Greek Stuffed Onions
Onions like you've never tasted them before! Stuff with an easy but fragrant spinach and feta stuffing, then bake in a simple tomato sauce. These Greek style stuffed onions are surprisingly tasty, and will have all your guests running back for seconds. Perfect for Thanksgiving or Christmas, and the leftovers make a fantastic lunch!
Servings: 6 to 10 (as a side dish)
Ingredients
For the onions and stuffing
- 7 medium to large onions (6 to 8, any kind) peeled and with any tough outer layers taken off
- 10 ounces fresh spinach (about 6 to 7 cups) or replace with frozen spinach, defrosted and with liquid squeezed out
- ½ large zucchini (about 1½ cups), grated
- 4 cloves garlic crushed
- 1½ cups cooked rice (about 9 ounces/250 grams)
- 9 ounces feta cheese crumbled (about 1 cup)
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon allspice
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 cup fresh parsley washed and chopped
- ¼ cup fresh mint washed and chopped
- ¼ cup fresh dill washed and chopped
- ¼ cup pine nuts toasted or not (your choice)
- ¼ cup raisins or other similar dried fruit such as sultanas or currants
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
For the tomato sauce
- 14 ounces canned tomatoes chopped or crushed (1 regular sized can)
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic crushed
- 1 tablespoon honey or a teaspoon of sugar
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- Start by cutting the very ends off the onions. Then boil them in a large saucepan or other pot of water for about 10 minutes.7 medium to large onions
- Use a slotted spoon to lift them out of the water and onto a chopping board. Cut a bit more off one end, enough to use a fork to pull the inner layers out, leaving a shell that's 2 to 4 layers thick. You might be able to do this twice if the onions are on the larger side, getting two stuffable shells out of each onion. Chop any leftover onion into pieces (you'll add it to the sauce).
- Place the onion shells in a large baking dish, then set aside for now. Pre-heat the oven to 350F/175C (fan oven, or 375F/190C in a conventional oven) while you make the stuffing and sauce.
- Wilt the spinach in a large colander by pouring boiling water over it (if you like, use the water from the boiled onions). Rinse with cold water, then squeeze out most of the water. Chop and add to a large bowl.10 ounces fresh spinach
- Add all of the other stuffing ingredients to the bowl, then mix well. Use a teaspoon to stuff the onion shells with it, packing it down well.½ large zucchini, 4 cloves garlic, 1½ cups cooked rice, 9 ounces feta cheese, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, ½ teaspoon dried thyme, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, ½ teaspoon allspice, ½ teaspoon ground cumin, 1 cup fresh parsley, ¼ cup fresh mint, ¼ cup fresh dill, ¼ cup pine nuts, ¼ cup raisins, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon pepper
- To make the sauce, mix together all the ingredients, as well as the leftover cooked onion pieces. Pour it all around the stuffed onions.14 ounces canned tomatoes, ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil, 3 cloves garlic, 1 tablespoon honey, ½ teaspoon dried oregano, ¾ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon pepper
- Cover the stuffed onions and sauce with aluminium foil and bake for about 30 minutes. Then remove the foil and bake for a further 15 minutes, or until the onions are lightly golden in parts and the sauce is bubbling and slightly reduced.
Notes
A note about the stuffing: Note that this recipe makes quite a lot of the stuffing. You can freeze the leftovers to make the dish again, or just halve the amounts if you really only want enough to make it one time. Alternatively, use the leftovers to stuff a whole chicken!
Serving ideas: Serve as a side dish with meat, fish or a vegetarian main. Alternatively, serve by itself for lunch with bread.
Alternative ingredients ideas: You can easily replace or add to the zucchini with grated or finely chopped eggplant, carrot, or mushrooms. You can also add a bit of cooked ground meat, different grains, couscous or quinoa, or even lentils.
Make ahead and storage instructions: You can fully assemble and bake this dish up to a few days ahead. Just cover well and store in the refrigerator. When ready to serve, reheat covered with aluminium foil at 350F/175C for around 30 minutes or until piping hot again. You can also microwave individual portions for 2-3 minutes or, again, until piping hot in the middle of the onions.
You can also freeze the dish, or any leftovers, for 1 to 2 months. Defrost in the refrigerator overnight, then reheat as described above. Bear in mind that the rice may have a different texture after being frozen, but it shouldn't affect the dish too much overall.
Nutrition
Calories: 352kcal | Carbohydrates: 30g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 38mg | Sodium: 1308mg | Potassium: 698mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 5834IU | Vitamin C: 42mg | Calcium: 335mg | Iron: 4mg
