This is an easy and healthy vegan stuffed pepper recipe without rice. It uses peppers filled with vegetables simmered in tomato sauce.
These vegan stuffed peppers without rice are amazing! They're even better if you serve them with creamy, smooth mashed potatoes.
I do love my stuffed peppers. I make them often; I change the filling according to my mood and what happens to be in season, and if there is a picture that I am bound to click on Foodgawker or Pinterest, then it is for sure the picture of a stuffed pepper. They have something so appealing to me that I cannot resist. 🙂
Have a look at these Stuffed Peppers with Feta for instance, or these Stuffed Peppers in Tomato Sauce! Who can resist? I know I can't!
Jump to recipe
Recipe ingredients
As mentioned above, this is a vegetarian or vegan stuffed peppers recipe without rice. So, if you are eating low carb, this is the recipe for you: no rice or other grains, just bell peppers stuffed with more veggies. But, as I am not so much into low carb myself, I always serve these healthy stuffed peppers with mashed potatoes.
Bell peppers: I normally use red bell peppers when making a stuffed pepper recipe; they are the sweetest. Yellow bell peppers are fine as well, but I would not use green bell peppers; I find them too bitter in such large quantities.
I used my homemade spicy marinara sauce to make the sauce for the vegetarian stuffed pepper recipe, but you can use any kind of tomato sauce you like. I usually take the listed vegetables to fill the peppers, but you can also experiment there; take what you like best and what is in season.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to make vegan stuffed peppers without rice?
The combination of those flavorful vegetable-stuffed peppers, tomato sauce, and mashed potatoes is just heavenly!
- Step #1: Make the tomato sauce. It can be made in advance, and it will stay well for several days in the fridge.
- Step #2: Cut the tops of the peppers and carefully remove the seeds. Cook them in boiling, salted water for 2 minutes. Drain well.
- Step #3: Prepare the vegetables: cut carrots and zucchini into thin sticks and slice the mushrooms and the onion. Cook them until most of the liquid released by the mushrooms is gone. Add salt and pepper.
- Step #4: Fill the peppers with the vegetable filling.
- Step #5: Pour the tomato sauce and vegetable broth into a pot large enough to hold the peppers. Bring to a simmer, and add the tomato paste and peppers. Simmer, covered, for about 20 minutes, turning halfway through. Remove the lid from the pot and cook the peppers for 5 minutes more, allowing the sauce to thicken a bit as well.
How to store and reheat?
Refrigerate the stuffed peppers without rice in an airtight container for 3-4 days. Freeze them for up to 3 months.
Reheat them with the sauce in the microwave or on the stovetop, turning them a few times in the sauce while reheating.
Vegan Stuffed Peppers - Without Rice
Ingredients
Tomato sauce:
- 1 medium onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 can tomatoes 400 g/ 14 oz
- ½ tomato can filled with water
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon dried thyme /savory/oregano/Italian herbs/Herbs de Provence
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- fine sea salt and ground black pepper
Stuffed Peppers:
- 4 red bell peppers
- 1 carrot about 100 g/ 3.5 oz
- 1 small zucchini about 150 g/ 5.3 oz
- 6-7 mushrooms about 300 g/ 10.5 oz
- 1 medium onion
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoon sugar
- 2 teaspoons tomato paste
- 1⅓ cup vegetable broth 300 ml
- fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- fresh parsley
Instructions
Tomato sauce:
- Chop the onion and the garlic cloves finely.1 medium onion + 2 garlic cloves
- Saute onions: Heat the oil in a large pan and cook the onions until translucent. Add the garlic and stir it briefly in the pan. 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Add the canned tomatoes and crush them if they are whole. Half-fill the empty can with water and pour it into the pan. Add the tomato paste, herbs, bay leaves, sugar salt, and pepper, and stir very well.1 can tomatoes + ½ tomato can filled with water + 1 tablespoon tomato paste + 1 tablespoon dried thyme + 2 bay leaves + 1 teaspoon sugar + fine sea salt and ground black pepper
- Simmer tomato sauce: Bring to a boil and cook on a medium-high flame for about 15 minutes. Turn the heat down and continue cooking the tomato sauce, stirring occasionally, for about 15 minutes or until it thickens slightly. Adjust the taste with salt, pepper, and a little more sugar if necessary.
- Blend sauce: Remove the bay leaves from the sauce and blend the sauce with a blender until smooth.
Vegan stuffed peppers:
- Prepare bell peppers: Cut the top of the peppers and carefully remove the seeds. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add a little salt and cook the peppers for 2 minutes. Drain well.4 red bell peppers
- Prepare vegetables: Cut the carrot and the zucchini into thin sticks and slice the mushrooms and the onion.1 carrot + 1 small zucchini + 6-7 mushrooms + 1 medium onion
- Saute vegetables: Heat the oil in a large pan, add the vegetables, sprinkle them with the sugar, and cook them, stirring often, for about 7-8 minutes or until most of the liquid released by the mushrooms is gone. Add salt and pepper to taste. Fill the peppers with the vegetable filling.2 tablespoons olive oil + 2 teaspoon sugar + fine sea salt and ground black pepper
- Simmer stuffed peppers: Pour the tomato sauce and vegetable broth into a pot large enough to hold the peppers. Bring to a simmer and add the tomato paste. Stir well, add more salt and pepper if necessary, then place the peppers in the sauce. Cover, turn the heat down to low, and cook the peppers, turning on the other side after half of the cooking time, for about 20 minutes or until soft but not mushy. Remove the lid from the pot and cook the peppers for 5 minutes more, allowing the sauce to thicken slightly.tomato sauce + 1⅓ cup vegetable broth/ 300 ml + 2 teaspoons tomato paste + fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Sprinkle with lots of fresh parsley and serve with mashed potatoes.fresh parsley
Priya says
These stuffed peppers are very different and vibrant and delicious looking.. I am gonna try this for sure..
grace says
this is so healthful and flavorful, not to mention colorful! what an awesome meal. 🙂
Angie@Angie's Recipes says
They look fantastic served with creamy mashed potatoes!! We eat lots of peppers, but mostly raw because hubby doesn't eat cooked veggies, not even filled with his favourite ground meat.
allie says
Great tip to parboil the peppers first! I love peppers too. These look so delicious Adina. My kids think the same thing about mushrooms that yours do. And I so LOVE mushrooms. Have a beautiful week my friend!
KR says
Ahaa. Very good tip: boil pepper before baking. I bake them ca 45 minutes and these are still not soft.
Thank you!