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Vegan Stuffed Peppers – Packed with Protein

the stuffed pepper is on the plate #tempeh #olive oil | hurrythefoodup.com

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There is always a reason for making vegan stuffed peppers.

A few months ago we shared our stuffed bell peppers (edit: over a year ago already! Where does the time go?!) and in our own humble opinion, they rocked. And they rocked hard.

The peppers were tasty, the sauce saucy and the fillings, well…filling.

But we were asked again and for vegan stuffed peppers. And so, we made them.

People told us we wouldn’t be able to make good stuffed peppers in a vegan way. That we’d miss the cheese. That we’d miss the way it melts inside the pepper.

But people also told us we’d miss the meat in vegetarian stuffed peppers, and that’s certainly not true.

In fact, we get told a lot of rubbish a lot of time. And I call bull. One of my fondest memories is surprising people with this meatless chili con carne. It’s amazing, and features no meat.

In fact, it has no animal products in it whatsoever. Ok, so technically it’s chili sin carne, but we won’t get into that.

stuffed peppers ingredients #quinoa #veggie broth | hurrythefoodup.com
quinoa and tempeh are cooking in the pots #bell peppers #fajita mix | hurrythefoodup.com
the tempeh is frying in olive oil #nutritional yeast #sweetcorn | hurrythefoodup.com

Vegan Stuffed Peppers

Whatever YOUR reasons for wanting to make a vegan stuffed peppers recipe, we’ve got the goods right here. We tried many different versions before settling on this one you see before you.

The all-veggie version was missing something, and the ones without a lot of spices just seemed bland.

In the end, we decided on a couple of key ingredients. Together, these make one frikkin tasty vegan stuffed pepper. They are:

  • Peppers, obviously
  • Tempeh – the rich, nutty flavour flavour lends itself very well here
  • A fajita spice mix

And optionally, nutritional yeast. We were late-comers to the nutritional yeast game – in fact we purposefully held off due to the perceived cost of nutritional yeast – we don’t think vegan food should be expensive.

Now however, having bought a box and used it in about twenty recipes and still not run out, the price seems very fair!

Many nutritional yeasts are also fortified with vitamin B12 these days, which is excellent news.

the peppers are filled with the ingredients #tempeh #olive oil | hurrythefoodup.com
the peppers are standing straight in the passata in the oven dish #tomato passata #sugar | hurrythefoodup.com

Spice mix in a stuffed pepper?

Hell yeah! The flavours go really well, and it’s just so easy (and we love easy recipes!). You have two choices here.

You can go for a typical store-bought fajita (or burrito or taco) spice mix, or make your own. Obviously just grabbing one from the shelf is easy and if time is your main constraint, then just go for it.

Make my own? Sounds complicated.

One of the downfalls of store-bought is the often high level of additives (and salt). A lot of ingredients get thrown in these packs, and it would be hard to argue they’re all good for you!

If you can spare five minutes to throw a few herbs and spices together, then we highly recommend making your own spice mix. It’s simple, cheap, versatile and lasts for aaaaages.

Here you can find our version of Homemade Fajita Seasoning.

the dish is ready #salt #basil leaves | hurrythefoodup.com
Dave is holding two plates with the stuffed peppers #bell peppers #sugar | hurrythefoodup.com

Health benefits of stuffed peppers

These stuffed peppers have a lot going for them. If health and nutrition is an important topic for you (and it should be!) then you’ll be pleased to know this recipe has got you covered.

Quinoa is a beast, to start. One of the rare ‘complete’ plant-based proteins, it doesn’t need an animal product or other protein source for the body to utilise it properly.

But couple it with tempeh and you have a suddenly have an extremely rich protein source just waiting to be used.

Tempeh is also high in many vitamins and micronutrients – a definite plus for anyone following a veggie or vegan diet.

Actually, it’s a definite plus for almost anyone!

So there we have it – give yourself (and your body) a boost – and get cooking these vegan stuffed peppers!

Dave is holding the plates with the stuffed peppers #salt yeast #basil leaves | hurrythefoodup.com
stuffed peppers are served #quinoa #veggie broth | hurrythefoodup.com
Vegan Stuffed Peppers
4.62 from 13 votes
Vegan stuffed peppers packed with quinoa – and loads of flavour. Full of protein and with clear instructions in easy steps.
Cuisine:Global
Diet: dairy-free, egg-free, gluten-free, vegan
Prep Time:20 minutes
Cook Time:1 hour
Total Time:1 hour 20 minutes
Servings:2 (makes 4 stuffed peppers)
Calories:615kcal
Author: Kat & HurryTheFoodUp

Ingredients

  • ½ cup quinoa (½ cup = 85g)
  • 1 cup vegetable broth
  • 4 large bell pepper, red (or your favourite colour)
  • 1 tbsp fajita mix (or 1/2 tsp cumin, ¼ tsp chili powder, ½ tsp paprika and 1 pinch salt)
  • 3 tbsp nutritional yeast (if you don’t have it don’t worry, if you do – use it!)
  • ½ cup sweetcorn
  • 3.5 oz tempeh (about 3.5oz or 100g)
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 cups tomato passata
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ½ cup basil, fresh

Instructions

  • Cook the quinoa in a pot with double the amount of veggie broth on medium heat until the water has evaporated, stirring well and often. Remove from heat and cover with a tea towel – the quinoa will puff out.
    Vegan Stuffed Peppers – Packed with Protein - quinoa and tempeh are cooking in the pots #bell peppers #fajita mix | hurrythefoodup.com
  • In the meantime, dice the tempeh and stick it in boiling water for ten minutes. This will remove any bitterness, though you can skip this step if pressed for time.
  • Then fry the tempeh in olive oil for about ten minutes. Add the spices (or fajita mix) and a tbsp or two of water.
    Vegan Stuffed Peppers – Packed with Protein - the tempeh is frying in olive oil #nutritional yeast #sweetcorn | hurrythefoodup.com
  • At the end of frying add the nutritional yeast and give it a good stir.
  • Drain and rinse the sweetcorn.
  • Clean the peppers and give the insides a quick scrape out. If the peppers do not stand up on their own, slice a TINY layer of the sticky-out bit off the bottom. Do not cut off more than you need to, you don’t want the contents of the pepper falling through.
  • Get an oven dish and pour in the tomato passata. Mix in the sugar, salt and basil leaves.
  • Preheat the oven to 200°C/390°F.
  • Stand the peppers up straight in the passata in the oven dish.
  • Put a tbsp of quinoa into each pepper, followed by a tbsp of tempeh, then a tbsp of corn. Squish it all down and add a final layer of tempeh, or any other ingredients you have left over. Squash them down again.
    Vegan Stuffed Peppers – Packed with Protein - the peppers are filled with the ingredients #tempeh #olive oil | hurrythefoodup.com
  • Pop the tray in the oven and cook for about 40 minutes at 200°C/390°F. When ready, the tops should be browned and the peppers should look soft (a bit wrinkly).
    Vegan Stuffed Peppers – Packed with Protein - the dish is ready #salt #basil leaves | hurrythefoodup.com
  • Serve in bowls with a dollop of sauce on top of each pepper, with more sauce around the outside. Make a final garnish of basil leaves.
    Vegan Stuffed Peppers – Packed with Protein - Dave is holding the plates with the stuffed peppers #salt yeast #basil leaves | hurrythefoodup.com

NOTES

Love this recipe? We have more to enjoy:
Non-vegan Stuffed Bell Peppers in Mediterranean Tomato Sauce
Perfect summery treat Goi Cuon – authentic Vietnamese spring rolls
The creamiest Vegan Mushroom Risotto
Surprisingly easy to do The Veggie King Microwave Baked Potato Recipe
Absolutely stress-free Vegan Coconut Curry

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts
Vegan Stuffed Peppers
Amount per Serving
Calories
615
% Daily Value*
Fat
 
18
g
28
%
Saturated Fat
 
3
g
19
%
Sodium
 
1725
mg
75
%
Potassium
 
2580
mg
74
%
Carbohydrates
 
93
g
31
%
Fiber
 
19
g
79
%
Sugar
 
31
g
34
%
Protein
 
30
g
60
%
Vitamin A
 
12226
IU
245
%
Vitamin C
 
449
mg
544
%
Calcium
 
176
mg
18
%
Iron
 
11
mg
61
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE?Tag @HurryTheFoodUp on Instagram so we can admire your masterpiece!
Comments
4.62 from 13 votes (11 ratings without comment)

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Recipe Rating




6 comments
  1. 3 stars
    These were quite nice. I think I’m going to try them with brown rice and kidney beans instead of quinoa and tempeh. Nicely flavoured. I used dried basil (less) because I didn’t have any fresh.

  2. Checked my measurements and 3.5oz is not same as 200g. (As per 4 people instructions)

    1. You are completely right Karen, I just fixed the mistake. Thanks for pointing this out 🙂
      Did you try the recipe in the end?

  3. Can you recommend a substitute for tempeh? For one thing it is very difficult to find and on the one occasion I did find some I did not like the taste

    1. Hi Ann, you could definitely use tofu. Otherwise some chili beans, maybe?

  4. 5 stars
    Stuffed peppers look so satiating and yummy!