As a kid, I loved my mom’s green bell peppers stuffed with hamburger and rice, topped with ketchup. Here’s my own version, updated with lean ground buffalo and brown rice.

Steps

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
2. Prep the peppers: Cut ½ inch off the top of the peppers and remove their ribs and seeds. Chop the pepper tops and set aside. Blanch the whole peppers in the boiling water, pushing down with a spoon to submerge, until bright green (or red) and almost soft, about 3 minutes. Drain and set aside.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
4. Prep the remaining ingredients: Pour enough olive oil into a large skillet to coat the bottom. Over medium heat, cook the onions until soft and starting to brown, about 10 minutes. Add the reserved chopped peppers and continue to cook for a couple of minutes. Add the chopped garlic and dried herbs and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the meat and cook, breaking it up with the edge of a large spoon, until no longer red, about 3 minutes. Turn off the heat. Add the cooked rice and tomatoes to the meat mixture. Season to taste with salt and pepper and mix well.
5. Assemble the dish: Stuff the blanched and cooled pepper bottoms with the filling and arrange in a baking dish. In a small bowl, thin the ketchup with a couple of tablespoons of water, then spoon it over the top of the filled peppers. Add enough water to cover the bottom of the baking dish.
6. Bake for 1 hour. Serve hot.