These Couscous Stuffed Peppers will be your new favorite weeknight dinner. These healthy, Greek inspired stuffed bell peppers are so easy to make in less than an hour. Try them for a flavor packed meatless Monday!
These stuffed peppers with couscous are my definition of yummy. You won't even feel like you're eating healthy when you bite into these. It's on another level when combined with zucchini, onions, roasted red pepper, kalamata olives and smothered in a homemade marinara sauce.
Top it with salty feta and it is AMAZING! Like this Creamy Penne Primavera and Zucchini Ricotta Rolls, these Couscous Stuffed Peppers make a hearty healthy meal!
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Why You'll Love This Recipe:
- These peppers are loaded with Greek flavor
- They are really simple to make and take less than an hour
- This recipe is healthy, but it feels like comfort food because it's so good
- It is a great family friendly recipe that even the kids will love
If you are looking for more meatless recipes, don't forget to check out my Loaded Vegetarian Nachos, Cooking Farro in a Rice Cooker, Meatless Baked Ziti, and Panko Cauliflower Bites.
Ingredients:
Pearl Couscous- Also known as Israeli couscous. While most people think couscous is a grain, it's actually tiny little pasta. The texture is soft, chewy, and delicious. Try this Chicken Couscous & Mushroom Couscous too!
Bell Peppers- The most important part of this recipe. These peppers act in a shell like manner to hold in all of our delicious couscous filling. Bell Peppers are sweet with no spice and still have a nice juicy firm texture when fully cooked in this recipe. You can use any color pepper you like. I love green peppers, but I bought these in a package and there wasn't any.
Chicken Stock- Couscous can be on the bland side and while the package says to use water, I prefer stock to add flavor to the pasta. If you are making these vegetarian, use vegetable stock instead of chicken stock. I love the Kitchen Basics brand. If you can find it in your grocery store, it's worth the extra price. The flavor is a lot deeper than other brands and you can tell the difference in the final product, especially in soups!
Zucchini, Onion, Garlic, Oregano, Roasted Red Peppers, Kalamata Olives, Marinara- Sautéed in the dutch oven and mixed into the pearl couscous for a flavor explosion.
Feta Cheese and Fresh Basil- Used for topping the peppers after baking for an additional Greek taste. I love Feta cheese on everything. It's salty, crumbly and just one of my favorite things.
*Full recipe ingredients and quantities can be found in the recipe card below.
Substitutions & Variations:
Want more protein? Consider adding chickpeas to the recipe to keep it vegetarian. If you want to add meat, ground turkey or ground chicken would work great because they are low in fat and won't make a bunch of grease in the filling. Cook the meat in the dutch oven for a few minutes before adding the zucchini and onion. Be sure it's cooked fully with no pink before adding in the roasted red pepper step. If you add 1 lb of meat, you can cut the couscous and chicken stock in half, since you won't need as much with the additional meat.
If you're vegetarian, use vegetable stock instead of chicken stock.
Not big on marinara sauce? Keep it light by tossing in a few tablespoons of olive oil with juice from ½ a lemon.
Hate zucchini? You can leave it out.
Want extra veggies? Add in 2 cups of baby spinach with the garlic step.
Feel free to use any color bell peppers.
If you don't have pearl couscous, you should be fine to substitute it for moroccan couscous. I have not tested it, so make sure to follow the directions on the package for cooking the couscous.
For a recipe with meat, try these Taco Stuffed Bell Peppers.
Check out this post on Best Side Dishes for Stuffed Peppers with more than 20 recipe ideas.
How to Make Couscous Stuffed Peppers:
Here are Step by Step Instructions on how to make these stuffed peppers with couscous.
Step 1: Prepare the Bell Peppers
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Wash and dry the bell peppers, then cut them in half lengthwise. Remove the stems, seeds and any large white pieces of membrane. Place them in a casserole dish filled with 1 cup of water open side up. Bake for 20 minutes.
Note: If you like stuffed peppers on the softer side, you can increase the bake time to 25 minutes.
Step 2: Make the Couscous
When the peppers are cooking in the oven, make the couscous. In a medium size pot, bring the chicken stock to a boil. Add in the couscous and once it starts to simmer, turn the heat to low. Cover the pot and cook for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring every few minutes. *Be sure to double check the package instructions if the brand you choose varies in directions*
Once it is finished cooking, move it off the burner to the back of the stove. We will use it for the filling mixture soon.
Step 3: Make the Filling (Pepper Stuffing)
In a dutch oven on medium heat, add the olive oil. Once it heats up for a minute, add in the onions, zucchini and salt and pepper. Stir and cook until softened, about 6 to 7 minutes. If the vegetables start to brown too much, reduce the heat.
Step 4: Complete the Mediterranean Filling
Add in garlic, stir, and cook for one minute. Turn off heat completely. Pour in roasted red peppers, dried oregano, olives, couscous, and marinara sauce. Stir to fully combine.
Step 5: Stuff the Peppers
Carefully pour out the excess water in the bell pepper casserole dish. Place the peppers back into the dish. Stuff each pepper full to the top with filling. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes.
Step 6: Add the Toppings
Allow the stuffed peppers to cool for 5 to 10 minutes. Top with feta cheese and fresh basil. I like to warm some additional marinara sauce for serving. Enjoy!
Expert Tips:
- Be careful not to overcook the couscous. It could get mushy like pasta does. If you have a lot of liquid in the couscous after it's finished, it may be undercooked. You do not want to add this extra liquid into the pepper filling (in the dutch oven).
- It is important to cook the bell peppers prior to stuffing. They will not get cooked enough if you skip the step.
- Zucchini can be tricky to dice. I cut off the top stem and lower end off. Then, slice in half lengthwise. Lay the large side flat onto the cutting board and cut into more long strips. Now, it should be easy to dice into pieces. The Kitchn has a great tutorial on how to cut zucchini if you need a visual. Scroll down to how to dice zucchini.
Big on Red Pepper Recipes? Try my Red Pepper and Butternut Squash Soup!
Recipe FAQs:
Yes! Bake the peppers at 350 degrees in a casserole dish with one cup of water to help soften them for 20 to 25 minutes before stuffing the peppers for the best results.
Absolutely! Bell peppers are packed with nutrients like vitamin A and C. They have fiber and are really high in water content. Plus, they are low in calories.
Traditionally, stuffed peppers are packed with meat, rice and cheese. This couscous variation includes many Greek flavor packed additions like onions, garlic, kalamata olives and feta cheese. It's also vegetarian friendly!
What to Serve with Stuffed Peppers:
Most of the time, I just serve these Greek Stuffed peppers with a loaf of french bread.
If I'm feeling extra, I'll whip up this Mediterranean Cucumber Tomato Salad or serve the peppers beside these Air Fryer Zucchini Chips with Chipotle Mayo. So good!
Storage & Reheating:
These peppers make awesome leftovers to heat up in the oven or in the microwave. Make sure to store them in a sealed container and you can leave them in the fridge for up to 3 days after.
They taste best hot, but I like them cold too.
More Healthy Dinner Recipes You'll Love:
If you tried this Couscous Stuffed Peppers Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it goes in the 📝 comments below. I love hearing from you!
PrintRecipe
Couscous Stuffed Peppers
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
Couscous Stuffed Peppers will be your new favorite dinner. These stuffed bell peppers are so easy to make in less than an hour. Try them for a flavor packed meatless Monday!
Ingredients
- 4 bell peppers (any color)
- 2 and ¼ cup chicken stock or Vegetable stock, if vegetarian
- 1 and ½ cups dried toasted pearl couscous
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 zucchini, diced
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- ½ teaspoon salt and ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ cup roasted red peppers, drained and roughly chopped
- ½ cup kalamata olives, make sure to remove any seeds and chop into small pieces
- ½ cup of store bought marinara sauce or use my quick marinara sauce recipe plus additional sauce for serving.
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ cup crumbled feta cheese and 1 tablespoon of chopped fresh basil for serving.
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Wash and dry bell peppers, then cut them in half lengthwise. Remove the stems, seeds and any large white pieces of membrane. Place them in a casserole dish filled with 1 cup of water open side up.
3. Bake for 20 minutes. *If you like stuffed peppers on the softer side, you can increase the bake time to 25 minutes.
4. When the peppers are cooking in the oven, make the couscous. In a medium size pot, bring the chicken stock to a boil. Add in the couscous and once it starts to simmer, turn the heat to low.
5. Cover the pot and cook for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring every few minutes. *Be sure to double check the package instructions if the brand you choose varies in directions* Once the couscous is finished cooking, move it off the burner to the back of the stove.
6. In a dutch oven on medium heat, add the olive oil. Once it heats up for a minute, add in the onions, zucchini and salt and pepper. Stir and cook until softened, 6 to 7 minutes. If the vegetables start to brown too much, reduce the heat.
7. Add in garlic, stir and cook for one minute. Turn off heat completely.
8. Pour in roasted red peppers, dried oregano, olives, couscous, and marinara sauce. Stir to fully combine.
9. Carefully pour out the excess water in the bell pepper casserole dish. Place the peppers back into the dish. Stuff each pepper full to the top with filling.
10. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes.
11. Allow the stuffed peppers to cool for 5 to 10 minutes. Top with feta cheese and fresh basil. I like to also heat some additional marinara sauce up for serving. Enjoy!
Notes
*Be careful not to overcook the couscous. It could get mushy like pasta does. If you have a lot of liquid in the couscous after it's finished, it may be undercooked. You do not want to add this extra liquid into the pepper filling (in the dutch oven).
*It is important to cook the bell peppers prior to stuffing. They will not get cooked enough if you skip the step.
*Zucchini can be tricky to dice. I cut off the top stem and lower end off. Then, slice in half lengthwise. Lay the large side flat onto the cutting board and cut into more long strips. Now, it should be easy to dice into pieces.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: Greek
Holly
DELICIOUS!!