These Mexican-Style Quinoa Stuffed Peppers are the perfect healthy family meal that’s naturally gluten-free! These stuffed peppers are bursting with Mexican flavours and packed with veggies and fibre and topped with cheese for a wholesome meal the whole family will love!
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*I originally shared this recipe back in August 2015. I’m re-sharing it today with updated photos and a few minor updates to the recipe to make it EVEN BETTER!! Enjoy!
I’m always on the lookout for dinner inspiration these days…our family needs quick and easy weeknight meals that are healthy, kid-friendly, and mostly dairy-free since my husband has a dairy allergy. These Mexican-Style Quinoa Stuffed Peppers are our latest favourite, and the whole family absolutely LOVES them!
These Mexican-Style Quinoa Stuffed Peppers are so easy to make and they contain all kinds of healthy ingredients (including some you might not expect!), making them a great family meal that’s easy to customize to your family’s tastes and dietary preferences. They’re fresh, colourful, full of vegetables and quinoa, making them naturally gluten-free.
As a busy mom, I love how easy these Mexican-Style Stuffed Peppers are to customize, not only to the kinds of foods my kids like (read: tolerate), but also to what I happen to have on hand. Although I usually make them with Quinoa, I’ve even substituted cooked rice in a pinch when I didn’t have any Quinoa in the pantry and they worked out fantastically!
And feel free to use whatever ground meat your family likes – I go back and forth between extra lean ground beef and ground turkey, but this Mexican-Style Quinoa Stuffed Peppers recipe will work with any ground meat, so the choice is yours!
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I hope you love these Mexican-Style Quinoa Stuffed Peppers as much as our family does! Let me know in the comments below, what other kinds of easy weeknight meals would you like to see here on thebusybaker.ca??
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Looking for even more delicious and healthy family meal ideas? Check out these other Mexican inspired recipes my readers love!!
RECIPE VIDEO
Watch the video below to see exactly how I make this easy healthy recipe. You can find more delicious recipe videos on my YouTube channel.
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Mexican-Style Quinoa Stuffed Peppers
These Mexican-Style Quinoa Stuffed Peppers are the perfect healthy family meal that's naturally gluten-free! These stuffed peppers are bursting with Mexican flavours and packed with veggies and fibre and topped with cheese for a wholesome meal the whole family will love!
Recipe: Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups quinoa
- 2 1/2 cup water
- 6 bell peppers halved and cored (assorted colours of your choice)
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 1/2 lb ground turkey meat (extra lean ground beef also works well)
- 3 tbsp low-sodium or sodium-free taco or fajita seasoning mix
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 small onion diced
- 1 cup frozen corn
- 1 cup black beans canned
- 1 400 gram can diced tomatoes (approximately 14 ounces)
- 1 cup shredded zucchini
- 1 cup shredded cheese of your choice we use low fat cheddar cheese for me and the kids, and soy cheese for my husband
- cilantro or parsley chopped (optional, for garnish)
Recipe: Instructions
- Add the quinoa and the 2 1/2 cups of water to a pot and set the pot over high heat until the water begins to boil. Once the water reaches a boil, turn the heat to low and cover the pot, allowing the quinoa to cook for about 7-8 minutes more, or until all the water is absorbed and you can fluff it with a fork.
- While the quinoa is cooking, wash the bell peppers and slice them in half down the middle. If you can, slice through the stem first. This will create a perfect cross-section of the pepper and make for nice presentation.
- Place the bell pepper halves on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and set them aside. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Set a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once it's heated, add the olive oil and then the ground meat. Saute the ground meat until it's almost cooked through and then add the taco or fajita seasoning mix and the onions. Stir the mixture over the heat until the seasoning is integrated throughout and the onions have begun to soften. Add the water and the diced tomatoes, stir until a sauce forms and cover the pan.
- Allow the mixture to cook for 3-4 more minutes or until the turkey is cooked completely. Take the pan off the heat and add the cooked quinoa, the corn, the black beans, and the shredded zucchini. The zucchini may seem like an odd addition to this recipe but its presence in the mixture adds both texture and moisture as the peppers bake. Because quinoa can tend to be on the dry side, the added moisture from the fresh zucchini and the diced tomatoes keeps the filling from becoming too dry.
- Toss the mixture until everything is evenly combined and spoon the mixture into the 12 bell pepper halves. You'll have enough filling to really stuff them full, so be generous!
- Sprinkle some shredded cheese over the top of each stuffed pepper.
- Bake the peppers for 20-25 minutes at 375 degrees Fahrenheit. You'll see the peppers soften with the heat of the oven and the cheese will begin to bubble.
- Remove the peppers from the oven and sprinkle them with a little chopped fresh cilantro or parsley for a eye-catching garnish and to round out those Mexican flavours. Serve on a colourful plate, and enjoy!
Recipe: Notes
These peppers keep well in an airtight container in the fridge as leftovers for up to 3 days. Reheat in the oven at 375 degrees Fahrenheit just until the cheese bubbles, or reheat in the microwave.
Recipe: Nutrition
Nutrition Facts
Mexican-Style Quinoa Stuffed Peppers
Amount Per Serving (1 serving)
Calories 416
Calories from Fat 126
% Daily Value*
Fat 14g22%
Saturated Fat 5g31%
Cholesterol 48mg16%
Sodium 261mg11%
Potassium 853mg24%
Carbohydrates 51g17%
Fiber 9g38%
Sugar 7g8%
Protein 23g46%
Vitamin A 4101IU82%
Vitamin C 160mg194%
Calcium 190mg19%
Iron 4mg22%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated, using Spoonacular, for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.
Mmm this is just my sort of meal! I love these colours and flavours! Gorgeous!
Thanks Elizabeth! I hope you enjoy it!
Beautiful and very appetizing. You can satisfy everyone with one of these.
Thanks Tina!
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Wow these look amazing!! So much better to use the quinoa instead of rice! Using the zucchini to help it stay moist is smart too!!
Thanks so much! I hope you enjoy them!
We have been looking for more recipes with quinoa. Although, we did not have any zucchini when we first made this dish, so we just doubled the corn. This is such a delicious recipe. Thank you so much for sharing. Both my husband and I truly enjoyed it very much.
Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a comment! I’m so glad you liked this recipe!! Have a great day!
Yum, all the spices sound delicious!
Thanks so much! I hope you enjoy them!
These would be a hit at my house! Yum!
Thanks so much Liz! I hope your family enjoys them as much as ours does!!
I love this! Looks so good.
Thanks so much!
I’m all about some stuffed peppers! These are gorgeous shots!!
Thanks so much Meg!
Can these be frozen after or before baking?
They can be stored in a freezer safe container in the freezer for up to 3 months after they’ve been cooked and cooled.