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Stuffed Roasted Sweet Peppers make a fun, flavorful, and festive side or appetizer for your next dinner party or potluck. A savory herbal and basmati filling is served inside the crisp roasted baby sweet peppers. They are incredibly simple to make, customizable to dietary needs or preferences, and so tasty that your guests won’t stop at only one serving.
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Why You’ll Love This Stuffed Sweet Peppers Recipe
Baby sweet peppers, with their fun pop of color and sweet crisp bite, make an excellent serving dish for this cute but classy appetizer. With a super flavorful and hearty filling of Basmati rice, basil, and the crunch of pistachio, they’re sure to impress any guest.
I love that for a fun party food, they’re so nourishing and nutritious, with a massive dose of immunity boosting vitamin C in the peppers, and the heart-healthy nuts. Plus they’re naturally gluten-free and vegan! Ingredients are easy to swap, add or tweak as needed, to make a dish fit for everybody. It’s such a well-rounded side that it goes will with practically any main dish, from classic American, to BBQ, to Italian or even Asian.
The best part is they’re so quick and easy to make, with mostly pantry staples. You may find yourself making them just to enjoy yourself as a midday snack or a healthy game day treat!
Ingredients Needed
- Baby Peppers: Although red bell peppers are the most common, you can experiment with other colors such as yellow, green, and orange. This recipe calls for baby peppers, but you can also use large peppers. However, the flavor might be too intense for an entree.
- Fresh Basil: Adds a bit of sweet and savory flavor to the filling! You can use other fresh herbs like oregano, tarragon, or thyme. The flavor would be different but still delicious! Here’s a great article on how to store herbs more efficiently, if you’re interested!
- Pistachios (roasted and salted): Gives extra texture and a touch of nuttiness into the basmati filling.
- Olive Oil: Lends a good flavory, but any neutral oil will work. It will bind the filling ingredients together.
- Hot Water: Needed to thin out the filling and help get the right consistency.
- Salt and Pepper: To taste
- Basmati Rice: This type of rice is perfect for this dish, but you can use other long-grain varieties too.
How to Make Roasted Stuffed Peppers
Preparations:
- Cook Basmati Rice. Simply rinse the rice and for every 1 cup of rice, add 1.5 cups of water to the rice cooker (or pot). Adding some seasonings can be optional. This should cook for about 12-15 minutes.
- Prep your Peppers. Wash the peppers and slice them in half, lengthwise. Remove the seeds and the white inner rib (a spoon works great for this_. Make sure to pat dry the peppers using a paper towel.
Step 1: First, preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Then line your baking sheet with parchment paper. Next, arrange the peppers on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes. They should be slightly roasted yet still firm.
Step 2: Meanwhile, in a food processor, combine the fresh basil, pistachios, olive oil, hot water, garlic, salt, and pepper. Pulse the ingredients until creamy. Then, season as needed. If the consistency is too thick, add more boiling water. Add a small quantity at a time until you reach the desired thickness.
Step 3: In a bowl, combine the basmati rice and the basil mixture. Mix well. Next, stuff the cooled peppers with the basmati mixture. Finally, serve the stuffed peppers at room temperature or cold.
Add-ons and Variations
- Rice Substitutes: You can substitute basmati rice with low-carb options like cauliflower rice, quinoa, or couscous.
- Switch Up the Shape: You can slice the peppers lengthwise or across; feel free to do whatever works for you.
- More Spice: Add some chili flakes, paprika, or cayenne powder to the filling if you want to give it a bit of zing!
- ‘Cheesy’ Stuffed Peppers: You can also top it with some vegan cheese or nutritional yeast if you want to make the stuffed peppers richer.
Toni’s Recipe Tips when Making Roasted Stuffed Sweet Peppers
- Balance the peppers: To ensure that your peppers remain upright and do not spill the filling, shave a portion off the bottom to make it flat.
- Don’t overbake: Do not overbake your peppers, or they may wilt and lose their structure.
- Use leftover rice: This is the perfect recipe to use your leftover rice! Just make sure that you are not using the starchy variety that turns sticky when cooked.
- Adjust filling texture: If you like the filling a bit chunkier, pulse the filling less. You will get more texture from the nuts this way.
FAQs
This can happen if you don’t pre-cook your peppers. If you stuff raw peppers and then cook them, the heat releases the moisture, making the pepper soggy.
They usually have a charred hue and are soft when pierced with a fork.
It isn’t required. In fact, leaving the skin on adds to the flavor richness. It does have a lovely smoky flavor to it.
Serving Suggestions
- Snack Spread: Make as part of a healthy game day or movie night spread, along with cauliflower wings, pizza rolls, and a vegan charcuterie board.
- Appetizer: Serve as a starter before a crowd-pleasing main like stuffed butternut squash, stuffed shells, hearty red lentil stew, or sweet potato enchiladas.
- Side: These small bites are hearty enough to serve as a side alongside yummy dinners of tofu Bolognese, lentil meatballs, tofu fajitas, glazed tofu ham, or lentil loaf.
- BBQ/Picnic: As a finger-food with it’s own “dish,” it’s perfect to bring to a BBQ or picnic with favorites like BBQ seitan, BBQ jackfruit, BBQ tempeh, French potato salad, and baked potato mac n cheese.
- Grab n Go Lunch: Make ahead for an easy finger-food lunch, on rotation with chickpea tuna salad, sweet potato burritos, lettuce wraps, or street style tacos.
Storage Instructions
Fridge: Store leftover Stuffed Roasted Sweet Peppers in an airtight container or wrapped in aluminum foil, in the refrigerated for up to 4 days.
Freezer: They are also freezer-friendly. Just wrap them individually in plastic or aluminum foil and freeze for up to 3 months.
Reheat: To reheat, bake them at 350 degrees F for about 20-30 minutes until completely thawed and warmed. You can also use the microwave setting it on high heat for 20 minutes. Make sure you’re using a microwave-safe container.
More Stuffed Vegetables Recipes
Vegan Lunches
Stuffed Tomatoes Recipe
Vegan Dinners
Southwest Vegan Stuffed Peppers
Vegan Dinners
Quinoa Stuffed Bell Peppers
Vegan Dinners
Healthy Stuffed Avocados
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Stuffed Roasted Sweet Peppers
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Ingredients
- 20 sweet baby peppers
- 3 ounces of fresh basil
- 1 cup of pistachios (roasted and salted)
- 2 Tablespoons of olive oil
- ¼ cup of hot water
- 2 Tablespoons of garlic
- salt and pepper to taste
- 2 ½ cups of cooked basmati rice
Instructions
- Preheat over to 400. Next, slice the pepper in half, lengthwise. With a small knife remove the seeds. Place the peppers on a cookie sheet ant bake for 10 minutes. They should be slighty roasted, yet firm.
- In the bowl of your food processor, add the fresh basil, pistachios, olive oil, hot water, garlic, salt, and pepper to taste. Wiz around until creamy. Taste the mixture to see if more salt/pepper is needed. If you need more water to thin it out, add it slowly by the tablespoon. Hot water works best.
- When the mix is done, transfer to a large bowl, and mix with the rice. Mix until well-combined.
- When the peppers have cooled, stuff them with the mixture.
- Serve room temp or cold.
Notes
- You can substitute basmati rice with low-carb options like cauliflower rice, quinoa, or couscous.
- You can slice the peppers lengthwise or across; feel free to do whatever works for you.
- Add some chili flakes, paprika, or cayenne powder to the filling if you want to give it a bit of zing!
- You can also top it with some vegan cheese if you want to make the stuffed peppers richer.
