Filipino-Style Stuffed Bell Peppers

These Filipino-Style Stuffed Bell Peppers are filled with plant based ground ‘meat’ cooked in a rich tomato-based sauce inspired by Filipino Arroz a la Cubana. The plant based ground ‘meat’ is cooked with potatoes, peppers, raisins, and olives giving the filling sweet, savory, and umami flavors on top of varying textures. Each bell pepper half is stuffed with this filling before being baked until the peppers start to release its juices and the flavors of the filling continue to infuse together.Since we Filipinos love rice, I paired these stuffed peppers with Sinangag or Filipino Fried Garlic Rice.

📝 Ingredients

• 1 tbsp neutral cooking oil
• 1/2 small white onion
• 2 cloves garlic (minced)
• 1/2 small red bell pepper
• 1 small green chili (optional for extra head)
• 1 small potato (peeled and diced)
• 10.5 oz vegan ground ‘meat’ or mince ((plant-based ground meat substitute), see notes)
• 1/2 to 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tsp liquid seasoning (I used Knorr, option - you can just season with salt or soy sauce)
• Freshly ground pepper
• 2.5 tbsp tomato paste
• 1/2 cup water
• 1.5 - 2 tbsp brown sugar (adjust to desired sweetness)
• 4 green olives (sliced)
• 1.5 tbsp dried raisins
• 3.5 oz green peas
• 3 large bell peppers (I used yellow bell peppers)
• Filipino Fried Garlic Rice or Sinangag

👨‍🍳 Instructions

1. 1--- PREPARE THE FILLING ---
2. 2Heat a large pan or skillet over medium heat. Add the oil.
3. 3Once hot, sauté the onion until translucent, around 1 minute.
4. 4Add the garlic and sauté until lightly brown. Mix in the diced red bell peppers and chili (if using) and cook until tender.
5. 5Add the diced potatoes. Turn up the heat and leave the potatoes to cook for 2-3 minutes or until half-cooked.
6. 6Season the potatoes with some liquid seasoning (I used Knorr) or some salt, and pepper to taste.
7. 7Afterwards, add in the vegan ground ‘meat’ or mince.
8. 8Separate with your spatula and allow the ground ‘meat’ to cook.
9. 9Once the vegan ground ‘meat’ is cooked, taste a portion and then season with soy sauce and liquid seasoning, as needed.Note: This will depend on the type of ground ‘meat’ you used - some brands already come seasoned, so just adjust to your taste as needed.
10. 10Mix in the tomato paste and water into the pan. Stir until the tomato paste is dissolved. Add the sugar and pepper. Mix until well incorporated.
11. 11Add the olives, raisins, and peas. Mix well with the ‘meat’ mixture. Taste the filling and season with more soy sauce and/or sugar if needed.
12. 12The filling will be quite saucy, while will be just right to stuff into the peppers so the filling will not be too dry.
13. 13--- STUFFING THE PEPPERS ---
14. 14Preheat your oven to 350F/180C.
15. 15Slice the bell peppers vertically in half. Remove the seeds.
16. 16Place the bell peppers on baking tray. You can brush some oil onto the tray to avoid the peppers from sticking.
17. 17Scoop generous amounts of the filling. Carefully press the filling down into the peppers.
18. 18Repeat for the rest of the peppers.
19. 19Bake the stuffed bell peppers in the oven for 30-35 minutes or until the bell peppers are cooked and tender to your liking.
20. 20If air-frying you can start by air frying these for 15 minutes or until tender.
21. 21--- TO SERVE ---
22. 22Since we Filipinos love rice, I served these peppers with Filipino Fried Garlic Rice or Sinangag - you can find the recipe here. But of course, it's really up to you how you want to enjoy these peppers. They're great as-is or pair it with a salad.
23. 23Enjoy the peppers while still hot!