Vegetable Stuffed Braided Bread | Spicy Braided Stuffed Bread

After a break from blogging, it takes a lot of effort to get back to the routine. After a while, I joined the 'We knead to Bake' group again and this is my first bread that I have baked with them. Earlier the group admin, Aparna used to choose the breads for us to bake, but for the past couple of months the group members have been choosing the breads taking turns each month. This recipe for stuffed braided bread was suggested by Ankita Dave, one of the group members and she had used raw filling as a stuffing inside the bread. I have made several stuffed breads in the past, but have never used raw filling. This really fascinated me and tempted me to try the bread.

She had made the bread as a roll, but I wanted to try something different and hence used the braiding technique to make a braided bread which I had wanted to try out for a long time. Braiding was so much fun and the braided bread looked so pretty. The filling was a absolute hit and we just loved it. My boys were sad that there was not more to eat and have already asked me to make it again. Thanks Ankita for suggesting this bread for the group.

When thinking of what to bake for the #BreadBakers, I knew that I would not have enough time to bake 2 breads. So I used variety of peppers to work for the theme for this month suggested by Sue of A Palatable Pastime. The theme was peppers and she wanted us to bake any bread with any kind of pepper in it.

I used bell pepper as a major filling component of the bread along with a little bit of jalapeno for heat. I also used a store bought Green chili cilantro chutney to spread in the bread before adding the filling. The end product was truly peppery with the kind of heat we were looking for. It was wonderful to eat it for lunch with a bowl of hot soup.

Preparation time – 15 minutes plus 2 ½ hours of rising time
Cooking / baking time – 40 minutes
Difficulty level – medium
Recipe suggested by – Ankita Dave

Ingredients – Makes one stuffed braided bread

For the dough –

• All purpose flour – 2 cups
• Instant yeast – ¾ tsp
• Salt – 1 tsp
• Sugar – 1 tsp
• Oil – 1 tbsp (I used olive oil)
• Warm water- about ¾ cup (more or less might be needed)

For the filling –

• Bell pepper – 1 medium (finely chopped)
• Onion – 1 small (finely chopped)
• Tomato – 1 medium (finely chopped, seeds and pulp removed)
• Cilantro – a good handful (finely chopped)
• Jalapeno – ½ of a large one (deseeded and finely chopped)
• Indian chat masala – 1 tsp (can use any seasoning of your choice)
• Green chili cilantro chutney – 3 tbsp
• Feta cheese – as needed (optional)
• Salt – as needed
• Milk + Butter – 2 tbsp + 1 tsp (for brushing the bread)

Procedure to make stuffed braided bread –

To make the dough-

• I used my food processor to make the dough.
• Add the all purpose flour, yeast, salt and sugar in the food processor bowl and pulse few times to combine.
• Add the oil and then slowly add the warm water with the machine running to form soft dough.
• Knead the dough until it smooth and elastic and not sticky. I would suggest keeping the dough in a little bit stiff side as it is easy to shape.

• Place the dough in a oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap and then a kitchen towel and let it rise for about 1 ½ hours or until double in volume.

To make the filling –

• When the dough is rising, we can start to chop all the vegetables. Make sure that the vegetables are all finely chopped.
• Add all the chopped vegetables in a bowl. DO NOT ADD THE SALT OR SESAONING AT THIS POINT. We will add the salt and the seasoning just before stuffing the dough. If we add the salt at this point, the vegetables would start to sweat and become watery.

To Shape the Bread –

• Once the dough has risen, place it on a lightly floured work surface and punch it down.
• Roll it into a rectangle with the long side facing you. I transferred my rolled dough on a parchment before shaping for easy transfer to the baking sheet.
• Mark about 4 to 5 inches of space in the center of the rectangle to place the filling and then using a pizza cutter or a sharp knife, make cuts on either side of the dough to resemble thin strips. Make sure that the strips are equal on both sides and of same size. (Refer to the picture).
• Spread a thin layer of the green chili cilantro chutney in the center and then spread the filling evenly over it. Top it with the feta cheese, if using.
• Fold the top of the dough over the filling and then start to braid the dough. Starting with one side, fold the strip over the dough and then do the same on the other side. Keep braiding until there are just 3 or 4 strips left. At this point fold the bottom of the dough over the filling and then finish the braiding.

• Transfer the bread carefully on to a baking sheet.
• Cover with plastic wrap and then kitchen towel and let the dough rise for another 45 minutes to an hour.

Baking the Bread -

• Combine 2 tbsp of warm milk and 1 tsp of butter in a bowl and mix well. Brush this mixture liberally over the braided bread.

• Bake in a preheated 375 F oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the bread is evenly browned.

• Remove from the oven and let it rest for 5 minutes. Slice and enjoy the stuffed braided bread with marinara sauce on the side.

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. Follow our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated each month on this home page.

We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.

Breads with Peppers

• Bellpeppers and Cheese Scones by Basic N Delicious
• Bellpepper and Paneer Stuffed Lattice Bread by Seduce Your Tastebuds
• Bell Pepper Stuffed Whole Wheat Buns by Sara’s Tasty Buds
• Capsicum Onion Pizza with Wholegrain Base by Ambrosia
• Cheddar and Jalapeño Scones by Herbivore Cucina
• Cheese Stuffed Peppadew Stuffed Buns by Food Lust People Love
• Crushed Red Pepper Grissini by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Fatayer Jebneh by Mayuri's Jikoni
• Green Chile and Cheddar Biscuits by Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks
• Hatch Chile Zucchini Bread by Magnolia Days
• Jalapeño Bread by Cook's Hideout
• Jalapeño Flour Tortillas by Hostess At Heart
• Jalapeño Sourdough Corn Bread by Baking Sense
• Msemen Maamer - Moroccan Flatbread Stuffed with Peppers by The Bread She Bakes
• Parmesan Cracked Pepper Beer Bread by Cindy's Recipes and Writings
• Pepper Pav Buns by Sizzling Tastebuds
• Roasted Red Pepper Bread by A Shaggy Dough Story
• Roasted Red Pepper Fougasse by Spiceroots
• Spicy Herb Monkey Bread by Passion Kneaded
• Whole Wheat Spicy Rolls by Gayathri's Cook Spot
• Vegetable Stuffed Braided Bread by My Cooking Journey
• Zucchini and Pepper Cornbread by Palatable Pastime