Greek beef stuffed onions

Brown half the ground beef in a generous amount of olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat, breaking it into small crumbles.

Add diced onion, black pepper, salt and a few shakes of cayenne; cook, stirring, a few minutes until the onions turn translucent and start to colour.

Add minced garlic, a generous spoon of dried oregano and a couple tablespoons of tomato paste; stir until everything is coated, then cook a minute or two.

Mix in raw basmati rice until coated with the oil and fat, then add a splash of red wine vinegar and a cup or so of chicken broth.

Reduce to medium and cook, stirring, until the rice absorbs all the liquid; turn off the heat and let cool.

Slice about an inch off each end of the large yellow onions, make one cut straight down to the center, and pull off the papery outer layer.

Put the onions in a pot of cold water generously seasoned with salt, bring to a simmer on high, then hold a steady simmer at medium low 20 to 30 minutes, until the layers separate.

Combine the cooled beef and rice with the rest of the beef raw, a little crumbled feta and a handful of chopped parsley, oregano and mint; mix thoroughly and refrigerate.

Keep the onion water: bring four cups of it to a simmer in a saucepan with a few cups of tomato sauce and chicken bouillon paste, then hold it hot on low.

Fill each onion layer with a couple heaping tablespoons of filling and roll it up; the middle layers are long enough and more tender than the big outer ones.

Lay torn centre pieces in the bottom of the largest baking dish, arrange the rolls, and ladle in the cooking liquid. Set on a sheet pan and cover with foil.

Bake at 375F covered for the first hour, then uncovered until the rice is tender, past the two hour mark in total.

Drizzle with olive oil, finish with a pinch of herb, and rest about 10 minutes before serving.