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–+ servings
Couscous stuffed peppers topped with melted vegan cheese in a casserole dish.
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4.34 from 3 votes

Vegan Chickpea and Couscous Stuffed Peppers

Healthy, easy and delicious barley stuffed bell peppers with a smokey tomato sauce.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time25 minutes
Total Time35 minutes
Course: Appetizer, Main Course
Cuisine: American
Servings: 6
Calories: 197kcal
Author: Maria

Equipment

Ingredients

  • ¾ cup uncooked moroccan couscous
  • ¾ cup vegetable broth
  • 6 bell peppers any color
  • 1 medium zucchini diced
  • 1 small onion diced
  • 6 cloves of garlic minced
  • ½ cup of chopped mushrooms
  • 1 16 oz can of drained and rinsed beans see notes section
  • 1 16 oz can of diced tomatoes
  • 1 bag of vegan mozzarella or vegan feta
  • 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 1 teaspoon dried basil
  • ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 cup of vegetable broth
  • 2 teaspoons oil
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon black pepper
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Cook the couscous

  • Bring the vegetable broth and pinch of salt to a high simmer on the stove and immediately take off of the heat. Stir in the couscous, stir well and cover with the lid. Let it sit for 10-15 minutes. Lift the lid and fluff with a fork
    ¾ cup uncooked moroccan couscous, ¾ cup vegetable broth

Make the filling

  • While couscous is cooking, dice up all of your vegetables. Add oil to a sauté pan on medium heat.
    2 teaspoons oil
  • Add the diced onions and sauté for 1 minute
    1 small onion
  • Add the mushrooms and saute for 2 minutes and season with a pinch of salt.
    ½ cup of chopped mushrooms
  • Add in the zucchini, garlic, can of beans, can of tomatoes, cooked couscous, seasoning, vegetable broth and salt
    ¾ cup uncooked moroccan couscous, 1 medium zucchini, 6 cloves of garlic, 1 16 oz can of drained and rinsed beans, 1 16 oz can of diced tomatoes, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, 1 teaspoon dried thyme, 1 teaspoon dried basil, ½ teaspoon smoked paprika, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 cup of vegetable broth, ½ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon black pepper
  • Stir everything well, and let it simmer on medium low until the sauce thickens up. Should take about 8-10 minutes, depending on your stove.
  • Once everything is slightly cooked down, add in a handful of vegan mozzarella or feta and nutritional yeast. Stir until the cheese melts and turn pan off of the heat
    1 bag of vegan mozzarella, 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast

Assemble and bake

  • Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees
  • Cut the bell peppers in half, lengthwise and take the seeds out. Add them to a baking dish.
    6 bell peppers
  • Stuff the bell peppers with the stuffing and top with a generous amount of vegan cheese. Add about ½ cup of water to the bottom of the dish and cover with aluminum foil.
  • Bake for 35 minutes covered. Remove the foil and bake for another 5-10 minutes, or until peppers are fork tender.
  • If you have leftover filling, save it for later. This makes a delicious lunch bowl.

Video

Notes

These can be frozen in a freezer safe container after cooking, for up to three months. Let them cool completely before freezing. Make sure they're completely covered, so they don't get freezer burn. 
These will last 5 days in the fridge. 
You will probably have some leftover filling. This is delicious the next day. Eat it for lunch. Tastes great served over a salad as well. 
Cook with wine - After sautéing the onions and mushrooms, deglaze the bottom of the pan with a splash of dry white wine. Wine gives this dish a deeper flavor and the alcohol will cook off.
Cover the peppers when baking - since vegan cheese can sometimes take a little longer to melt, when cooking the peppers, cover them for part of the way. This will help the cheese to melt faster.
A baking dish or casserole dish with a lid is the best thing to use for this recipe. If you don't have that, then just use aluminum foil to cover the peppers.
This recipe works well with a leftover grain that you need to use up, like leftover rice. But the beauty of couscous is that it only takes 10 minutes to cook, unlike most grains.
If you decide to stuff this with quinoa and need help cooking quinoa check out this guide on how to cook quinoa on the stovetop, pressure cooker, or rice cooker.

Nutrition

Calories: 197kcal | Carbohydrates: 41g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 0.3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Sodium: 462mg | Potassium: 611mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 4051IU | Vitamin C: 167mg | Calcium: 67mg | Iron: 2mg