Description
These Taco Quinoa Black Bean Stuffed Peppers made in a slow cooker are a healthy, low-carb taco alternative. 9 ingredients, 10 mins of prep, and easy to freeze for future meals.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 6 large bell peppers, any color
- 1 cup uncooked quinoa
- 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 (15-ounce) can refried beans
- 1 (8-ounce) bottle taco sauce
- 1 (1 1/4-ounce) package taco seasoning (choose a gluten-free product if needed)
- 1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup water
- Avocado, chopped cilantro, and sour cream for topping
Instructions
- Chop off tops from the bell peppers; discard seeds and membranes.
- Discard the stems and calyxes from the 3 pepper tops, and then finely chop the remaining flesh.
- Place the chopped peppers in a large bowl, add quinoa, black beans, refried beans, taco sauce, taco seasoning, and 1 cup cheese. Mix well.
- Stuff the taco quinoa mixture into the prepared peppers.
- Pour 1/2 cup water into a slow cooker, place the stuffed peppers in it so that they sit in the water. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 3-4 hours. Turn off the slow cooker.
- Remove the lid. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top of the peppers. Cover again for a few minutes to let the cheese melt.
- Top with avocado slices, chopped cilantro, and sour cream, plus anything you like. Serve!
Notes
- A 6-quart slow cooker can hold 6 stuffed peppers all at once. If your slow cooker’s capacity is 4 quarts, you can cook only 4 peppers. However, you can freeze these stuffed peppers after cooking or freeze the filling before cooking. I’ve tried both methods, and the peppers are still delicious in both ways.
- To freeze before cooking, freeze the filling and thaw thoroughly before stuffing the peppers. I’ve tried to freeze some already-stuffed peppers, thaw, then cook. The result was less than ideal.
- To freeze after cooking, wrap peppers in foil and then freeze. To warm them up, preheat oven to 375°F, bake for 45 minutes. Unwrap, check the peppers, bake for another 10 minutes if necessary. Microwaving the peppers is not recommended, as they often come out soggy and rubbery.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1
- Calories: 396
- Sugar: 7.9g
- Sodium: 721.4mg
- Fat: 15.1g
- Saturated Fat: 7g
- Trans Fat: 0.3g
- Carbohydrates: 46.2g
- Fiber: 12.5g
- Protein: 19.1g
- Cholesterol: 33.9mg
