This easy Vegetarian Mexican Stuffed Peppers Vegetarian Recipe comes together in just 45 minutes for the perfect weeknight dinner.
Get ready to fall in love, because that’s what is going to happen when you bite into these stuffed peppers. Each bite is filled with green chiles, rice, black beans, and cheese. It is so darned good!
We get tired of eating the same boring meals, so we try out some new and tasty foods. These peppers are one of our classic go to dishes and we never get tired of it.
Why This Recipe Works
Packed with nutrients – You will get lots of yummy food that happens to be healthy too. Each stuffed pepper has potassium, vitamin C, calcium, iron, fiber, and vitamin A.
Super versatile – Add all sorts of other veggies, meats and ingredients to the dish. Go wild and have fun adjusting the flavors.
Low in calories – You won’t believe how low in calories these peppers are! Only 213 calories per serving and the flavor is the BOMB!
🧀 Ingredients
The ingredients in these peppers are absolutely delicious. They go together to create an awesome meal that’s great for all occasions. Plus, kids love them as they taste like tacos to them (but you are sneaking nutrients in that they don’t need to know about!)
Bell Peppers: Naturally, the bell peppers are the most essential ingredient for this dish. Use any color that you like. Red bell peppers are more sweet and green bell peppers are what I typically use.
Shredded Mexican Cheese: Use any kind of cheese that you want. We like Mexican cheese because it gives a wide variety of flavor. However, Cheddar Cheese, Mozzarella, or even Colby Jack will work well. If you want dairy-free, go ahead and skip the cheese altogether. I doubt you will really notice!
Cooked Rice: We enjoy adding cooked rice to our stuffed peppers. For a low carb option, try riced cauliflower instead.
🍽️ Instructions
I am a huge fan of any recipe that has lots of flavors and is simple to make. These Mexican stuffed peppers hit both of those requirements! Take a look at these easy steps:
Step One: Prepare the peppers by removing the core and cutting off the tops.
Step Two: Sauté the onions in some olive oil over medium-high heat. Once they are translucent, add in the garlic, corn, and green chiles.
Step Three: Mix together the taco seasoning, adobo, and salsa.
Step Four: Add the salsa mixture, cooked rice, black beans, and ½ cup cheese to the pan and stir together.
Step Five: Remove the filling from the heat and scoop it in to the peppers using a spoon or cookie scoop. Top with cheese and bake for 35- 45 minutes.
🥘 Meal Prep
These vegetarian stuffed peppers are perfect for meal planning. Make a batch or two ahead of time and then eat them through the week like we talk about in Meal Prep 101. It will save you lots of time and energy on those days when you don’t feel like cooking. These will last four days in the refrigerator.
📌 Expert Tips
- Use a muffin tin to bake the peppers in. It will keep them upright and it is so easy. Pretty ingenious, right?
- Stuff the peppers with any of your favorite foods.
- Take your time to find the best peppers at the store. This will give you the most delicious result.
⏲️ Variations
One thing that I love about these peppers is that you can easily adjust the ingredients based on your dietary needs. I wanted to give you a few tips on how to make them fit into your lifestyle even more.
- Rice – Use wheat, white, or any other version of rice that you like. Try them all, depending on your tastes. Or if you’re limiting carbs, swap the rice for cauliflower rice. My family really didn’t even notice when I did that.
- Cheese – When it comes to the cheese, if you are restricting fat intake, opt for a low-fat version. If you are vegan, skip the cheese altogether or use a vegan-friendly option.
- Protein – Add in cooked chicken, beef, pork, or even bacon if you want to get a boost of protein. It’a a great way to use leftovers!
- Corn & Beans – If you are eating Whole30 or low-carb, simply omit both of these to fit your diet.
- Chorizo – Add some cooked chorizo to the bell peppers to give some added flavor and make them even heartier.
Recipe FAQs
I think most of us get excited about the toppings almost as much as the meal itself! Okay, maybe that’s just me, but I love the toppings. 🙂 Here are my favorites:
Sour Cream – Add a spoonful of sour cream. It gives that creamy texture that is perfect for tacos.
Cilantro – Sprinkle the top with a little bit of fresh cilantro.
Avocado – Slice or dice some avocado and put it on top. It’s so yummy and the perfect complement to these.
Salsa – While there is some salsa in the pepper, I like to add a little extra to the top to take it to the next level. Yum!
Jalapeños – If you love fresh sliced jalapeños, don’t forget to add them for a flavorful kick.
Thankfully bell peppers are pretty forgiving and it is pretty easy to pick the right ones. Here are a few things to keep a lookout for when shopping for bell peppers.
Look for peppers that have bright colors with firm skin. If you notice it’s wrinkled, then it’s started to go bad and won’t last as long once you get it home.
Choose peppers that are free of any bruising or soft spots. They are indicators that they have been damaged. The stem of the pepper should appear to be fresh and green.
Yes, you can freeze these. Wrap each one individually with Saran. This gives them added protection from freezer burn. After you wrap them up, place them in a freezer bag or plastic storage container. Then, just grab out whenever you need and reheat. The best part is that they will keep in the freezer for three months! Talk about a huge time saver. Print off the Freezer Tips and Times printable to keep track how long your food is in the freezer.
First, make sure that the peppers are thawed out if they have been in the freezer. Then, heat them in the microwave for 1-2 minutes. Just make sure to remove the wrapping that you covered them with.
You can also warm them in the oven. Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. and warm them for around 25-30 minutes. Just make sure they are hot all the way through and serve.
Related Recipes
Tried this recipe? Please leave a star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating in the recipe card below and/or a review in the comments section further down the page. You can also stay in touch with me through social media by following me on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook!
Vegetarian Mexican Stuffed Peppers
Equipment
- Sheet Pan
Ingredients
- 6 Bell Peppers
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil
- ½ Medium Sweet Onion chopped
- 2 tbsp Minced Garlic
- ½ cup Corn
- 4 oz. Canned Green Chillies
- 2 tbsp Taco Seasoning
- ½ tsp Adobo
- ½ cup Salsa a saucy one works best
- 1 cup Cooked Rice
- 15 oz can Black Beans rinsed and drained
- 1 cup Shredded Mexican cheese, divided use ½ cup for filling, ½ cup for topping
- Salt and Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Remove tops from peppers and core.
- Heat olive oil over medium high heat. Add onions and sauté for about five minutes, until translucent. Add garlic, corn, green chiles, sauté for an additional two minutes.
- In a separate bowl, mix taco seasoning, adobo and salsa, stir to combine. Add rice, black beans, ½ cup cheese and salsa mixture and salt and pepper to pan. Mix well. Remove from heat.
- Fill peppers with rice mixture. Top with remaining cheese.
- Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, at 350F.
Notes
Nutrition
I absolutely love your recipe! I am writing vegetarian recipe round ups on my blog in 2019 for people who are trying to make more meat-free meals (everyone has to start somewhere). I would love to feature you. You can check out my blog (for beginner environmentalists) at sunshineguerrilla.com. Is it alright if I share this link to your recipe?
Aww, thanks, Barbara! That is too sweet of you! Of course, you can the link on your blog! I love the tips and tricks you are giving on how to cut out the palm oil and plastics!!! Way to educate!!! 🙂
Next time, we are doing Mexican night, I am totally making this!
I only cook for two also, so I love recipes like this that make a great lunch the next day! I also love your tip about making it later in the week to use leftover rice!
So delicious! My family LOVED these! Healthy, easy to prepare and so delicious! Thank you so much!
So awesome, Katrina! I’m so glad that it worked so well for you and your family! Cheers! Ginny