Cumin Pork Tenderloin Stuffed Peppers

I am a big fan of stuffed bell peppers. Growing up my mom would make bell peppers stuffed with ground beef, tomato sauce, rice and golden raisins. That version just brings me back in time and was the inspiration for my stuffed pepper recipes.

Bell peppers are versatile and are widely available. Over the last two years my local club stores started selling them in "club packs", so I buy them regularly.

When I created this recipe I made pork tenderloins (two in a pack) for Sunday dinner.  I roasted them with olive oil, savory and salt and pepper. (400 degrees for 15 mins, give or take, until my thermometer was almost 140 degrees. I removed from oven, covered and let sit to rest and cook some more).  

Although I already prepared a menu for the week I did not plan (amateur move) for an entire cooked tenderloin and black rice and black beans leftover from another meal. Cumin Pork Tenderloin Stuffed Peppers were born.

My goal every week is to figure out how I can prep meals ahead of time. I call them Sanity Savers.  I also have a grocery budget like many of you reading this blog. Truth be told, the two-pack tenderloins turned into three meals. The first meal was the tenderloin itself, then the stuffed peppers and finally BBQ. I bought a Smithfield club pack of two with a total of four tenderloins for $13.00. My three meals cost a little more than $2. Depending on the size of your family, you may not be able to make three meals, but two meals ain't shabby either. 

Next time you are shopping, consider purchasing pork tenderloin and trying this recipe for a second (or first or third) meal.

Cumin Pork Tenderloin Stuffed Peppers

4 bell peppers in variety of colors like red, yellow and orange*
1-2 T olive oil
1/2 large sweet onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced

2 c. cooked pork tenderloin, shredded** (3/4 of of 1 lb. tenderloin)
1/2 c. black beans, drained and rinsed
1 c. of your favorite salsa
1/2 c. black rice uncooked (makes about 2 c. cooked)
1 T cumin
1/2 T adobo
1/2 c. water
1/4 c. shredded low-fat Mexican blend cheese--optional

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Cook black rice according to the directions, 1 c. water to 1/2 c. rice.  Put cooked rice aside.

Cut off the stems of the peppers as well as cut a little off the bottom of the peppers to make flat (this will allow the peppers to sit upright and not fall over when cooking) and deseed peppers. Chop those parts of the pepper and sauté them along with the onion and garlic in olive oil until soft and translucent.

Add cooked pork, black beans, rice, salsa and spices to the pepper and onion mixture.  Once all the components are incorporated, add water and stir until absorbed.  Remove from heat. Line a baking sheet with foil and stuff the peppers.

At this point, you can refrigerate the peppers and cook later in the day or the next day. Put in oven loosely covered with foil about bake for 35 minutes or until the peppers are soft. Remove the foil and top peppers with cheese. Cook uncovered or until cheese is melted. 



* If you have little ones in your family who do not like or are unable to eat an entire pepper on their own, I suggest giving them the filling only and cooking less stuffed peppers.

**I was asked by someone who follows a Kosher diet if they could substitute chicken for pork and my answer was, absolutely.  Pork and chicken go really well with this.