TABELIA

AUTHENTIC RECIPE

Pomodori Ripieni di RisoTomatoes Stuffed with Rice

Tomatoes Stuffed with Rice
Difficulty★★☆☆☆ Prep25 min Cook50 min servings4

A Roman home-cooking staple: hollowed tomatoes are stuffed with their flesh, rice, basil and garlic, then baked. The rice absorbs the tomato’s savor in this summer weekend dish.

Recipe developed and reviewed by the Tabelia Editorial TeamUpdated
100/ 100

AUTHENTICITY SCORE

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Ingredients (4 servings)

  • Large ripe tomatoes4 pieces
  • Short-grain rice (Bonarico or Arborio)120 g
  • Garlic2 cloves
  • Fresh basil10 leaves
  • Extra virgin olive oil4 tablespoons
  • Salt1 teaspoon

Method

Hollowing the tomatoes

1

Hollow the tomatoes and drain

  • 1 Cut the top 1 cm off the tomatoes to make lids and scoop the flesh out with a spoon.
  • 2 Put the flesh and seeds in a bowl.
  • 3 Sprinkle a pinch of salt inside each tomato, turn upside down and leave for 10 minutes to drain.

Making the filling

2

Mix the rice filling

  • 1 Crush the flesh in the bowl by hand and remove the seeds.
  • 2 Finely chop the garlic and tear the basil by hand.
  • 3 Thoroughly mix raw, unwashed rice with the tomato flesh, garlic, basil, 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil and salt.

Filling

3

Fill the tomatoes

  • 1 Arrange the drained tomatoes in an ovenproof dish.
  • 2 Fill about 8/10 full with the rice mixture; do not overfill because the rice expands.
  • 3 Replace the tomato lids.

Baking

4

Bake the tomatoes

  • 1 Spread 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil on the bottom of the dish and bake in an oven preheated to 200°C for 45–50 minutes.
  • 2 Add a little water during cooking if the bottom of the dish becomes dry.

Finishing

5

Rest and serve at room temperature

  • 1 Rest for at least 15 minutes and serve at room temperature.
  • 2 Also delicious cold.

Caution

Check that the surface is lightly browned and the rice completely cooked, testing firmness with a toothpick.

A view of Roma, Trastevere
Roma, TrastevereItaly Photo: wiccahwang · CC BY 2.0 (resized; display cropped)

About this dish

Stuffed ripe tomatoes often appear in Roman summer home cooking. Pomodori ripieni di riso, tomatoes filled with rice and baked, have long been enjoyed at weekend tables and as a make-ahead dish.

Easy to eat at room temperature in hot weather and possible to prepare in advance, they suit family lunches and shared meals. Many households roast potatoes alongside, extending the tomato juices into another side dish in a characteristically practical Roman way.

They remain a summer fixture in Roman delicatessens and homes. Making a complete dish without meat or fish, using only tomatoes, rice and herbs, expresses the practicality of urban home cooking.

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