Most stuffed bell pepper recipes have meat in them so I wanted to create a vegetarian version that’s still filling and JUST as tasty! Seriously love how this recipe turned out and I kind of want to eat them on a DAILY basis. Come summer (when bell peppers are CHEAP and abundant), I plan to make these weekly :D

this recipe

I’ve leaving tomorrow morning for Gatlinburg, TN to spend a long weekend in a cabin with some friends. This will be our 5th year in a row going it’s become one of our FAVORITE trips each year. We do pretty much nothing but eat, drink, sleep and most importantly: spend a LOT of time in the hot tub.

That being said, Im going to keep this pretty short and sweet today.

STUFFED BELL PEPPERS.

They’re pretty easy to throw together (especially if you go the extra lazy route and use pre-cooked lentils and rice). They’re fully vegan and vegetarian since I really wanted to create a good meat free version. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

The nice thing about these peppers is that they’re very versatile. You can swap out the veggies if you want, use quinoa or brown rice in place of the white, and even swap the lentils for chickpeas or something like that. I’m always a fan of easily adaptable recipes so that you can use what you have on hand/ what you prefer best :D

What’s in these stuffed peppers:

Let’s do a quick run down of the ingredients in this recipe. Again feel free to make substitutions as you see fit!

  • Bell peppers (duh :D)- use whatever color you prefer/ have on hand/ find cheapest. I always love a mixture of colors for aesthetics
  • Rice– I pretty much always use basmati rice because I LOVE IT and we buy it in bulk so I always have it on hand. HERE is my favorite method for cooking basmati rice in my instant pot. But again, you could swap this for quinoa, brown rice, etc.
  • Lentils– I wanted to bulk this up a bit and add in a good source of plant based protein, hence the lentils :) ONCE again, you could swap this for something else or even leave it out if you’d prefer. I most often buy pre-cooked lentils when making a recipe like this.
  • Veggies– I used onion, mushrooms, and zucchini in this recipe but those could really be swapped for any other similar veggies!
  • Tomato Sauce– I wanted these to have a bit of an Italian Stuffed Peppers feel so the Italian seasoning and tomato sauce really give it that vibe and I love it.

To make these, you simple saute the veggies a bit to soften them and then add in the remaining ingredients. Once the stuffing is done, it’s just a matter of putting it into the bell peppers and then baking them for about 40 minutes.

Simple and EASY!

More delicious recipes to try:

See how to make the stuffed peppers here:

Print
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Vegan Stuffed Peppers

  • Author: Brita Britnell
  • Total Time: 55 minutes
  • Yield: 4 servings 1x
  • Diet: Vegan
Print Recipe

Description

Fully vegetarian and vegan stuffed bell peppers that are filling and easy to make!

Ingredients

Scale
  • 3 bell peppers, cut in half (any color)
  • 1 tablespoon of olive oil
  • 1 medium zucchini, chopped into bite small sized pieces
  • ¾ cup of cooked lentils (can sub for tofu or tempeh as well)*
  • 1 cup of cooked rice, white or brown
  • 8oz mushrooms, roughly chopped
  • 1 small sweet onion, chopped, about a cup
  • 3 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1 can of tomato sauce, divided
  • ½ teaspoon of salt and fresh black pepper
  • 1 ½ teaspoons of Italian seasoning

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and grease a medium casserole dish.
  2. If you haven’t already done so, go ahead and cook the lentils and rice.
  3. In a large skillet, heat the the oil over medium heat. Once hot, add in the onion, garlic, and mushrooms and saute for 5 minutes, stirring often.
  4. Add in the zucchini, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, and 3/4 of the tomato sauce (setting the rest aside for topping later). Stir to combine and bring to a simmer. Cooke for 3 additional minutes and then remove from the heat.
  5. Mix in the cooked rice and lentils until fully combined.
  6. Remove the seeds and white bits from your bell peppers and place them in your greased baking dish. Stuff the peppers evenly with the veggie/ rice mixture and top evenly with the remaining tomato sauce.
  7. Bake for 40 minutes. Let cool slightly and ENJOY!

Notes

*Many stores sell pre-cooked lentils and I love those in this dish for the ease of cooking!

  • Prep Time: 5 minutes
  • Cook Time: 50 minutes
  • Category: dinner
  • Method: baking
  • Cuisine: american

Keywords: stuffed peppers, vegan stuffed peppers, stuffed bell peppers