Lentils and brown rice create a protein and nutrient packed vegetarian dinner that goes together easily in about an hour. Perfect for meal prep and for lunch on the go!
Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a sauce pan with a lid.
When hot, add onion and cook until translucent, stirring frequently so that onion doesn’t burn. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds stirring well.
Add one can of whole tomatoes along with the juice and break apart the large chunks into smaller pieces.
Add ¾ cup of rice and 1 cup of water. Cook for about 30 minutes or until rice is cooked through. Check frequently and add more water if needed while cooking.
When the rice is done cooking, add the lentils, cumin, chili powder, oregano and cayenne pepper. Mix it up well.
Prep and Stuff Peppers
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Cut peppers in half and remove the stem and seeds. Trim the inside to make more space.
Place the peppers with the open side facing up into a lightly sprayed baking dish.
Fill each pepper with filling, gently press down but it’s ok if the filling mounds up over the pepper top. Depending on the size of the peppers, each one will hold aobut ½ cup or so of the lentil and rice mixture.
Top each pepper half with 1 tablespoon of cheese and bake at 350° F until heated and cheese is melted, approximately 20 minutes.
Notes
Use just about any variety of lentils except for red lentils. They will not hold up well enough in the recipe since they get so mushy.Want it spicier? Use poblano peppers or another spicy pepper instead of red bells.Have leftover lentil and rice filling? Save it for later in the week and use it to make tacos or just heat and eat topped with some salsa, avocado and sour cream.Liberally stuff the rice and lentil mixture into the peppers making sure each pepper half has enough of the filling.Cook peppers covered in the oven. This speeds up the cooking process so your dinner is ready more quickly.