This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Gemista are a Greek stuffed veggies, and they’re so dang good. There are so many variations of this dish that include different types of stuffing’s, and different veggies you stuff. You can totally get creative here, or use what you have on hand.
Why you’ll love Gemista:
- Versatile: Swap out the protein for whatever you have on hand or what you prefer, and use your fav veggie to stuff. Tomatoes, and peppers are great options.
- Traditional: Gemista is a traditional Greek dish and us Greeks love them!
- Perfect for Summer: Although these are good all-year-round, they’re also great for summer with the seasonal produce
Ingredients:
Fresh Herbs: Use fresh herbs here where possibly to really get that fresh pop of flavor.
Maria Koutsogiannia
Maria is the creator of FoodByMaria and your go-to Greek food expert for cozy, flavor-packed recipes. Inspired by her Mediterranean roots, she brings traditional Greek flavors, feel-good ingredients, and a whole lot of joy to everyday cooking.
Bell Peppers: Did you know sweet peppers actually have more vitamin C in them than an orange? They’re so good for you and great for immune-boosting.
Protein: Feel free to use crumbled feta or ground meat into these Greek stuffed veggies.
How to make gemista:
- Preheat oven to 375F and set a large baking dish aside.
- Grate the onion and the garlic or pulse into a grated/finely chopped texture in a food processor. Set aside in a large mixing bowl. Add the canned Roma tomatoes to the food processor and pulse until fully broken down. Add the large mixing bowl with the onion and garlic.
- Prepare the vegetables: Cut off the tops of the tomatoes (about half an inch from the top) and use a spoon to remove the insides leaving around a ½ inch from the outside of the tomato. SAVE the insides of the tomatoes and the tops. Cut the tops off the peppers and remove the white veins and seeds on the inside. Set aside the tops of the peppers. Arrange the tomatoes and peppers in a baking dish. Chop up the saved insides of the tomatoes and add those with the tomato juices to the large mixing bowl with the onion and garlic.
- Add the rice, mint, parsley, vegetable stock paste, salt and pepper, and 4 tbsp olive oil to the onion and garlic mixing bowl.
- Add the tomatoes and peppers to the large baking dish. Spoon the rice stuffing mixture into the tomatoes and peppers, filling each about 3/4 of the way. Top each vegetable with their corresponding top.
- Spread the potato wedges around the vegetables and season with salt, peppers and 1/2 tbsp dried oregano.
- Any liquid left in the bowl from the rice mixture, pour it into the base of the baking dish and add 2 – 2 1/2 cups cup of water or stock to the pan. Drizzle 4 tbsp olive oil over everything. Bake in the oven for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until the rice is cooked and potatoes are tender (check at 1 hour).
- Serve with the potatoes, more olive oil, feta and tzatziki.
Expert Tips & FAQ:
What is Gemista made of? Literally they translate to “filled with” and they can be filled with a variety of ingredients such as different meats and protein, just veggies and rice, and so much more.
What is Gemista in English? The translation from Greek to English is “filled with”.
Where is Gemista from? Gemista’s are from the Greek culture. They are stuffed veggies and come in a variety of different versions.
What is another name for stuffed peppers? In Greek they are called gemista’s and they are so dang good (and good for you).
Other Greek recipes you’ll love:
Find more recipes like this in my healthy Greek dinners guide.
Save this recipe for later
Watch the Video
Ingredients
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1 medium yellow onion
- 4 bell peppers (red and orange)
- 4 sturdy, large tomatoes
- 1 ⅓ cups basmati rice
- ⅓ cup fresh chopped parsley
- ⅓ cup fresh chopped mint
- 1 tbsp vegetable stock paste
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1x 398ml can roma tomatoes
- 8 tbsp olive oil
- 3 large russet potatoes, cut into wedges
- ½ tbsp dried oregano
- 2- 2 ½ cups water, chicken or vegetable stock
Instructions
Start Cooking- Preheat oven to 375F and set a large baking dish aside.
- Grate the onion and the garlic or pulse into a grated/finely chopped texture in a food processor. Set aside in a large mixing bowl. Add the canned roma tomatoes to the food processor and pulse until fully broken down. Add them to the large mixing bowl with the onion and garlic.
- Prepare the vegetables: Cut off the tops of the tomatoes (about half inch from top) and use a spoon to remove the insides leaving around a ½ inch from the outside of the tomato. SAVE the insides of the tomatoes and the tops. Cut the tops off the peppers and remove the white veins and seeds on the inside. Set aside the tops of the peppers. Arrange the tomatoes and peppers in a baking dish. Chop up the saved insides of the tomatoes (or use a food processor) and add those with the tomato juices to the large mixing bowl with the onion and garlic.
- To the bowl with the onions and garlic, add the rice, mint, parsley, vegetable stock paste, 1 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper and 4 tbsp olive oil.
- Add the tomatoes and peppers to the large baking dish. Spoon the rice stuffing mixture into the tomatoes and peppers, filling each about 3/4 of the way. Top each vegetable with their corresponding top.
- Spread out the potato wedges around the vegetables and season with 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper and 1/2 tbsp dried oregano.
- Any liquid left in the bowl from the rice mixture, pour it into the base of the baking dish and add 2 – 2 1/2 cups cup of water or stock to the pan. Drizzle 4 tbsp olive oil over everything. Bake in the oven for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until the rice is cooked and potatoes are tender (check at 1 hour).
- Serve with potatoe wedges from the pan, feta, tzatziki, more oil and enjoy!
Notes
- Keep leftovers in the fridge for up to 3 days in an airtight container.
- Serve with one of our favourite Greek salads – Maroulosalata or Greek Cabbage Salad.
17 people are discussing this recipe. Join in
I love how you highlight the tradition behind gemista! It reminds me of my grandmother’s kitchen back home, where every summer we’d pick fresh vegetables together. Your recipe made me reflect on those cherished moments while inspiring me to create my own family memories now. speed stars
Hi Maria,
If we add ground beef to the recipes, should it be sautéed separately and then added to the tomato and rice mixture?
Thank you
My family add it raw! It will cook in the oven!
Roasted, stuffed vegetables is the ultimate “Sunday” home comfort meal.. also my favorite type of dish. I was fortunate and blessed enough to try this and can honestly say I was smiling after every bite, what a memorable dish! Bravo!
thank you so much, karson!!!
Rice never cooked after 2 1/2 hours. Recommend cooking rice in advance
Hey Olivia, that should not have happened, our rice cooked within 60 minnutes. Can you walk me through what could have gone wrong because I would 100% no advise cooking the rice first.
This dish is absolutely delicious! The fresh herbs are such a great compliment to the richness of the rice tomatoes. The potatoes come out perfectly tender and full of flavor. All of these elements with a bit of feta….the perfect bite! This recipe is going on our weekly rotation!
Thank you so much, sweetheart! This means so much to me!
Amazing recipe! My only issue was the rice took longer than expected to cook, but it tasted so good and was worth the wait 🙂
Hey Catherine! That is fair, some ovens are different than others but I am so glad it worked out in the end!
I love this recipe, it has very little work and comes out beautifully. I always look for FoodbyMaria recipes because they are easy to follow and the ingredients listed are easy to find. These recipes are healthy and you can double them up and seconds or have leftovers for the next day.
Thank you so much for the love, Paula!
I madde this and it was really good but danggg mine did not turn out as pretty lookin as urs
so glad you enjoyed yours though! That’s all that matters!
this recipe is hearty and really tasty
Thank you so much, Mike!