Speca te Mbushura – Stuffed Peppers

This dish is a classic Albanian comfort food—stuffed peppers with rice and meat, or speca të mbushur. It’s popular all over the Balkans, but each country (and even each family) has its own version.

In Albania, it’s especially beloved during summer and early autumn when peppers and tomatoes are fresh and abundant. The key flavors come from the slow-cooked onions, juicy ripe tomatoes, aromatic oregano, and the natural sweetness of the peppers. The filling is made hearty with diced meat (often beef or lamb) and rice, which absorbs all the savory juices during baking.

It’s usually baked in the oven until the peppers are slightly charred and the rice has soaked up all the liquid. The dish is often enjoyed warm or even at room temperature, which makes it perfect for family gatherings or picnics.

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Ingredients:

• 10–12 peppers for stuffing
• 6–7 tomatoes for cooking
• 2 large onions or 3 medium onions
• 400 g rice
• 200–300 g meat (optional)
• Cooking oil
• Salt
• Oregano
• Pepper

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Preparation:

We clean and chop the onions. In a pan, we add the oil and start sautéing the onion over low heat. Rice casseroles cook very quickly in the oven, so we need to make sure that the other ingredients like the onion, meat, or vegetables are almost fully cooked before putting them in the oven—unless we want them to crunch in our mouths :).

We add the diced meat, cover the pan with a lid, and let the ingredients cook on low heat. Meanwhile, we peel the tomatoes and chop them (I prefer chopping them with a knife rather than using a food processor for this dish). When the meat and onions have taken on color and have absorbed their own juices, we add the tomatoes, some salt, and let them simmer until the mixture thickens, with a lid on and over medium heat.

We clean the peppers. Set aside their tops, cut them into pieces, and add them to the stew that’s cooking. When the mixture has thickened and the vegetables and meat are well cooked, we season with salt, pepper, and plenty of oregano.

To this mixture, I add two large cups of rice or 400 grams. We turn off the heat at the moment we add the rice. In a pot, for every 2 cups of rice, we use 4 cups of water and let it boil. We fill the peppers one by one, not too tightly. The remaining rice is placed in between the peppers.

Meanwhile, we preheat the oven to 220°C (428°F), set to the middle rack. Add salt to the water used for boiling and pour it over the tray where we’ve laid out the peppers. Use a spoon to evenly distribute the rice in the tray.

Halfway through baking, we take out the tray and turn the peppers to the other side so they cook evenly on both sides. The dish is ready when the rice has absorbed all the water. We turn off the oven and take the tray out immediately (otherwise, the casserole will keep cooking in the oven’s residual heat).

Let the dish rest for at least 30 minutes before serving.
Enjoy your meal!