It’s the stuffed peppers a classic of Mediterranean cuisine and typical tapas and appetizers in the many bars and taverns of this area: peppers stuffed with rice, cod, tuna… However, we can find recipes various stuffed peppers in many other cuisines around the worldas in North American, Mexican, Guatemalan, Hong Kong cuisine, as well as from Central European or Middle Eastern countries.
Here we will tell you how stuffed peppers are made, what peppers are used and what are the most common fillings, but first we will give you: Ideas for making vegetable stuffed peppers and we’ll give you three recipes for healthy and nutritious stuffed peppers so you can start enjoying them right away.
How to make stuffed peppers
To make stuffed peppers: different types of peppers can be usedgreen, red, yellow, long, round, small, sweet or hot peppers, fresh peppers or piquillo peppers from the boat. To complete them, they can be cut in half or used whole.
A wide variety of fillers can be used. It the most common fillings They are rice, meat, fish, cheese, vegetables or thick sauces.
When they are filled,they can be gratin in the oven, batter or fry and serve with different sauces: tomato sauce, pepper sauce, pesto…
In vegan or vegetarian cooking there are also many options. We can stuff peppers with all kinds of vegetables, legumes, vegan béchamel or plant-based proteins. The important thing is make sure the filling is juicy and season well.
3 delicious vegetarian stuffed pepper recipes
Here are three stuffed pepper recipes to try. They don’t have meat or fish, but all three are delicious, very nutritious and high in protein.
Burrito style stuffed peppers
This Red Bean and Rice Stuffed Peppers recipe has all the flavors of a burrito, but presented in a slightly different way.
INGREDIENTS FOR 4 PEOPLE
- 4 small red or green bell peppers
- 300 g of cooked red beans
- 200 g of cooked brown rice
- 75 g of corn
- 300 g of fresh or canned tomatoes, finely chopped
- 1 onion
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
- 1 teaspoon of cumin powder
- 1 teaspoon of smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon of oregano
- 1 teaspoon cayenne
- 1 teaspoon maple syrup or a pinch of stevia (optional)
- 8 tablespoons of coriander
- 1 tablespoon of nutritional yeast
- 200 g cheese for melting (grated dairy or vegan)
- 1 avocado
- 1 lima
- slab
PREPARATION (20′ + 40′ cooking).
- Preheat oven at 200 degrees and line a baking tray with parchment paper.
- Wash the peppers, cut them in half and remove the seeds. Bake the pepper for 20 minutes.
- At the same time, prepare the filling. Peel and chop the onion and garlic.
- in a pan heat the oil. Add the onion and garlic and fry for about 7 minutes until translucent.
- add the spices and cook for about 30 seconds to flavor the oil. Add the tomatoes, nutritional yeast, salt, sweetener if you are going to use it, and the beans and cook for about 20 minutes.
- Add rice and corn, mix and turn off the fire. Reserve 2 tablespoons of the cilantro for garnish and stir the rest into the filling along with half the cheese. Correct the salt.
- stuff the pepper sprinkle the filling with the rest of the cheese and hpee for another 10 minutes.
- Serve with fresh cilantro, lime and diced avocado.
Piquillo Peppers Stuffed with Mushrooms and Spinach in Romesco Sauce (Vegan Recipe)
Stuffed piquillo peppers are a classic appetizer in Mediterranean cuisine. In this recipe, they are a much healthier version, stuffed with vegetables and ideal for any celebration.
INGREDIENTS FOR 4 PEOPLE
- 18 piquillo peppers
- 200 g of arrows
- 100 g of spinach
- 60 g of almond flour
- 400 ml of almond drink
- half an onion
- 3 cloves of garlic
- 4 tablespoons of roasted almonds
- 2 tablespoons of sun-dried tomatoes in oil
- 6 tablespoons of olive oil
- 1 teaspoon of wine vinegar
- A pinch of nutmeg
- a pinch of black pepper
- a pinch of paprika
- a pinch of salt
- parsley for garnish
- 2 tablespoons almond flakes for garnish
PREPARATION (30′ + 40′ cooking).
- prepare the vegetables. Peel and chop the onion and garlic. Cut the mushrooms into small pieces. Remove the stem from the spinach and chop finely.
- in a pan heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the onion and 2 cloves of garlic and cook for about 7 minutes.
- Add mushrooms a pinch of salt and cook for about 10 minutes.
- Add the flour almonds, swirl a couple of times in the pan and add 350 ml of almond drink. Add black pepper and nutmeg and cook for 10 minutes.
- Add the spinach and cook for another 2 minutes. Salt correction.
- Spread this béchamel mushrooms and spinach on a baking tray and let cool.
- Preheat oven at 200 degrees and line the tray with parchment paper.
- Reserve 6 peppers and stuff the rest with béchamel Place on a baking tray and bake for 8 minutes.
- To make the romesco sauceGrind the reserved pepper with roasted almonds, dried tomatoes with oil, 1 clove of garlic, wine vinegar, 2 tablespoons of almond juice, 4 tablespoons of olive oil, paprika and salt.
- Season with salt and serve the pepper with the sauce, chopped parsley and chopped almonds.
Tofu and Pesto Zucchini Stuffed Peppers
Here’s a recipe for vegetarian stuffed peppers that are ideal as an appetizer for your barbecue or dinner with friends or family.
INGREDIENTS FOR 4 PEOPLE
- 8 small or 4 medium bell peppers
- 2 tablespoons of oil and 1 onion
- half a zucchini
- 400 g of firm tofu
- 1 clove of garlic
- 1 handful of fresh basil
- 1 handful of fresh parsley
- 2 tablespoons of vegetable drink
- 4 tablespoons of nutritional yeast
- 50 g of pine nuts or almonds
- 2 tablespoons of oil
- black pepper
- 2 teaspoons of salt
PREPARATION (10′ + 50′ preparation time).
- Preheat oven at 180 degrees.
- wash the pepper and cut off the top and remove the seeds so we can stuff them. Peel and chop the onion. Cut the zucchini lengthwise and into strips.
- in a pan heat the oil. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and fry for 5 minutes. Add the zucchini and cook for another 5 minutes.
- In a food processorGrind the tofu together with the garlic, herbs, nutritional yeast, salt, vegetable broth, oil, and pine nuts and almonds. Add the cooked zucchini and stir a couple more times. You should get a textured mixture. Be careful not to crush too much.
- fill in pepper, rub with a little oil and bake for about 40 minutes until the pepper is cooked.
Serve with a salad and a grain like quinoa for a complete meal.