These vegan stuffed peppers are filled with delicious chunks of seasoned shredded jackfruit, zesty salsa, and vibrant yellow rice! This easy-to-make gluten-free meal is ready in just one hour and it's sure to be your new favorite family-friendly meatless dinner!
Before I was vegan, one of my go-to easy dinner recipes was to cook chicken in a slow cooker with a jar of salsa. Then I would shred the chicken and mix it with cooked rice to use as a filling for stuffed peppers, tacos, or enchiladas. Using store-bought salsa is such a quick and easy shortcut that adds so much flavor!
Now that I'm vegan, I make the same recipe, but I use shredded jackfruit instead of chicken. Jackfruit is the perfect replacement for chicken because it shreds perfectly and it tastes delicious! This meatless meal is super easy to make, customizable, and it's ready in just one hour!
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Bell Peppers - You can use any color (red, yellow, orange, or green) bell pepper that you like, but try to pick peppers that are similar in size so they cook evenly.
- Brown Rice - You could also use cooked quinoa, couscous, or cauliflower rice (low-carb option) for the brown rice.
- Jackfruit - You need to use canned young green jackfruit for this recipe. Fresh jackfruit tastes sweet, so it shouldn't be used in a recipe where jackfruit is used as a meat replacement.
- Salsa - Use your favorite salsa to add tons of flavor to this dish.
- Turmeric - Turmeric flavors and naturally turns the rice yellow!
- Spices
How To Make It
Start by cooking the rice in a separate pot. Set it aside when it's done. While the rice is cooking, put the rinsed and drained jackfruit into a large pan along with water and all of the dry seasonings.
Next, cover the jackfruit and let it cook until it's soft enough to lightly smash and break up the chunks with a spatula or potato masher. While the jackfruit is cooking, slice the tops off the bell peppers and remove the seeds and membranes.
Add all of the cooked rice and one cup of salsa to the pan with the cooked jackfruit. Mix it well and stuff each pepper with the filling. If you like, you can top each pepper with vegan cheese before baking.
Serve and garnish each stuffed pepper with more guacamole, pickled jalapenos, sliced green onions, or your favorite toppings.
How To Store It
Store the stuffed bell peppers in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days or you can freeze it. Arrange the leftover peppers in an airtight and freezer-safe container and keep them in the freezer for 2-3 months.
When you're ready to reheat it, take it out of the freezer and let them defrost for 24 hours in the fridge overnight. Bake the peppers at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until they're hot all the way through.
Recipe Variations
These homemade stuffed bell peppers are delicious as-is but you can also try these tasty variations:
- Plant-Based Protein: Add cooked black or kidney beans, red or green lentils, Beyond meat crumbles, or crumbled tempeh to the jackfruit and rice filling for even more protein.
- Add More Veggies: If you want to add some hidden vegetables to the jackfruit rice filling, diced mushrooms, zucchini, corn, spinach, or red cabbage would be great additions.
- Make Soup: Instead of stuffing the peppers, you can use the ingredients to make a hearty and filling vegan stuffed pepper soup!
- Stuffed Tomatoes: If you don't want to stuff bell peppers, you can also stuff poblano peppers or tomatoes!
Frequently Asked Questions
I don't precook them because I don't like a mushy texture. I prefer it to be a little firmer.
I like to serve it with a big salad drizzled with vegan ranch dressing. If you want to make a side dish to go with it, lemon turmeric roasted cauliflower, maple balsamic brussel sprouts, or lemon tahini zucchini salad are all delicious options.
I usually use a jar of store-bought jar to save time, but homemade cilantro lime salsa is really delicious if you have time to make it.
After you cut the tops off, you can dice it and add it to a salad, or vegetable barley soup, or you could freeze the diced peppers to use for a future meal like sausage and peppers with rice.
Success Tips
- Try to pick bell peppers that are similar in size so the peppers cook evenly.
- I like to use yellow, orange, or red bell peppers because they taste sweeter than green bell peppers.
- I used store-bought salsa to keep this recipe super simple, but homemade is great if you have time to make it.
- To give your vegan stuffed peppers with rice a spicy kick, use medium salsa instead of mild.
- Just like with jackfruit tacos, and jackfruit enchiladas, toppings are important to add to stuffed peppers too! You can add guacamole, vegan cheese, cilantro, fresh lime juice, vegan sour cream, green onions, and fresh cilantro!
Want More Vegan Stuffed Recipes?
- Tofu Taco Stuffed Tomatoes
- Lentil Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
- Vegan Stuffed Shells
- Vegan Pesto Quinoa Stuffed Tomatoes
Vegan Stuffed Peppers
Equipment
- Medium Casserole Dish
- Large Pan
Ingredients
- 1 cup uncooked brown rice
- ½ tsp ground turmeric
- 6 medium bell peppers
- 14 oz can jackfruit rinsed and drained
- ½ cup water (add more if it gets too dry)
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp cumin
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp onion powder
- 1 cup salsa
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Cook the rice according to package instructions. Add ½ tsp of turmeric powder to the water while the rice is cooking to naturally turn the rice yellow.
- While the rice is cooking, put the drained and rinsed jackfruit, ½ cup water, 1 tbsp chili powder, 1 tsp smoked paprika, 1 tsp cumin, ½ tsp garlic powder, and ½ tsp onion powder into a large saute pan over medium heat. Stir to combine the seasonings with the jackfruit, cover it, and let it cook for 30 minutes. Use a spatula or potato masher to break up the chunks of jackfruit.
- While the jackfruit and rice are cooking, prep the bell peppers. Cut off the tops and remove the seeds and membranes.
- Add the cooked rice and 1 cup of salsa to the pan with the cooked jackfruit. Mix it well. Taste it and add salt if necessary. Fill each pepper with the rice mixture. If you want to top it with shredded vegan cheese, add it now.
- Add 2 tbsp of water to the bottom of a casserole dish to stop the peppers from sticking. Arrange the peppers to fit snugly in the casserole dish. Cover and bake for 30 minutes or until tender. Top with fresh lime juice, guacamole, cilantro, vegan sour cream, and jalapenos.
Notes
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days or you can freeze it for 2-3 months.
These looks absolutely mouthwatering! I have never made stuffed peppers, but I do love eating them haha
Thank you, Linh! I hope you like them as much as my family does!
I LOVE stuffed peppers! This version sounds fantastic - and I love all the great colours in your photos 🙂 Pinning for later
These look delicious. I grew up eating my Grandma's stuffed capsicum.. only problem is that they take ages to cook... these might just appear on my table sometime soon!
Okay, these look AMAZING And your photos are beautiful! Definitely pinning for later!