I’m so excited to share this recipe with you! Gemista (pronounced “yeh-mee-stah” means stuffed or filled with) is one of my top three favourite Greek dishes… it’s right up there with rizogalo (rice pudding) and spanakopita, and I think it may just become one of your favourite recipes too!

This gemista recipe uses both ground beef and rice, so it’s not vegetarian, but it can be dairy free if you don’t add parmesan cheese on top, or you can use your favourite dairy-free parmesan cheese alternative. This recipe makes enough filling for between 10-12 tomatoes and bell peppers.

If you have any extra filling left over, you can add it to the pan with the tomato sauce and potatoes so that it can bake with the gemista.  I usually suggest about two pieces per serving if you’ll be enjoying gemista as a main dish, so this recipe would be good for about 5-6 people.

WHY YOU’LL LOVE THIS RECIPE

• Gemista is a classic Greek dish and a comforting traditional recipe to make when you want to use up those fresh summer vegetables!
  
  
  
• This recipe is for authentic Greek stuffed tomatoes and bell peppers with delicious ground beef and herby rice filling.
  
  
  
  
• This recipe makes between 10-12 stuffed peppers and tomatoes, so it’s a satisfying and rustic meal served right from the baking dish.
  
  
  
• Gemista is often enjoyed as a main dish with a side of feta cheese and fresh bread, or you can also serve gemista as a side dish.

INGREDIENT NOTES

Tomatoes: Ripe, bright red tomatoes will provide the most flavour.   Tomatoes reach their peak in late summer, so this would be the perfect Greek recipe to make use of all those fresh tomatoes.

You’ll want to select tomatoes that are larger so that there’s room once you hollow out the tomatoes to add the filling. It can be a little tricky to scoop out the tomato filling, so I love using this grapefruit spoon to scoop out the insides of the tomatoes. It’s like using a knife and a spoon at the same time… genius!

Bell peppers: You can choose either orange, yellow, red, or green peppers. I usually will use a variety of orange, yellow or red because they’re sweeter. If you can, try to pick bell peppers with four points on the bottom so they can stand up in the baking dish.

You may get some weird looks from people in the grocery store, wondering why you’re spending so much time looking at bell peppers, but that’s ok! Another note is that the tomatoes and bell peppers should be similar in size so that they can bake evenly oh, and try not to get bell peppers that are too tall since the tops may burn more easily.

Ground beef: I usually use lean ground beef. Extra-lean ground beef will be too dry, but if you’re looking for a meat variation, you could use ground chuck, ground turkey, or ground sausage could be really good too!

Rice: I find that short-grain white rice works really well since it absorbs more of the sauce, whereas long-grain rice stays firm. I like to use Kokuho Rose short-grain white rice.

Olive oil: This recipe uses plenty of olive oil, but that’s where so much of the flavour comes from. If you can, use great quality extra virgin olive oil since it will make a difference in the final taste.

Fresh herbs (parsley, mint, and basil): Fresh herbs are delicious for this recipe, and I’d recommend using fresh herbs if you can.  The fresh herbs should be washed, patted dry, de-stemmed and chopped.  They don’t need to be chopped too finely since they will shrink in the filling and when baking.

Potatoes: I like to use Yukon gold potatoes for this recipe. The delicious gemista is the main star of this dish, but flavourful potatoes are a surprise bonus for your tastebuds. They cook in the baking dish as the gemista bakes, absorbing so much flavour! 

I usually suggest about one potato per person. How you cut the potatoes is up to you, but I’ll usually slice the potato in half and then slice it again in half lengthwise to end up with four wedges from one potato.

HOW TO MAKE GREEK GEMISTA: STEP BY STEP 

STEP 1: Wash and prepare the bell peppers and tomatoes.  Cut the bell peppers along the tops (as close to the top as you can) so that you have a bottom and a lid. Remove and discard the seeds and filling from the peppers. *important* when you slice a pepper, keep the lid for that pepper close to it so that when it’s time to cover the peppers, you know which lid goes with what pepper.

For the tomatoes, cut along the top of the tomato to create a lid or a cap.  But don’t slice all the way through instead, leave a little bit of the lid attached to the tomato. Use a knife to cut around the perimeter and a spoon to scoop out the inside of the tomatoes, or if you have it, a grapefruit spoon will make this process a lot quicker!

You’ll need to keep the flesh of the tomatoes because we’re going to add it to the gemista filling. Once you’ve scooped out all of the tomato fillings, use your hands or a fork to squish the tomato filling into smaller pieces. You can use a food processor if you’d like, but you don’t need to. Reserve about 1/4 cup of this tomato filling because we’ll be adding it to the bottom of the bell peppers later in this recipe. Place the tomatoes and peppers upright in your baking dish.

STEP 2: Lightly roast the pine nuts.  Preheat your oven to 200°F on bake.  Spread the pine nuts on an oven-safe pan and place the pan in the preheated oven. Allow the pine nuts to bake for about 15 minutes or until lightly toasted. Then, remove them from the oven and set them aside. Nuts have a high fat content, so be careful not to have the heat too high and keep an eye on them so they don’t burn.

STEP 3: Make the gemista filling.  Heat up 3/4 cup of olive oil. Once the oil is hot, add two cups of diced onion. Sauté on medium-low heat until the onions are translucent (about 10-15 minutes). Then, add in the diced garlic. Continue to cook the onions with garlic until the garlic becomes fragrant (about 5 minutes). Then add in all of the ground beef. Use a large fork to break up the ground beef into small pieces.

Continue to sauté the onions, garlic, and ground beef on medium-low heat for 20 minutes. Then, add in the salt, seasoning salt, sugar, Italian seasoning, black pepper, Greek all-purpose seasoning, and dry oregano. Mix together. Add in the tomato filling (from the scooped-out tomatoes) and allow the ingredients to simmer together for 10-15 minutes.

After 10-15 minutes, add in the chopped mint, fresh parsley, fresh basil, and roasted pine nuts. Continue to simmer for another 10 minutes on low heat. Finally, add the rice and stir together for a few minutes, then turn off the element and set aside.  The rice is going to cook inside the gemista in the oven.

STEP 4: Cut and season the potatoes.  Peel the potatoes and then slice them in half and then in half again lengthwise to get four pieces per potato. In a medium-sized bowl, combine the potato wedges, 1/4 cup of olive oil, 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning, 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Mix together so the potatoes are well coated and set aside.

STEP 5: Assemble the gemista.  Add about one tablespoon of tomato juice (from the reserved tomato flesh earlier) to the inside of each pepper and sprinkle a pinch of salt inside each pepper. Sprinkle a little salt and sugar inside each tomato. The sugar helps cut the acidity of the tomatoes.  You won’t need to add any tomato juice to the inside of the tomatoes since they will release their own juices as they bake in the oven.

Scoop the gemista filling from the pot into the tomatoes and peppers.   Lightly press the filling into the tomatoes and peppers and spread it evenly inside.  The rice in the filling will expand as it cooks, so be sure not to stuff the peppers and tomatoes all the way to the top. Place the lids back on the peppers and the tomatoes.

STEP 6: Bake the gemista.  Add the seasoned potato wedges to the pan and any extra liquid from the bottom of the bowl. Pour the can of Italian whole plum tomatoes (and the juice) into a separate bowl and use your hands or a fork to squish the tomatoes together to make a sauce.

Add 1/2 cup of olive oil and 1/4 teaspoon of sugar to the crushed tomatoes and mix them together. Pour the tomato sauce over the stuffed tomatoes, peppers, and potatoes into the baking dish. Sprinkle the tops of the tomatoes and the tops of the peppers with breadcrumbs and grated parmesan cheese.

Bake the gemista uncovered in the oven at 350° F on convection bake and on the second to the lowest rack in your oven for about an hour and a half. Keep an eye on the liquid in the baking pan since you may need to add more water halfway through. The tomatoes and peppers will be soft and slightly wrinkly when they’re done!

RECIPE TIPS 

• This recipe uses a good amount of olive oil, but it adds so much flavour, so using a good quality olive oil will elevate the flavours of this gemista even more!

• The size of your tomatoes and peppers is important – ideally, they should be similar in size so that they can bake evenly and large enough to fill them with the gemista filling.
  
  

• For a sweeter taste, go with red, yellow or orange bell peppers. But you can also use green bell peppers if you’d like.  Also, when picking out bell peppers, look for ones that have four points on the bottom so that they can stand up in the baking dish.
  
  

• When you slice the lids for the peppers, keep the lid for that pepper close to it so that when it’s time to cover the peppers, you know which lid goes with what pepper.
  
  

• Add a little bit of tomato juice and salt to the inside of the bell peppers before adding the filling.  Sprinkle a little bit of salt and sugar to the inside of the tomatoes before adding in the filling.
  
  

• Check on the gemista about halfway through the baking time.  If the baking dish does not have enough liquid, then you may need to add 1/4 – 1/3 of water to the baking dish so that the gemista doesn’t burn.
  
  

• For the gemista filling, the ground beef should be fully cooked before stuffing the tomatoes and peppers.  The rice will still be crunchy in the filling when you stuff the tomatoes and peppers (that’s ok! The rice will absorb the flavours and cook in the oven inside the tomatoes and peppers).
  
  

• This recipe makes enough filling for about 10-12 peppers and tomatoes, depending on the size of your vegetables.  If you have any extra filling, you can put it in the baking dish with the tomato sauce, and it will bake in the oven.

RECOMMENDED KITCHEN TOOLS

• • Large deep baking dish (At least 14″ x 10″ and 2 1/2″ high)
  • Medium size cooking pot
  • Grapefruit spoon (this spoon saves so much time when scooping tomatoes!)
  • Medium-sized glass mixing bowls

Gemista: FAQ

• The Best Spanakopita Recipe Ever (Greek Spinach Pie)
• Easy Oven Baked Greek Tofu Recipe
• Quick Spicy Feta Cheese Dip (Tirokafteri)
• Can You Freeze Stuffed Peppers?
• Easy Pan Fried Sausage, Peppers, and Onions (Spetsofai)
• Shrimp Saganaki Recipe

Print Recipe

4.88 from 8 votes

Greek Stuffed Tomatoes and Peppers (Gemista)

Juicy, filling, and flavourful ground beef and rice Greek stuffed tomatoes and peppers baked in the oven with roasted potatoes and tomato sauce!

Prep Time2 hours hrs

Cook Time1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Additional Time15 minutes mins

Total Time3 hours hrs 45 minutes mins

Course: Greek Dinner Ideas

Cuisine: Greek

Keyword: gemista, stuffed peppers, stuffed tomatoes

Servings: 10 -12

Calories: 563kcal

Author: Ria Mavrikos

Equipment

• Large deep baking dish (At least 14" x 10" and 2 1/2" high)
• Medium size cooking pot
• Grapefruit spoon (this spoon saves so much time when scooping tomatoes!)
• Medium-sized glass mixing bowls

Ingredients

Preparing the tomatoes and bell peppers

• 6 tomatoes and 5 bell peppers yellow, orange, or red
• 2 tablespoons salt
• 3 tablespoons white granulated sugar
• 5 tablespoons tomato juice from scooped tomatoes
• Grated parmesan cheese optional
• Breadcrumbs optional

Gemista (stuffed tomatoes and peppers) filling

• 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 white onions 2 cups finely diced
• 3-4 garlic cloves peeled and diced
• 500 grams of lean ground beef
• 1/2 teaspoon white granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon seasoning salt
• 1/2 teaspoon Cavender's all-purpose Greek seasoning
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon dry oregano
• 1/4 cup fresh mint washed, de-stemmed, and chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh basil washed, de-stemmed, and chopped
• 3/4 cup Italian parsley washed, de-stemmed, and chopped
• 1/2 cup pine nuts lightly roasted
• 1 cup short-grain white rice

Roasted potatoes

• 5-6 Yukon gold potatoes approximately 1 person per person
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Tomato sauce (to add over the vegetables and in the baking dish)

• 1 small can of Italian whole plum tomatoes 14 oz
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon white granulated sugar

Instructions

• Wash and prepare the bell peppers and tomatoes. Cut the bell peppers along the tops (as close to the top as you can) so that you have a bottom and a lid. Remove and discard the seeds and filling from the peppers. For the tomatoes, cut along the top of the tomato to create a lid or a cap. But don't slice all the way through, instead, leave a little bit of the lid attached to the tomato. Use a knife to cut around the perimeter and a spoon to scoop out the inside of the tomatoes. You'll need to keep the flesh of the tomatoes because we're going to add it to the gemista filling. Once you've scooped out all of the tomato fillings, use your hands or a fork to squish the tomato filling into smaller pieces. Reserve about 1/4 cup of this tomato filling because we'll be adding it to the bottom of the bell peppers later in this recipe. Place the tomatoes and peppers upright in your baking dish.
• Roast the pine nuts. Preheat your oven to 200°F on bake. Spread the pine nuts on an oven-safe pan and place the pan in the preheated oven. Allow the pine nuts to bake for about 15 minutes or until lightly toasted. Then remove them from the oven and set them aside.
• Make the gemista filling. Heat up 3/4 cup of olive oil in a large pot. Once the oil is hot, add two cups of diced onion. Sauté the onions on medium-low heat until the onions are translucent (about 10-15 minutes). Then add in the diced garlic. Continue to cook the onions with garlic until the garlic becomes fragrant (about 5 minutes). Then add in all of the ground beef. Use a large fork to break up the ground beef into small pieces. Continue to sauté the onions, garlic, and ground beef on medium-low heat for 20 minutes. Then, add in the salt, seasoning salt, sugar, Italian seasoning, black pepper, Greek all-purpose seasoning, and dry oregano. Mix together. Add in the tomato filling (from the scooped-out tomatoes) and allow the ingredients to simmer together for 10-15 minutes. After 10-15 minutes, add in the chopped mint, fresh parsley, fresh basil, and roasted pine nuts. Continue to simmer for another 10 minutes on low heat. Finally, add in the rice and stir together for a few minutes and then turn off the element and set aside. The rice in the filling will still be crunchy, but it will cook inside the gemista in the oven.
• Cut and season the potatoes. Peel the potatoes, slice them in half and then in half again lengthwise to get four pieces per potato. In a medium-sized bowl, combine the potato wedges, 1/4 cup olive oil, 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning, 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Mix together so that the potatoes are well coated and set aside.
• Assemble the gemista. Add about 1 tablespoon of tomato juice (from the reserved amount of tomato flesh earlier) to the inside of each pepper and sprinkle a pinch of salt inside each pepper. Sprinkle a little salt and sugar inside each tomato. You won't need to add any tomato juice to the inside of the tomatoes since they will release their own juices as they bake in the oven. Scoop the gemista filling from the pot into the tomatoes and peppers. Lightly press the filling into the tomatoes and peppers and spread it evenly inside. Place the lids back on the peppers and the tomatoes.
• Bake the gemista. Add the seasoned potatoes to the pan and any extra liquid from the bottom of the bowl. Pour the can of plum tomatoes (and the juice) into a separate bowl and use your hands or a fork to squish the tomatoes together to make a sauce. Add 1/2 cup of olive oil and 1/4 teaspoon of sugar to the crushed tomatoes and mix them together. Pour the tomato sauce over the stuffed tomatoes, peppers, and potatoes and into the baking dish. Sprinkle the tops of the tomatoes and the tops of the peppers with breadcrumbs and grated parmesan cheese. Bake the gemista uncovered in the oven at 350° F on convection bake and on the second to lowest rack in your oven for about an hour and a half. The tomatoes and peppers will be soft and slightly wrinkly when they're done!

Notes

• Ideally, the tomatoes and peppers should be similar in size so that they bake evenly. Try to pick bell peppers that have four points on the bottom so that they can stand up in the baking dish.
• Pine nuts have a high fat content, so be careful not to have the heat too high and keep an eye on them so that they don't burn.
• Sprinkle a little bit of salt and sugar on the inside of the hollowed-out tomatoes. Add only a little bit of salt to the inside of the hollowed-out bell peppers.
• The tomatoes will release juices as they cook, so I like to add a little bit of tomato juice (from the scooped-out tomatoes) to the inside of the bell peppers before adding the stuffing.
• The ground beef in the filling should be fully cooked before stuffing the peppers and tomatoes. The rice in the filling should still be crunchy when you stuff the peppers and tomatoes, but it will cook and soften as the gemista bake. The rice will expand slightly, so it's good to leave a little bit of room and not fill the gemista all the way to the top.
• When slicing the tops of the tomatoes, keep the edge of the lid on (don't fully slice the whole lid off)
• As the gemista is baking in the oven, check about halfway through to ensure there's enough liquid in the baking dish. Have 1/3 cup of warm water on hand in case you need to add it to the pan.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 563kcal | Carbohydrates: 36g | Protein: 18g | Fat: 40g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 31g | Cholesterol: 41mg | Sodium: 1606mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 9g