Stuffed tomatoes are the perfect weekend dish, when you’re willing to spend a bit of time in the kitchen while the oven does most of the work. We usually prepare them when tomatoes are ripe, at the end of spring and in summer, or as soon as you find real fleshy tomatoes that smell like crushed leaves. Here, the beef and veal stuffing gives a family-friendly, generous result without being heavy.
Ingredients :
- Tomatoes for stuffing — They serve both as a container and natural sauce, so you need ripe but firm tomatoes, heavy in hand and fragrant near the stem. Avoid overly soft tomatoes—they collapse in the oven and give too watery juice.
- Ground beef — It brings the bold flavor of the stuffing and a nice golden color after cooking. Choose beef that isn’t too lean, around 12-15% fat, otherwise the stuffing can become dry and grainy.
- Ground veal — It softens the beef and makes the stuffing more tender, with a finer texture in the mouth. If you can’t find it, replace it with ground turkey, but add a drizzle of olive oil to keep it moist.
- Bread soaked in milk — This is what prevents the stuffing from compacting like an overdone meatball. Use plain sandwich bread or leftover white bread without a hard crust, well soaked then lightly squeezed.
