I have been itching to do a stuffed peppers vegetarian dish. I’ve been mulling on it for a couple of weeks now. Of course, my first instinct was to go Southwestern with black beans, corn, maybe some diced tomatoes? Manchego cheese? But, it felt very “been there, done that,” ya know? Dime a dozen. Next, I started thinking about going something more Greek area Mediterranean with chickpeas or cannellini beans, feta cheese, and some sort of ancient grain ~ farro? bulgur? barley? Well, my son poo-pooed that 🙄.
Okay, so I’m going to reveal my geeky side and admit that I’ve been playing clash of clans with the same group of people for 7 or 8 years now. And, a couple of us have become pretty good cyber friends. I mean, to the point that if we ever have the opportunity to hang out in real life, I know we’ll all jump at it and get along famously… I should clarify that they’re all adults! 😂 So, geek revealed.
Anywho, the point of that tangent… one of my “clans’ mates” (it’s okay, you can roll your eyes at me), is a vegan. We actually talk vegan food quite a bit because I like to get ideas. My mulling had finally brought me around the lentils, so I asked him what he likes to do with lentils. Without missing a beat, he said his favorite lentil dish is mujadara… or mujadra. I have never heard of this dish, so I started doing my research. I have to admit, I was immediately down with this. It sounded like a delicious dish and perfect for what I was looking for.
So, of course, I tweaked the recipe, blew it up a bit… a lot of people keep this dish way too simple. I don’t think what I have done is over the top. I think most people are way too plain, in my very blunt opinion. And honestly, I am really excited with playing with this recipe further to create some different approaches than the traditional caramelized and/or fried onions.
Most people serve this straight up, as is. I knew this would be great stuffed in peppers, so that was already settled. But, I also just knew that making an herbed labneh at home would be an awesome accoutrement to this dish. If you want to keep this dish vegan, there are vegan yogurts you can get. If you’re just looking for something for Meatless Mondays or a vegetarian dish in general, use whatever yogurt you prefer, keep the feta cheese, and dig in!
I roasted the peppers under the broiler to char them and cook them so they would be tender firm. It took about 5 minutes per side, surprisingly, to get them to where I wanted. You could also throw them on the grill, if you find that easier!
All in all, this is a super easy dish to make. Most of the cook time is cooking the rice and lentils, but with parboiling the lentils while caramelizing the onions (timesaver!), the rice and lentils cook in about 30 minutes. I topped my stuffed pepper with French’s fried onions, feta, labneh, and cucumbers. Adding slices of avocado and drizzling with tahini sauce are other delicious toppings! My buddy loves his with tahini sauce.
Do you have to have these stuffed in peppers? Absolutely not! But if you are having this as a vegan or vegetarian dish, I highly recommend it! It gives a really nice textural balance and flavor profile to the mujadara. I feel like I wouldn’t have felt as satiated without them! If you aren’t looking for a vegetarian dish, this would be a great side to grilled chicken!
Enjoy!
Lebanese Mujadara Stuffed Peppers with Herbed Labneh
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Lebanese, Middle Eastern, Mediterranean, Vegetarian, Vegan
- Cuisine: Dinner
Ingredients
Mujadara
1 cup French green lentils, rinsed
1 cup basmati, rinsed
4 – 6 large shallots, thinly sliced widthwise
6 garlic cloves, minced
1” ginger, minced
1 TB ground cumin
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp turmeric
½ tsp allspice
1 lemon, zested & juiced
½ cup cilantro, roughly chopped
1 TB olive oil
salt & pepper
4 bell peppers, cut in half & deseeded
Labneh
1 cup nonfat Greek yogurt (vegan, if desired)
1 lemon, juiced
1 tsp ground cumin
¼ cup cilantro, roughly chopped
2 TBs fresh mint, minced
2 TBs olive oil
salt & pepper
To Serve
fried onions
sliced avocado
sliced cucumber
tahini
feta
Instructions
Make the Mujadara
Parboil the green lentils by bringing two cups of water to boil in a medium pot. Add the green lentils, reduce the heat to low, cover and let cook for 8 minutes. Drain and set aside.
Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat in a large saucepan. When hot and shimmering, add the shallots. Cook, stirring often, until caramelized and slightly crispy ~ about 20 minutes.
Add the garlic, ginger, cumin, cinnamon, paprika, turmeric, and allspice and stir to combine. Let toast for a minute or two. Add in two and a half cups of water and bring to a boil. Add the parboiled lentils and basmati rice and stir to combine. Cover and reduce the heat to low. Let cook 25 to 30 minutes, or until all of the water has been absorbed. Remove the lid and add the lemon zest, juice, and cilantro. Stir to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover until ready to serve.
When there is about 10 minutes left on the mujadara, place an oven rack in the highest position and place the broiler on high. Arrange the bell peppers, cut-side up, on a baking sheet. Place under the broiler and cook for about 4 to 5 minutes (keep a close eye on them so that they don’t burn! Rearrange the peppers after about 2 to 3 minutes so they all evenly char). Flip and repeats, cooking an additional 4 to 5 minutes, rotating the peppers as needed for even charring.
Make the Labneh
In a medium bowl, stir together the Greek yogurt, lemon juice, ground cumin, cilantro, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Divide into small serving dishes, if desired.
Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a small frying pan over medium heat. When hot, remove from the heat, and carefully add the minced mint to the oil (CAREFUL! It will splutter and kick off oil!). Let cool slightly before spooning over the yogurt.
Serve
Place two bell peppers on each plate and fill with mujadara. Serve with fried onions, sliced avocado, sliced cucumber, tahini, feta, and labneh, as desired.
Enjoy!
Keywords: mujadara, Lebanese mujadara, stuffed peppers, vegetarian stuffed peppers, vegan stuffed peppers, labneh, herbed ladneh, Middle Eastern vegetarian recipes
