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Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers

Vegetarian stuffed peppers—baked until tender and brimming with a taco-seasoned, cheesy bean-and-rice filling—are an easy, healthy dinner that’s sure to spice up your week.

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vegetarian stuffed bell peppers topped with cilantro and melted cheese in a casserole

Surprise! The Best Stuffed Peppers Just Happen to Be Vegetarian.

Cooking one food—in this case, a beany rice-and-cheese filling—inside of another food (red bell peppers) looks fiddly, but making stuffed peppers is really easy. Bell peppers are already basically hollow, so being a delicious, edible bowl for a cheesy, tomato-y filling is a role they were born to play!

These vegetarian stuffed peppers are (duh) meat-free. But, what they lack in beefiness, they more than make up for in flavor. A healthy way to indulge your craving for Mexican food, they’re taco-seasoned and loaded with black beans and pepper jack cheese for a satisfying kick.

vegetarian stuffed peppers topped with cheese and cilantro

4 Reasons to Try Our Healthy Stuffed Peppers Recipe TONIGHT.

Just in case you need a nudge, we can think of at least four terrific reasons to make these cheesy stuffed peppers ASAP.

  1. They’re really healthy. These bell peppers are essentially veggies cooked in veggies—so you could probably already tell this recipe was a healthy one, right? Rice, black beans, peppers and tomatoes conspire to make these stuffed peppers an excellent source of fiber, and the beans and cheese mean that they have plenty of protein, too.
  2. They’re SO easy. Although they take about an hour to make, this certainly qualifies as an easy stuffed peppers recipe because most of that hour is oven time.
  3. They’re good for the planet! We all know that one of the biggest, easiest steps we can take towards taking better care of the planet is eating a little less meat. Delicious vegetarian recipes like this prove that eating less meat is actually pretty painless.
  4. Our vegetarian stuffed peppers are also gluten-free, without even trying! We didn’t set out to make these gluten-free, but isn’t it nice when it just works out that way? Major bonus!
ingredients for vegetarian stuffed bell peppers in small bowls
cast iron skillet of rice, tomatoes, broth, bell peppers, onions and green onions
mexican rice in a cast iron skillet
mexican rice with beans and corn in a cast iron skillet
red bell peppers cut in half stuffed with mexican rice in a casserole dish

How to Make Stuffed Peppers

Our oven-baked, easy stuffed peppers are quick, healthy and pretty darn crowd-pleasing. They’re kind of fun to make, too, which isn’t the only reason to make them but it sure helps, doesn’t it? Anyway, here’s how easy these are:

  1. Cook the bean and Mexican rice pepper filling in a skillet to meld the flavors. Note: this stuffed pepper filling is also great on it's own!
  2. Prep the red peppers! Slice them in half, and scoop out the membranes and seeds so you’ve got sweet little red bell pepper “bowls”, ready to hold that hearty filling.
  3. Fill! Mound big spoonfuls of that tomatoey, bean-speckled rice mixture into the peppers, and top with cheese. OR, to make these vegan stuffed peppers, just leave the cheese off, or use a vegan cheese alternative.
  4. Bake! Just long enough to really soften the peppers and for the cheese to melt into the filling—about 30 minutes.
vegetarian stuffed bell peppers topped with cilantro and melted cheese in a casserole

Tools You’ll Need.

Four More Easy Vegetarian Recipes:

Meat-free doesn’t have to mean missing out. Here are four vegetarian recipes that prove it:

vegetarian stuffed peppers topped with cilantro

Gluten-Free, Healthy, Vegetarian (Nearly Vegan!) Stuffed Peppers that Taste Good, Too?

Yes! Crazy, right? We hope you’re as sold on this super easy, delicious bell pepper recipe as we are. Tell us how yours turned out! Snap a photo of your stuffed peppers, and maybe even a video of the beautiful people you share them with. Tag us on Instagram using @themodernproper and #themodernproper. Happy eating!

Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers

  • Serves: 6
  • Prep Time:  20 min
  • Cook Time:  1 hr 20 min
  • Calories: 319

Ingredients

  • 4 large red bell peppers
  • 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil or vegetable oil
  • ½ medium yellow onion, diced
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup uncooked white rice
  • 1 ⅔ cups vegetable broth
  • 1 (13.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
  • 3 to 4 green onions, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons taco seasoning (homemade or store bought)
  • 1 (13.5-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 cup frozen corn
  • 1 cup shredded pepper jack cheese
  • Minced fresh cilantro (optional)

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 400°F with a rack in the center position. Grease a 9 x 13-inch baking dish with olive oil.

  2. Trim, deseed, and dice one of the bell peppers. Halve the remaining bell peppers lengthwise, keeping the stems intact as much as possible. Discard the seeds and ribs.

  3. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once the oil is glistening, add the onion and cook, stirring, until just softened, about 4 minutes. Stir in the rice and salt and cook for about 3 minutes more. Stir in the broth, tomatoes, green onions, taco seasoning, and bell pepper.Bring the rice mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer until the rice is tender, about 25 minutes. Stir in black beans and corn, until fully combined and warmed through.

  4. Arrange the peppers in the prepared baking dish and fill them with the rice mixture, dividing evenly. Top with cheese. Bake, uncovered, until cheese is bubbling and golden brown, about 40 minutes.

5. Sprinkle with cilantro, if desired, and serve.

Nutrition Info

  • Per Serving
  • Amount
  • Calories319
  • Protein12 g
  • Carbohydrates49 g
  • Total Fat9 g
  • Dietary Fiber7 g
  • Cholesterol20 mg
  • sodium626 mg
  • Total Sugars10 g

Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers

Questions & Reviews

Join the discussion below.

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  • Toni

    Can you use quinoa instead of rice?

    Sure!

  • Jordan

    Can the filling frozen?

    Sure! Hope you enjoy Jordan!

  • Kim

    Can this be made ahead a frozen?

    We haven't tried freezing them but we think it would be just fine to do so Kim! Hope you enjoy.

  • Katrina

    Do you think it would be as good if I added canned garbanzo beans?

    Sure! Hope you enjoy Katrina!

  • Manuela Vieira DaPonte

    Can I use Brown rice in this recipe and does it change the cooking time?

    Hi Manuela, we wouldn't recommend making this change as we haven't tested our recipe with brown rice. Brown rice would change the cooking time and the amount of liquid needed in the recipe.

  • Donna

    This looks amazing and easy. It will be tonights dinner. Thank you

    Thanks Donna!

  • Barbara J Van Houten

    I made this last night for my son who is a Vegetarian. My whole family loved it. It is delicious. Not only for stuffed peppers, but on it's own as a meal with a salad or as a side dish would be great.
    This recipe is a keeper.

    Thanks Barbara, we are so happy that you loved it!

  • Tommy

    Absolutely Awesome!!

    THANK YOU!

  • Anne

    This is the second time I made these stuffed peppers. You CANNOT go wrong with this recipe!! I followed it exactly the first time and today, instead of just regular corn, I used a packet of frozen street corn from Costco. OMG. THAT made this amazing recipe even better if that is possible. Thank you so much!! PS, the men in my family don't even miss the meat!

    Thank you Anne! We are so happy the whole family loves this recipe and that you've repeated it! The street corn sounds super yummy.

  • Jim N

    This was really good. I have no food allergies and eat a pretty varied diet. The fact something is gluten free (which unless it contains barley , wheat or rye it will be) , vegetarian or even vegan doesn’t matter. These were just plain good. Half a pepper made a satisfying dinner. The pepper jack cheese was the clincher. I found a block of Cabot Pepper Jack and it melted beautifully. Make this . You will like it.

    Thanks Jim, we are so glad you loved these!