Roasted Stuffed Onions
An absolutely delicious dinner recipe that the entire family will love. Roasted onion layers stuffed with a mixture of beef, rice, spices, and tomatoes served over a spicy, creamy harissa sauce. An absolute flavor bomb and incredibly easy for how upscale it feels.
Ingredients
- 4 large white onions
- 3 stalks of celery chopped
- Salt to taste
- Pepper to taste
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 cup cooked white rice
- 1/2 cup chopped parsley
- 2 tbsp chopped mint
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 cup harissa
- 2 cloves of garlic minced
- 1 jar San Marzano whole + peeled tomatoes 3 tomatoes for the stuffing mixture, 5 tomatoes for the sauce
- 1 large scoop of Greek Yogurt
- 1/4 cup green onions
- 1/2 cup crumbled feta
Instructions
- First, start by having cooked rice - I usually have a batch of cooked rice in the fridge for the week but if you don't have this, cook your rice how you usually do or buy frozen / pre-cooked rice at the store! You will want cooked rice for your meat mixture.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Chop the ends off of your white onions and peel the first layer of onion off. Take your knife and cut straight down, half way from the center through your onion (see video for reference.)
- Once your water is boiling, add in your whole onions to the boiling water and boil for 12-ish minutes. Remove from boiling water and LET COOL on a cutting board with paper towel down for about 30 minutes. These will be very hot, so be sure to let them sit for a bit.
- Pre-heat your oven to 425. While your onions are cooling, make your harissa sauce. To a blender add in 4-5 whole tomatoes, 1/4 cup of harissa, 1 clove of garlic, a pinch of salt, and 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt, and 1/4 tsp of red pepper flakes. Blend on high until fully mixed - set aside.
- Once onions are cooled, begin to peel the layers 1 by 1. Onions do have that very thin sticky layer in between the thicker layers - if you can, try to remove these. It's kind of time consuming but they will cook better without the extra layer. Remove all of the layers but leave the centers of the onion to use in your stuffing. Let the layers cool in a bowl while you make the filling.
- Chop the centers of your onion, mince your garlic clove, and chop your celery. Heat a large skillet on medium heat with olive oil. Once hot, add in your onions and celery and saute until fragrant, about 5 minutes. Push your onions and celery to the side and add in 1 pound of ground beef. Mince your beef and cook pretty much entirely through and then mix in with your onions and celery and continue cooking through. Add in 1 clove of minced garlic. Once meat is cooked, add in 3 whole tomatoes, crushing with your hand, 1/4 cup of the tomato sauce, 1/4 cup harissa, 1/4 tsp cinnamon, and 1 tsp of cumin. Stir well and simmer. Chop in 1/4 cup of your parsley (saving the remaining for topping) and mint and stir in. Taste your sauce - taste for salt, garlic, herbs, etc. add more of whatever to your liking.
- Find a large oven safe skillet and spray with oil. Stuff your onion layers with the mixture and roll and place seam down. Some of your layers will be quite long so cut theses in half to get more stuffed onions. Once your baking pan is full, add in a little broth to help your onions steam, drizzle your onions with olive oil. Bake at 425 with lid on for 20 minutes and then remove lid and bake for another 20. Turn on broil for 3 minutes at the end of you want your onions a little browned. Keep an eye on your broiler as every oven is different.
- Serve with chopped parsley, green onions, and crumbled feta cheese.
- Heat your sauce if you'd like and put into a shallow bowl, place your onions on top and sprinkle with more toppings if you'd like! Enjoy!