Baking, Stuffing and Gratins
Cooking Skills: Vegetables 1
Chapter 8 · Baking, Stuffing and Gratins
Skill goal
Bake stuffed vegetables and gratins so the shell, filling and topping are all cooked through.
Shopping list for this chapter
The basics
Stuffed vegetables and gratins look impressive but are really baking with a plan. The problem to solve is always the same: the vegetable and its filling or sauce need to finish cooking at the same time, and the middle has to be hot all the way through.
Which vegetables to stuff
| Vegetable | Prepare | Pre-cook? |
|---|---|---|
| Peppers | Halve lengthways, remove the seeds | Yes, 10 minutes in the oven or 3 minutes boiled |
| Courgettes, marrow | Halve and scoop out the flesh | Yes, 10 minutes (the flesh goes in the filling) |
| Aubergines | Halve, scoop out the flesh, leaving a thick shell | Yes, 20 minutes: they take longer |
| Tomatoes (large) | Cut off the top, scoop out the seeds | No: bake for 20 to 25 minutes |
| Onions, squash | Hollow out, or halve | Yes: they are dense |
| Mushrooms (large) | Remove the stalk | No: 15 to 20 minutes |
The filling
- Moist, not wet. A filling that is too wet makes the shell soggy, but a dry filling is stodgy. A little sauce or oil holds it together.
- Already cooked, or at least things that cook in the time: soft vegetables, cooked grains, breadcrumbs, cheese, herbs, nuts.
- Well seasoned, because the shell is mild and the filling has to carry the flavour.
- Cool before filling if it contains rice or other cooked grains, so it doesn't sit warm for long.
The sauce for a gratin
A white sauce (butter and flour cooked together, then milk) is the base of cauliflower cheese and most gratins. Add the milk slowly while stirring, and simmer for a few minutes to lose the raw-flour taste. Cheese goes in off the heat, so it stays smooth.
When is it done?
- A knife slides into the vegetable with no resistance.
- The filling is steaming hot in the middle, and bubbling at the edges for a gratin.
- The top is golden. If it browns before the middle is hot, cover with foil.
- Rest for 5 to 10 minutes so that the filling sets and doesn't burn the mouth.
Try it
Level 1 · Start here
Stuffed peppers
Peppers are the easiest stuffed vegetable: they hold their shape and are quick to prepare. Set the oven to 200°C (180°C fan).
Ingredients (2 portions)
- 2 large peppers, halved lengthways and deseeded
- 150 g cooked couscous or cooked rice (cooled)
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp oil
- 1 tomato, diced
- 50 g grated cheese
- 1 tbsp chopped herbs (parsley, basil)
- 1 pinch salt and pepper
- Roast the pepper halves, cut side up, on a tray with a little oil for 10 minutes to start softening them.
- Meanwhile, fry the onion in the oil for 5 minutes until soft. Stir in the grain, tomato, herbs, half the cheese, salt and pepper.
- Spoon the filling into the pepper halves, mounding it slightly. Top with the rest of the cheese.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the peppers are tender and the filling is steaming hot in the middle, with the top golden.
Rice and grains
Cooked rice and grains: cool cooked rice quickly (ideally within 1 hour), keep it in the fridge, eat within 1 day, and reheat only once until steaming hot all the way through. Cooked rice can carry spores of a bacterium that survive cooking and multiply at room temperature, so don't leave it standing out.
Level 2 · Scoop and fill
Stuffed courgettes (or aubergines)
Courgettes are watery. Scooping out the middle and cooking it down in the pan keeps the filling from being soggy. Aubergines work the same way, but need longer.
Ingredients (2 portions)
- 2 medium courgettes
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 1 garlic clove, chopped
- 1 tbsp oil
- 40 g breadcrumbs
- 40 g grated cheese or feta
- 1 tbsp chopped herbs
- 1 pinch salt and pepper
- Halve the courgettes lengthways and scoop out the flesh, leaving a shell about 1 cm thick. Chop the flesh. Place the shells on a tray and bake at 200°C (180°C fan) for 10 minutes (aubergines: 20 minutes).
- Fry the onion in the oil for 5 minutes, add the garlic and chopped flesh and cook for 5 to 8 minutes until the liquid has gone.
- Off the heat, stir in half the breadcrumbs and cheese, herbs, salt and pepper. Fill the shells and top with the remaining crumbs and cheese.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until golden and the shells are tender.
Level 2 · Layered
Vegetable tian (a layered bake)
A tian is just thin slices of vegetables arranged in rows and baked until tender. Ratatouille is the stewed version. Use a shallow baking dish.
Ingredients (3 portions)
- 1 courgette, thinly sliced
- 1 aubergine, thinly sliced
- 3 tomatoes, thinly sliced
- 1 onion, finely sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp dried thyme or herbes de Provence
- 1 pinch salt and pepper
- Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil, soften the onion and garlic for 8 minutes, and spread on the bottom of the dish.
- Overlap the vegetable slices in rows, standing them on their edges and alternating, so they fill the dish tightly.
- Drizzle with the remaining oil, scatter with thyme, salt and pepper, and cover with foil or baking paper.
- Bake at 190°C (170°C fan) for 35 minutes covered, then 15 to 20 minutes uncovered until tender and the edges are browned.
Slice evenly
Slices of the same thickness (about 3 mm) cook together. A sharp knife works, and a mandolin is quicker, with the guard on.
Level 3 · Sauce
Cheesy vegetable gratin
A gratin is a dish topped with sauce and crumbs, baked until golden. Cook the vegetables first so they only need to brown. Set the oven to 200°C (180°C fan).
Ingredients (3 portions)
- 1 small cauliflower, in florets
- 2 leeks, sliced thickly
- 25 g butter
- 25 g plain flour
- 300 ml milk
- 80 g strong cheese, grated
- 1 tsp mustard (optional)
- 2 tbsp breadcrumbs
- 1 pinch salt, pepper and nutmeg
- Boil the cauliflower and leeks in salted water for 5 to 6 minutes, until nearly tender. Drain well and tip into a baking dish.
- Melt the butter, stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Add the milk a little at a time, stirring to avoid lumps, and simmer for 3 to 4 minutes until thick.
- Off the heat, stir in most of the cheese, mustard, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Pour over the vegetables.
- Scatter with the crumbs and remaining cheese and bake for 20 to 25 minutes until bubbling and golden.
Experiments
Experiment
Pre-cooked or raw shell
Peppers.
- Fill four pepper halves with the same filling. Bake two straight away, and bake two after 10 minutes of pre-roasting. Bake all for the same total time.
Look for: The raw shells are firmer, sometimes underdone; the pre-roasted shells are tender and sweet. Note the difference in time.
Experiment
Wet or dry filling
Soggy test.
- Fill two courgette shells: one with a filling that has been cooked down until dry, and one with the raw chopped flesh stirred in.
Look for: The raw filling releases water and leaves the shell sitting in liquid. The cooked-down filling holds together.
Experiment
Covered or uncovered
Tian or gratin.
- Bake two small dishes of the tian: one under foil for the whole time, one uncovered.
Look for: Covered vegetables steam and stay soft and pale; uncovered ones brown and dry out. Many recipes use both.
Experiment
Rest or serve at once
The 10-minute pause.
- Cut into one portion of gratin straight from the oven. Leave another for 10 minutes, then cut.
Look for: The rested gratin holds its shape and is not scalding hot; the unrested one runs and burns the mouth.
Tasting notes
| What I tried | Method or amount | What I saw | What I thought | Will I do it again? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stuffed peppers | ||||
| Stuffed courgettes | ||||
| Vegetable tian | ||||
| Cheesy vegetable gratin | ||||
| Pre-cooked vs raw shell | ||||
| Wet vs dry filling | ||||
| Covered vs uncovered | ||||
| Rested vs not |
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Likely cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Hard shell, hot filling | Shell not pre-cooked | Pre-roast firm vegetables first |
| Soggy bottom | Wet filling or watery vegetable | Cook the filling down; drain water from the dish |
| Burnt top, cold middle | Oven too hot, or dish too deep | Cover with foil; lower the heat; bake longer |
| Lumpy sauce | Milk added too quickly | Whisk hard; sieve if needed; add milk gradually next time |
| Bland filling | Under-seasoned | Taste the filling before filling the shells |
| Grainy cheese sauce | Boiled after adding the cheese | Add cheese off the heat |
Hot dishes and food safety
Hot oven and trays: use dry oven gloves (a damp one conducts heat), pull the shelf out a little rather than reaching in, and put hot trays on a heatproof surface. Open the door and step back, because the steam is hot.Cooked rice and grains: cool cooked rice quickly (ideally within 1 hour), keep it in the fridge, eat within 1 day, and reheat only once until steaming hot all the way through. Cooked rice can carry spores of a bacterium that survive cooking and multiply at room temperature, so don't leave it standing out.
If you add meat: any minced meat or sausage in a filling must be cooked right through to steaming hot, with no pink and clear juices (70°C for 2 minutes), and the meat added raw must be cooked in the filling, not left in the stuffing to warm slowly.
Leftovers: cool cooked vegetables quickly (within 1 to 2 hours), keep them covered in the fridge, and eat within 2 days. Reheat until steaming hot all the way through, and only once.
Checkpoint: can you do this now?
- I know which vegetables to pre-cook.
- I can make a moist, well-seasoned filling.
- I can make a simple cheese sauce.
- I can tell when a stuffed vegetable or gratin is cooked through.
- I rest bakes before serving.
Next chapter
Cooking Skills: Vegetables 1, chapter 9 is Putting It Together: planning vegetables for a week and for guests.