Chorizo and quinoa – what a combination. Put it inside a bell pepper and top with pepper jack cheese, and you’ve got one flavorful meal. I’ve been looking for new ways to use quinoa for a while now. I like it because it’s super healthy, but let’s be honest – unless prepared properly, it can taste a little. . . blah.
Enter chorizo. I’m actually not quite sure how it occurred to me to use chorizo in this recipe, because historically, I haven’t cooked with it very often. But I was thinking of what to use to pep up the quinoa a little (and trying to stick with a Southwestern theme), and chorizo popped into my head, so I went with it. Which is good, because it ended up being the PERFECT complement to its superfood friend.
Had I not been the one making this dish, I probably wouldn’t even have realized it has meat in it. Though chorizo is a type of sausage, it has a much different consistency when cooked than does Italian sausage – it’s more of a slightly lumpy paste than actual chunks of meat – so it blended right in with the little quinoa grains. And even better, it added a lovely degree of spice to everything.
Whenever I’m making rice, quinoa, or anything along those lines, I like to toast it for a minute or two with some sautéed garlic and onion (or shallots) before adding the cooking liquid to give it a little extra flavor. Naturally, since my starting point here was quinoa, which we’ve already acknowledged leaves a bit to be desired on the taste front, I started with the garlic and onion. Then, after toasting the quinoa in the pot for a minute or two, I added chicken broth as well as water to up the flavor ante even more.
Some salt, pepper, 5 Seasoning Salute, cilantro and shredded pepper jack did the rest. I just stirred those in, along with the cooked chorizo, once the quinoa had absorbed all its cooking liquid, and that was that. Nice and easy. Then I 
scooped the filling into the bell pepper halves, topped with additional pepper jack, and put them in the oven for about 15 minutes, until the cheese on top started to turn golden.
These stuffed peppers are healthy, easy, and WAY flavorful. But don’t take my word for it – try them out for yourself! Here’s what you do:
Chorizo and Quinoa Stuffed Peppers
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 4 bell peppers
- 1 cup quinoa
- 1 large onion
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 lb. chorizo
- 1.5 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup shredded pepper jack cheese
- 1/2 cup cilantro
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. pepper
- 1 tsp. Five Seasoning Salute
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
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Wash the bell peppers. Slice off the top of each, remove the seeds, and cut each pepper in half. Set aside.
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Finely chop the garlic and onion. In a medium pot, saute the garlic and onion in the olive oil over medium-high heat.
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When the onion is beginning to turn translucent (after about 3 minutes of cooking), add the quinoa and toast, stirring constantly, for about a minute.
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Add the chicken broth and 1/2 cup of water; stir to combine. Allow the quinoa to come to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook until all the liquid is absorbed (about 20 minutes.)
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Once all liquid is absorbed, stir in the salt, pepper, and Five Seasoning Salute. Remove the quinoa from heat.
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Meanwhile, cook the chorizo in a separate pan. Once cooked, remove from heat and set aside.
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Once it has finished cooking, add 1/2 cup of shredded pepper jack and 1/4 cup chopped cilantro to the quinoa mix. Add the chorizo as well; stir to combine.
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Scoop the filling into each half of the bell peppers. Place on a baking sheet. Sprinkle the remaining pepper jack over the tops. (You'll notice that the cheese in my photos is chopped, not shredded - works just as well.)
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Bake for 15 minutes, until the cheese on top begins to turn golden. After removing from the oven, sprinkle with additional chopped cilantro.
