These oven-baked Mexican stuffed bell peppers with rice, beans, vegetables and vegan cheese is a popular meatless recipe that’s easy to make, healthy, gluten-free and so delicious! Serve with vegan aioli, you’ll have the perfect plant-based lunch or dinner for the whole family!
Easy Vegan Mexican Stuffed Peppers
I love bell peppers! But when they are served to me stuffed with wholesome, perfectly-spiced filling and roasted to perfection- I am on cloud nine! And let us not forget the melty vegan cheese topping and homemade aioli sauce!
Looking at these festive, fancy-looking treats, one might think that they are challenging to make. But you couldn’t be more wrong! Making them is actually super easy. All you need to do is toss the cooked rice with the spices and veggies, stuff them into the peppers, and bake!
You can even make the filling ahead of time, so you can just assemble and bake them when you need a quick lunch or dinner meal or party appetizers.
Healthy main course or side dish for lunch or dinner
These yummy stuffed bell peppers are very filling! They are rich in carbohydrates and plant proteins that will fill you up nicely and fuel you throughout the day. They are also loaded with fiber, antioxidants, and vitamins, making them perfect as part of your weekly meal rotation. You can also try making my Turkish Stuffed Eggplant with Bulgur and Stuffed Baked Potatoes with Herb Dip for variations.
Ingredients and Possible Substitutions
This dish is actually quite versatile, and you can make use of stuff that you already have in your fridge to make them.
For the stuffed peppers
- Bell peppers: I used green, red, and yellow ones for this recipe, but you can use your favorite color. I just love how colorful and much more appetizing they look!
- Brown rice: this highly nutritious grain is perfect for this recipe. However, feel free to use other types of rice. You can also use other grains such as quinoa, couscous, farro, or bulgur. For a low-carb option, use cauliflower or broccoli rice.
- Vegetable broth: is used to cook the rice and give it a boost of flavor. You can use salted water too. Make sure to check and follow package instructions for the liquid to rice ratio.
- Aromatics: I used onion and garlic for a flavorful base!
- Spices: Paprika powder, chili powder and cumin give the filling a warm and earthy flavor with a punch of heat. You can use other Mexican spices that you have in your panty like coriander, oregano, allspice, cloves, and thyme.
- Veggies: adding black beans, corn, and fresh tomatoes makes the filling more substantial and healthy. You will love the creaminess of the beans, the crunch of corn kernels, and the juiciness of the tomatoes together! You can try other legumes and vegetables too, like chickpeas, edamame, other beans, mushrooms or vegan ground beef as meat alternative.
- Vegan Cheese: Anything is better with cheese, right? Any type of dairy-free cheese will do, but I recommend using quick melting ones like cheddar-style or vegan mozzarella.
- Salt and pepper: to taste.
- Oil: for frying
For serving (optional)
- Vegan Aioli: or other dips like Vegan Mayo, Hummus, Chipotle Sauce, Guacamole, Vegan Tzatziki, Vegan Raita, Cashew Dip or Thai Sweet Chili Sauce.
- Green hot peppers: or jalapeños.
- Scallions: or finely chopped yellow or red onions.
- Parsley: or other herbs like cilantro.
How to make Mexican Stuffed Peppers – This recipe is so easy!
As always, I recommend checking out the recipe video and these step-by-step instructions first. Then you’ll find the full recipe with the exact measurements in the recipe card below!
Step 1: Prepare Mexican rice
Start by cooking the rice in vegetable broth (or salted water) according to package directions. Then let cool (can be made ahead).
Next, heat the oil in a large skillet and and sauté the onion, garlic and spices. Then stir in the rice, beans, corn and tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper to taste and fold in half of the vegan grated cheese.
Step 2: Stuff peppers and bake
Place halved peppers in a baking dish and fill with the Mexican rice. Top with the remaining cheese and bake the stuffed peppers, covered, at 428 °F (220 °C) for 30 minutes. Then reduce the heat to 392 °F (200 °C) and bake, uncovered, for another 10-15 minutes, until tender and lightly golden brown.
Step 3: Garnish and serve
Garnish your stuffed bell peppers with green hot peppers or jalapeños, scallions and parsley or cilantro as desired and serve with homemade vegan aioli.
Tips when Making Stuffed Bell Peppers
- Select medium to large-sized peppers for this recipe. Use a baking dish that can fit the pepper halves snugly so they remain upright and compact as they roast in the oven. This will also help keep the Mexican rice filling from spilling and creating a mess.
- To save time, you can cook the rice ahead of time or use leftover rice instead. It is not recommended to use freshly cooked rice when making the filling because the grains will still be sticky and soft. The rice should be dry and fluffy when making the filling for best results.
- You can make this dish as spicy as you want it to be by adding more chili powder. Or you can totally omit it if you’re going to make it kid-friendly.
- Note that green bell peppers can have bitter undertones because they are still unripe. Yellow and red peppers will have a sweeter taste.
How to store leftovers?
Leftover stuffed peppers can be kept covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 to 3 days. Then simply reheat in the oven or microwave. The Mexican rice filling can be made ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. It is delicious hot or cold and is perfect as a side dish for the BBQ season alongside other dishes.
This recipe for Mexican Stuffed Peppers is:
- Vegan, Vegetarian
- Meatless
- Gluten-free
- Protein-rich
- Can be made low-carb and grain-free
- Nutritious and filling
- Customizable
- Hearty
- Easy to make
- Perfect for potlucks and parties
- Colorful and so delicious!
More Vegan Oven Recipes to try
- Mexican Tortilla Casserole
- Mexican Stuffed Sweet Potato Skins
- Enchiladas
- Lentil Zucchini Lasagna
- Lasagna Bolognese
- Pumpkin Pasta Bake
- Broccoli Mac and Cheese Casserole
- Spinach Mushroom Pasta Bake
- Potato Bake
- Baked Potatoes with Herb Dip
- Ratatouille
- Turkish Stuffed Eggplants
- Oven-Roasted Vegetables
- Pasta Chips
- Crispy Tofu Nuggets
If you try this easy vegan recipe for Stuffed Peppers with Mexican Rice, feel free to leave me a comment and a star rating! And if you take a photo of your dish and share it on Instagram, please tag me @biancazapatka and use the hashtag #biancazapatka because I love seeing your remakes! Enjoy! 😊´
Vegan Mexican Stuffed Peppers
Author:Ingredients
Stuffed peppers
- ¾ cup (150 g) brown rice uncooked, or other rice or quinoa
- 1 ¼ cup (300 ml) vegetable broth or salted water for cooking the rice
- 1 tbsp oil for frying
- 1 onion chopped
- 2 garlic cloves chopped
- 1 tsp paprika powder
- 1 tsp chili powder or more if you like it spicier
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1x14 oz can (400 g) black beans 8.5oz (240g) rinsed & drained, or sub other beans
- 1 cup (180 g) corn rinsed & drained
- 14 oz chopped tomatoes or passata
- salt and pepper to taste
- 4 bell peppers halved & seeded
- 1 cup (100 g) vegan grated cheese
To serve (optional)
- 1 recipe Vegan Aioli
- green hot peppers or jalapeños, sliced
- scallions sliced
- parsley or cilantro
Instructions
*Note: Check out the recipe video + step-by-step instructions above!
- Cook the rice in vegetable broth (or salted water) according to package directions. Then allow to cool, gently fluffing occasionally (can be cooked ahead).
- Heat the oil in a large skillet and and sauté the onion for 1-2 minutes until translucent. Then add the garlic and sauté for 30 seconds. Then add the paprika, chili and cumin and sauté briefly.
- Turn off the heat and stir in the rice, beans, corn and tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper to taste and fold in half of the vegan grated cheese.
- Preheat the oven to 428 °F (220 °C) and cover the bottom of an ovenproof pan or casserole dish with a little water (about ¼ cup).
- Place the halved peppers in the baking dish and fill with the Mexican rice. Top with the remaining cheese and cover the pan or dish with a lid (or aluminum foil).
- Bake the stuffed peppers for 30 minutes. Then remove the lid, reduce the heat to 392 °F (200 °C) and bake for another 10-15 minutes or until the peppers are tender and lightly golden brown.
- Meanwhile, prepare the aioli according to this recipe.
- Garnish the stuffed peppers with hot peppers or jalapeños, spring onions and parsley or cilantro as desired and serve with vegan aioli.
- Enjoy!
Notes
- You can also serve these stuffed peppers with other dips like Vegan Mayo, Hummus, Chipotle Sauce, Guacamole, Vegan Tzatziki, Vegan Raita, Cashew Dip or Thai Sweet Chili Sauce.
- Leftover stuffed peppers can be kept covered in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. Then simply reheat in the oven or microwave.
- Leftover filling can be stored covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. is delicious hot or cold and is perfect as a side dish alongside other dishes.
- More information about the recipe as well as notes on ingredients and substitutes are mentioned in the blog post above!
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Muito gostoso, amei!
Isso é bom!