Vegan Stuffed Peppers in Green Tomato Sauce
One of my favorites, comforting food, before I stopped eating meat, was my mum’s stuffed peppers. Just thinking about it makes me hungry. Reducing meat from my menu, meant I could not eat her yummy peppers any longer. So, I had to create my version of vegan stuffed peppers. And while I’m at it, make it without any canned products (these recipes usually use canned tomatoes or tomato sauce). Well. Not in this house.
The inspiration
I discovered green tomato sauce while visiting Spain, in a town down south called Tarifa. Tarifa has amazing restaurants and options for meat and non-meat eaters. I ate lentils falafels in tomato sauce, in one of Tarifa’s best fusion Kitchens, called Raiz.
When returning home, I was both inspired and in need for authentic homemade, cooked comfort food. And this was when these peppers were born.
How to make
Making stuffed vegetables is very easy. What it does requires is some time, patience and love. This is why the best stuffed vegetables are made by mamas, because they are made with love!
Step 1: Preparations. Soaking the lentils and quinoa overnight or for at least eight hours in filtered water. If you like, you can replace the quinoa or the lentils with rice. Jasmine or round rice would be great substitutes. Note that dried lentils and quinoa double by about 2.5-3 in the soaking and cooking process.
I also recommend soaking the walnuts for a few hours in filtered water in order to activate them. This is a matter of personal preference and the research in this field is still ambivalent.
Step 2: I cook the lentils and quinoa in separate cooking pots for about 15 minutes each, until almost soft. Then, I drain the water. Tip for cooking quinoa: For each cup of dried quinoa I double the cups of cooking water. This means that I cook 1 cup dried quinoa with 2 cups of water. That I usually don’t need to drain any water.
Step 3: Making the filling. I love to put lots of greens in my stuffed veggies. I use parsley, green onion, spinach, dill. Leek and coriander, if you like it, may be a great addition too. Basically, all greens are welcome – the more the merrier, the healthier! I cut the vegetables small and mix the in a bowl with the quinoa and lentils.
I crush the walnuts to small pieces and add them to the mix. Then come the spices that are the must in this filling. They give the homey taste. Cumin, garlic, paprika, curcuma, salt and a bit of lemon juice. If you like black pepper you can add some too. I mix the ingredients well, and taste. Tasting the food in the cooking process is so important! If I like it now – I will even like it more when the recipe is ready! If the flavors need additional touch – more spices, more salt – this is the time to add them.
Step 4: I cut the peppers’ heads – but try to keep them safe, so that I could close the pepper once I complete filling it. I clean the seeds and insert the filling one by one. This is where the love comes in.
Step 5: Sauce. I cut the tomatoes to medium squares, the onion to small cubes, the garlic cloves to slices, I grate the ginger.
I put the tomatoes and onion in a cooking pot with water, about 1 centimeter, and cook them with a closed lid (it’s important not to open it so that the steam won’t come out) for about 7 minutes. Then I add ginger, garlic, oregano, parsley, coriander seeds and salt. I add a bit more water, about 1/3 cup, and let it cook for about 5 more minutes. I taste and fix the flavors and add the peppers.
Step 6: Cooking. I let the peppers cook in the sauce on low heat for about an hour. I check it from time to time to see if a bit more water is needed and if the heat is not to high or too low. after about an hour I taste the sauce and the inside of one pepper. When the peppers and the filling are completely soft – they are ready! You can fix the sauce, if needed and Bon Appetite!!
I love having a piece of Fermented Gluten-Free Buckwheat Flatbread next to my vegan stuffed veggies so that I can dip it in the sauce.
These stuffed peppers are:
- Vegan
- Gluten free
- No sugar
- No preservatives
- rich in veggies
- Full of protein
- Not costly to make
- Comforting, especially on cold days
Substitutes for peppers
Not everyone loves peppers. You don’t have to use peppers, you can fill-in any vegetable you like – zucchinis, onions, and even cabbage. You can make a pot with a mixed of different stuffed peppers. The latter is the best of course! But most work too. Stuffed vegetables, especially cabbage go amazingly well with my homemade tomato sauce which I will share the recipe for soon enough.
Vegan Stuffed Peppers in Green Tomato Sauce
Ingredients
For the stuffed veggies:
- 10 peppers
- 1 cup cup red or green lentils soaked overnight
- 1 cup quinoa soaked overnight
- 1/5 cup walnuts*
- 1 onion
- A handful of parsley
- A handful of green onions
- A handful of green spinach
- A handful of dill (shamir)
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp red paprika
- ½ tsp dry garlic
- 1 tsp salt
- A hint of curcuma
- Juice from 1/2 a lemon
For the green tomatoes sauce:
- 10 green tomatoes
- 1 onion
- 2 tbsp grated ginger
- 6 garlic cloves
- 1 tsp coriander seeds
- ½ tsp salt
- 1/2-3/4 cup water
- Optional: a few fresh oregano leaves
Instructions
- Cook the quinoa and lentils in hot water for 10-15 min, until mildly cooked. Drain the water.
- Cut the onion, parsley, green onions, spinach and dill (shamir) small
- Mix the quinoa, lentils onion and greens together.
- Crush the walnuts to small chunks and add to the blend.
- Add all the spices: paprika, curcuma, cumin, dry garlic and salt. Add the lemon juice and mix well. Taste and fix the flavors if needed.
- Take out the peppers’ head gently with a knife. Keep them, don't throw them! Clean the seeds out.
- Stuff the peppers with the filling blend and close them with their heads.
- For the sauce, cut the tomatoes into medium cubes. Cut the onion into small cubes. Grate the ginger (if not done before) and chop the garlic cloves small.
- Cook the tomatoes and onions on low heat with about 1 centimeter of water in a cooking pan with the lid closed for about 7 minutes. Try to avoid opening the lid so that the steam will not come out.
- Add a bit more ware, about 1/3-1/2 cup, the ginger, garlic, coriander seeds, oregano and salt. Let it cook for about 5 more minutes with a closed lid.
- Add the stuffed peppers and cook with a closed lid on low heat for about an hour. Check from time to time to see if more water is needed and if the heat is not to low or high.
- The peppers are ready when they are completely soft. You can also taste the inside of one pepper to make sure that the filling is soft too.
- Taste the sauce and fix the flavors if needed.
- Best served with bread to dip in the sauce. Enjoy!
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