Healthy Stuffed Bell Peppers – Gluten Free & Vegan
These easy Stuffed Bell Peppers are gluten free, vegan, and can be made with rice or quinoa. These delicious, meatless stuffed peppers are also super versatile so you can add all of your favorite Mexican ingredients!
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I used to be the person who would pick peppers out of my food when I went to a restaurant. Shameful, I know!
That was before I started making myself try new food.
So one day at the store I saw these beautiful, colorful peppers and thought “I can do this”.
Yes, because the thought of eating peppers was such a triumphant thing for me back then haha!
Little did I know stuffed bell peppers would turn out to be one of my go to meals. The great thing about them is that they are so versatile.
This healthy stuffed pepper recipe can be modified to your heart’s content.
The recipe I am sharing today is peppers, rice or quinoa, black beans, salsa, and taco seasoning. That’s it!
This base is delicious by itself, but would also be delicious with ground beef or chicken, rice, corn, diced tomatoes, grilled onions, the list goes on and on.
One thing I didn’t know about bell peppers until I started cooking with them, is that they all taste different.
It makes sense now that I think about it, but at the time I really expected them to all taste the same.
For my family, the red and green bell peppers are a bit strong for our tastes.
We really enjoy yellow and orange peppers and they seem to provide just the right amount of that bell pepper taste we are looking for.
So if you haven’t tried bell peppers before, you should experiment to see which ones you like best.
Let’s talk about how you make these gluten free and vegan stuffed bell peppers!
STUFFED BELL PEPPER RECIPE INGREDIENTS:
- Bell peppers: Different colored bell peppers taste different. The most mild ones for us are the orange and yellow ones. Use your favorite for this recipe.
- Dry quinoa or rice: You will need about 1 1/2 cups cooked rice or quinoa for this recipe.
- Low sodium vegetable broth: You can also use water to cook the quinoa/rice, but vegetable broth adds more flavor.
- Black beans:
- Taco seasoning: I use this homemade recipe but you can also use a packet of gluten free taco seasoning.
- Salsa: I will typically make this homemade salsa, but any store bought gluten free salsa will also work.
HOW TO MAKE EASY STUFFED BELL PEPPERS:
- Cook rice or quinoa: Cook in the vegetable broth or water according to package directions.
- Prepare Peppers: While the rice/quinoa is cooking, cut the tops off of the peppers remove the seeds.
- Boil Peppers: Place the peppers in a large pot and cover with water. Boil for 10 minutes or until the peppers are soft. Once the peppers are soft, drain the water and rinse with cold water to cool the peppers down. Place the peppers on a towel or paper towels to dry.
- Prepare Filling: Rinse and drain black beans. Add all ingredients to a bowl except for the peppers and taco seasoning. Mix to combine. Add half of the taco seasoning mix and stir to combine. Taste the mixture to determine if the other half of the taco seasoning is desired (we use all of it, but that may be too much seasoning for some). Add the other half of the taco seasoning if desired and stir to combine.
- Preheat oven: to 350°F.
- Stuff the Peppers: Place the peppers in a baking dish with the open side up. Stuff the peppers with a generous amount of the prepared filling.
- Bake: for 40 minutes* or until the peppers are soft and enjoy!
That’s all there is to it!
Do you all have any food that you used to pick out of your dinner when you were younger (or even older in my case)?
That list is pretty long for me since I was a very picky eater most of my life.
I would love to hear about all of the additional filling ingredients you like to use for this stuffed peppers recipe too!
I hope this recipe becomes a go to meal for your family like it has for mine!
Don’t forget to leave a comment below if you give this recipe a try!
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Stuffed Peppers – Gluten Free, and Vegan
- Prep Time: 20 min
- Cook Time: 40 min
- Total Time: 60 min
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Ingredients
- 4 large bell peppers*
- 1/2 cup dry quinoa or rice (about 1 1/2 cups cooked)
- 1 cup low sodium vegetable broth*
- 1 15oz can of black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 packet of taco seasoning or this homemade recipe
- 2/3 cup of salsa
Instructions
- Cook rice or quinoa in the vegetable broth according to package directions.
- While the rice/quinoa is cooking, cut the tops off of the peppers and remove the seeds.
- Place the peppers in a large pot and cover with water. Boil for 10 minutes or until the peppers are soft. Once the peppers are soft, drain the water and rinse with cold water to cool the peppers down. Place the peppers on a towel or paper towels to dry.
- Rinse and drain black beans.
- Add all ingredients to a bowl except for the peppers and taco seasoning. Mix to combine.
- Add half of the taco seasoning mix and stir to combine.
- Taste the mixture to determine if the other half of the taco seasoning is desired (we use all of it, but that may be too much seasoning for some).
- Add the other half of the taco seasoning if desired and stir to combine.
- Preheat your oven to 350°F.
- Place the peppers in a baking dish with the open side up.
- Stuff the peppers with a generous amount of the prepared filling.
- Bake for 40 minutes* or until the peppers are soft and enjoy!
Notes
I didn’t realize this the first time I tried them, but different colored peppers taste different! The most mild ones for us are the orange and yellow ones.
Anytime I cook quinoa or rice, I like to use low sodium vegetable broth. You can use water instead, but the vegetable broth gives the quinoa/rice such a great flavor.
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Can these peppers be cooked and then frozen?
Yes, these would make a great freezer meal. Just cook per the directions and freeze. Then pop them in the fridge the night before you are ready to eat them and then reheat in the oven. 🙂