Baked tomatoes stuffed with rice is a summer favourite in Rome. Anna shows us how to make her flavoursome version of this classic dish. All you need is large ripe meaty tomatoes.
In Greek cuisine we have a similar dish which is called “ gemista” ( stuffed ) . Various summer vegetables like tomatoes , green peppers, aubergines, zucchinis, are stuffed with rice in tomato sauce, onion, parsley , spearmint, lots of olive oil, and the flesh of our veg very finely chopped. You cook it in the oven with potatoes packed tightly between the veg. Some people use garlic too, some others put a piece of feta or kefalotyri cheese ( equivalent to pecorino Romano) In each “gemisto”. This is one of the most popular Greek summer signature dishes.
Love they way many cultures and traditions like Italian are very, literally - 'hands on': getting their hands stuck into the preparation and cooking of home-cooked meals :-) Tony
Between May and September, most supermarkets and grocery stores in and around Rome, including my hometown, have these huge tomatoes curiously called "pomodori da riso" (tomatoes for rice). That definition always puzzled me when I was a kid :-) This variety features a stiff skin, so it can withstand a long baking without digregating, and is always sold ripe: unripe tomatoes would make the final dish taste horribly sour. If you want to try this at home, make sure the tomatoes you use have a thick skin and are not too watery, or you will end up with a rice, tomato, and potato soup :-)))
Pasta Grannies - Hi. Honestly, I don't know if Bull's Hearts would do the job. Compared to Tomatoes for Rice, it is a fleshier variety (not so much juice inside) and its shape, as the name suggests, resembles that of a heart, not an almost perfect sphere, so it might be difficult to accommodate the fruits on the baking tray and keep them standing. But as in everything else in life, just try and see :-)
Great recipe Vicky, for those in the U.S., i find that a tomato called beefsteak(has nothing to do with beef or meat, lol) is best for these types of recipes. It is as large as the ones seen here in the video, and holds up well in baking for extended periods of time. They are delicious, and i have not made this recipe yet, but i have made very similar ones, and they always hold together and turn out well. I actually grow my own in our small garden.
Vicky is right (Vicky's always right!): basmati would do fine, though the taste will be slightly different. If you go for basmati, try and replace basil with fresh oregano or thyme, and pepper with a mixture of chilli (or cayenne pepper) and a touch of sweet paprika. Also, basmati may end up with a drier texture than arborio, and taste a bit "chalky" if you know what I mean, so a few drops of olive oil before serving will help to soften it up.
So, the rice is left raw when stuffed into the tomato? Given the huge difference in water/rice ratios of risotto rice compared to regular long grain rice, I am so surprised! The tomato gives off enough juice ofbitsvown? Great to know! Thank you!! Biting into hard rice is not nice. Loving these videos and the Pasta Grannies site itself! 💜
hi Kim, my recollection was the rice was firm but not gritty. Rachel Roddy (a Rome based food writer) recommends leaving the raw rice to soak in the tomato juices for 45 minutes, which is a good tip. I think you could also use long grain rice without compromising the recipe. best wishes, Vicky
The stuffing must integrate for a while, so the rice absorbs the liquid and gets tender. You can also wrap them, one by one, in aluminium foil to preserve the humidity of the tomatoes but cooking time and temperature varies. Worth a try.
