Peppers, Tomato & Bean Stew with Halloumi

PREP TIME: 15mins

COOKING TIME: 20mins

A delicious Spanish inspired family favourite of slowly cooked peppers with beans and topped with grilled halloumi.

Make it in just 25 minutes for a quick and easy midweek supper!

This is such a good late summer dish when peppers are in season and in abundance.

Like mozzarella, not all halloumi are made equal, often bland and rubbery, try to find one that you like, preferably one generously salted. Try to source your halloumi from a good deli or market and I tend to find the more interesting the milk used, for instance goat or buffalo the better the halloumi tend to taste.

To keep the washing up minimal, serve in the same pan and arm yourself with a stack of pita breads and just dig right in.

Vegan: The dish is equally delicious without the halloumi. You can fry some smoked tofu in the same manner as the halloumi, just season generously before serving.

Getting Ahead: The pepper dish can be made ahead but the halloumi is best fried just before serving.

Seasonal Swaps: You can use any beans you have at home, I found that 2 cans drained worked for the 4 of us. You can add a generous cup of fresh cherry tomatoes instead of canned, just slice in half and add them along with the peppers and onions at the start. You can swap coriander for parsley.

Serves 4

 

Serving Suggestion:

It would be amazing as part of a tapas menu, with some guacamole, soured cream and some chilli’s on the side. Have lots of ‘dippy’ things around like toasted pita breads, flatbreads or corn nachos. It will also be great topped over a baked sweet potato, potato or fluffy couscous.

What you'll need:

A large wide saucepan if you have one, think paella!

Ingredients:

  • 5 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 small onions, very finely chopped
  • 2 large red peppers, thinly sliced (or a mixture of smaller multi coloured peppers) about 2 cups
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1 chilli, deseeded, finely chopped or a pinch of chilli flakes (opt)
  • 1 tablespoon Spanish smoked sweet paprika
  • 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  • 1 can mixed beans, drained
  • 1 x 400g tin chopped tomatoes
  • 1 x 400g tin cherry tomatoes (or chopped)
  • 320g halloumi, sliced into thickish slices
  • 10g coriander, leaves picked, stalks finely chopped & leaves finely chopped
  • salt & pepper

Method:

  1. Add the oil to a large saucepan, add the onions, chopped coriander stalks and peppers and sautée on a medium heat until soft, about 10minutes.
  2. Add the garlic, cumin and smoked paprika, stir until fragrant.
  3. Add the tomato paste and chillies if using and 1 teaspoon of salt and stir for about 3 minutes.
  4. Add the chopped tomatoes and the drained beans, stir and gently simmer for 10 minutes.
  5. Meanwhile, heat a little oil in a large non stick pan, add the halloumi slices and fry until golden on both sides.
  6. Season the pepper dish, sprinkle with coriander and top with the halloumi. Enjoy!

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