender.
Then I remove them from the oven and serve warm tomato sauce on the side for dipping. That’s it and they usually are a big hit.
Can I Use Other Ingredients in this Stuffing?
You can make this stuffing spicier by adding in some peppered ham, prosciutto, or pepperoni. You can also use a sharper cheese like provolone. I occasionally like to add a little bit of these spicier ingredients in with the deli ham, just to enhance the flavor, but would not recommend using these salty meats as replacements in this stuffing recipe.
