Crawfish tails, bacon, and tomatoes offer a fresh twist to these stuffed bell peppers.
Crawfish-and-Rice-Stuffed Peppers
Makes 6 servings
Ingredients
- 3 medium assorted bell peppers, halved lengthwise and seeded
- ¼ pound center-cut bacon, chopped
- ¼ cup chopped celery
- 1 cup chopped plum tomatoes
- ¼ cup chopped red onion
- ¼ cup chopped red bell pepper
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 cups cooked long-grain rice
- ¾ pound crawfish tails, drained and rinsed
- 4 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
- 1½ teaspoons Creole seasoning*
- ½ cup water
- Garnish: fresh thyme leaves
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°. Place bell pepper halves in a 13×9-inch baking dish.
- In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium heat until crispy. Remove bacon, and let drain on paper towels; pour drippings into a small bowl.
- Return 1 tablespoon drippings to skillet. Add celery; cook, stirring frequently, for 1 minute. Add tomatoes, onion, bell pepper, and garlic; cook, stirring frequently, until softened and lightly caramelized, 8 to 10 minutes.
- Stir in bacon, rice, crawfish, thyme, and Creole seasoning. Divide rice mixture among bell pepper halves (about 1 cup each); drizzle with 1 tablespoon bacon drippings. Pour ½ cup water in bottom of pan. Cover with foil.
- Bake for 40 minutes. Uncover and bake until peppers are tender and stuffing is heated through, 8 to 10 minutes more. Garnish with thyme, if desired. Serve immediately.