Italian Quinoa Casserole is a hearty vegetarian dish packed with protein and veggies! Simple to make and incredibly satisfying, this recipe is perfect for a weeknight meal that everyone in the family will enjoy.
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Crispy, cheesy quinoa might be my best friend.
This quinoa casserole is based on my wildly popular Crispy Quinoa Bake. It's just as crispy and even more comforting with its warm Italian flavors. There are tons of hearty vegetables like zucchini, eggplant, and red bell pepper, and of course - CHEESE.
I love this recipe because it's easy to make and feeds the whole family. Pair it with a simple salad for a yummy weeknight dinner!
Ingredients
- Quinoa
- Olive oil
- Vegetable stock
- Eggplant
- Coarse kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Onion
- Red bell pepper
- Zucchin
- Garlic
- Canned diced tomatoes
- Canned great northern bean
- Parsley
- Dried thyme
- Dried rosemary
- Dried oregano
- Crushed red pepper
- Italian cheese blend
- Parmesan cheese
How to make quinoa casserole
- Preheat the oven to broil on high and place an oven rack in the highest position. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray. Set aside.
- Arrange eggplant in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Toss with a drizzle of olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Broil in the oven until soft and beginning to brown, stirring once or twice, about 5-10 minutes. After removing the eggplant, lower the rack to the middle position and turn the oven to bake at 375ºF.
- Place the quinoa in a fine mesh strainer and rinse throughly with cool water for at least two minutes. Drain.
- In a medium saucepan, heat 2 teaspoons olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the quinoa and cook, stirring, for about 2-3 minutes. The quinoa should begin to dry out and pop a bit.
- Add the vegetable stock. Stir and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to low and cook, covered, for 15 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and let stand, covered, for 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat.
- Add onions and peppers and cook, stirring occasionally until soft, about 7 minutes.
- Add garlic and zucchini and cook 3 more minutes.
- Fluff the quinoa with a fork and place it in a large bowl.
- Add onion mixture, eggplant, tomatoes, beans, parsley, thyme, rosemary, oregano, crushed red pepper, 1 cup of Italian cheese blend, and salt to taste. Mix thoroughly and transfer to prepared baking dish.
- Bake 30 minutes, top with remaining cheese, and bake 10 minutes more or until melted and just beginning to brown.
Top tips
How to cook quinoa
If quinoa is a new-to-you food, I have two blog posts with plenty of tips and tricks on how to cook quinoa on the stove or in the instant pot.
How to rinse quinoa
I recommend rinsing the quinoa before adding to the crockpot to remove any bitter taste. To do this, add your quinoa to a fine mesh sieve and run under cool water for 2 minutes. Let it drain, then add it to the crockpot.
How to store Italian quinoa casserole
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
You can also assemble the whole thing ahead of time and refrigerate or freeze until ready to eat. Be sure to add a few extra minutes of cook time if cooking it cold.
How to customize quinoa bake:
- Use whatever veggies you have on hand such as cooked broccoli or frozen spinach
- Swap spices and veggies to create totally different flavors, like in my Crispy Quinoa Bake
- Leave out the cheese to make it vegan
- Spread thin on a rimmed baking sheet instead of using a 9x13 pan for extra crispy quinoa
FAQ
Quinoa is a seed that is often categorized as a grain, even though technically it is not. It is high in protein, fiber, and other nutrients that make it a great addition to any diet, but especially a plant based diet.
Quinoa is easy to cook and makes a great side dish or addition to bowls, soups, and casseroles. When properly cooked it should be fluffy with an appearance of a "halo" around the seed, which is the germ of the seed separating from the kernel.
Yes, quinoa is naturally gluten-free and vegan.
Yes, you can use any color quinoa such as red, black, or tri-color, to make quinoa casserole. The directions remain the same.
More quinoa recipes
- How to Cook Quinoa
- Instant Pot Quinoa
- Quinoa Taco Salad
- Rainbow Quinoa Salad
- Peaches and Cream Breakfast Quinoa
- Slow Cooker Quinoa Enchilada Casserole
- Warm Kale and Quinoa Salad
- Broccoli Quinoa Casserole
- Vegan Quinoa Salad with Balsamic Tofu
- Crispy Quinoa Bake
If you make this recipe be sure to rate it, leave a comment, or tag #theliveinkitchen on Instagram!
Recipe
Italian Quinoa Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 cup uncooked quinoa
- Olive oil
- 2 cups vegetable stock
- 1 eggplant, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
- Coarse kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1 zucchini, cubed
- 2 cloves garlic
- 28 ounces canned diced tomatoes, drained
- 15 ounces canned great northern beans, rinsed and drained
- ¼ cup parsley, finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
- ¾ teaspoon dried oregano
- ⅛ teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 2 cups Italian cheese blend
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to broil on high and place an oven rack in the highest position. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray. Set aside.
- Arrange eggplant in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Toss with a drizzle of olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Broil in the oven until soft and beginning to brown, stirring once or twice, about 5-10 minutes. Keep a close eye on them as oven temperatures may vary, you don't want them to burn. After removing the eggplant, lower the rack to the middle position and turn the oven to bake at 375ºF.
- Place the quinoa in a fine mesh strainer and rinse throughly with cool water for at least two minutes. Drain.
- In a medium saucepan, heat 2 teaspoons olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the quinoa and cook, stirring, for about one minute. The quinoa should begin to dry out and pop a bit.
- Add the vegetable stock. Stir and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to low and cook, covered, for 15 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and let stand, covered, for 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat.
- Add onions and peppers and cook, stirring occasionally until soft, about 7 minutes.
- Add garlic and zucchini and cook 3 more minutes.
- Fluff the quinoa with a fork and place it in a large bowl.
- Add onion mixture, eggplant, tomatoes, beans, parsley, thyme, rosemary, oregano, crushed red pepper, 1 cup of Italian cheese blend, and salt to taste. Mix thoroughly and transfer to prepared baking dish.
- Bake 30 minutes, top with remaining cheese, and bake 10 minutes more or until melted and just beginning to brown.
Donna says
Made this and substituted spinach and mushrooms for eggplant that I didn't have, and also black beans was all I had.
Came out absolutely delish! Great recipe 🙂
Lindsay Moe says
Thanks Donna, I'm so glad you enjoyed it! It's one of my favorites as well.
Mark Calloway says
Great recipe! love it thanks for sharing. I love Italian food I always wanted to make some but due to lack of time I couldn't therefore I have to go to the Italian restaurants. I remember one restaurant in Oakland called "Belotti" pretty great restaurant love their food.
Lindsay Moe says
I also have a love for Italian restaurants! I'm so glad you enjoyed this recipe!
Debbie says
Found your recipe on Pinterest. I made it last night with leftover roasted veggies I had already (zucchini, cauliflower, broccoli, & carrots). And I don’t like chunks of tomatoes, so I used marinara sauce instead. It was DELICIOUS! And I’m now eating the leftovers that I heated in a skillet liked you recommended on the Mexican version. Also delicious! Thanks for the inspiration.
Lindsay Moe says
I'm so glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for sharing your swaps. The skillet leftovers are the BEST PART!!
Melinda Wilcox says
I found your site by googling the ingredients I needed to use up in my frig and would not have thought of doing it quite this way but I was very happy with the result. I omitted the beans and upped the zucchini to 4 small ones...all veg roasted first. The flavor and texture of the roasted veggies provides a satisfying texture which can be hard to find in vegetarian dishes (especially when trying to please our family carnivores!). Thanks!
Lindsay Moe says
I'm so glad you enjoyed it and were able to use up the ingredients in your fridge!
Jessica says
Just made this recipe and wow it’s sooo good! I made a few changes just because I’m trying to meet my macros. I reduced the cheese to 1 packet of medium cheddar, added 500 grams of lean Turkey mince for extra protein, changed the beans to lentils just coz I really like lentils and it’s a good source of protein too, didn’t have zucchini coz my grocery ran out. But overall it came out beautifully and it’s so full of flavour! Just added this to my go-to recipes now. This has made me so happy. Thank you!
Lindsay Moe says
Thanks for sharing your adaptation, I'm so glad you enjoyed it!
Jana says
I made the Italian quinoa casserole last night, yummy! I didn't have eggplant so doubled the zucchini and just sprinkled some Parmesan on top since I try to avoid dairy but my husband likes it. It makes a lot so I put some in the freezer for another day. I might add some marinara sauce to the leftovers to hold it together since the cheese was omitted without compromising the yummy spice blend.
Anshirley Corathers says
I'm looking forward to trying this recipe! I was wondering what would be a good substitute for the tomatoes as I can not eat them? I'm assuming they are there to provide extra moisture?
Thanks!
Lindsay Moe says
You would actually want to remove as much moisture as possible from the tomatoes before cooking, so I think it would be fine to leave them out entirely or replace them with a soft or cooked vegetable of your choice. Enjoy!
Shari says
This sounds delish! Can this recipe be put together the day before, refrigerated and then baked the next day to serve? This is what I always do with my baked ziti (and it allows the flavors to all blend together in a very delicious way) but didn't know if it would work just as well with quinoa.
Lindsay Moe says
Absolutely! I have also frozen it to cook later and it comes out great.
Shane Bailey says
Yum lovely, very tasty
Abby Caruso says
I love this recipe and have made it many times! I typically will add a pound of lean ground turkey or ground beef and do the rest of the recipe as is. My family asks for this meal as “healthy lasagna”! Thank you for sharing.
Lindsay Moe says
Great idea, I'm so glad you and your family enjoy it!
Abby Caruso says
I’ve made this recipe many times and it is always a hit! I usually sub the diced tomato’s for tomato sauce. The perfect “healthy lasagna”!
Laura says
How long would this bake after freezing? I would like to gift it to a new mama of twins and include instructions.
Lindsay Moe says
I would recommend thawing in the refrigerator overnight, then bake for 40 minutes, add the cheese and bake an addition 10 minutes.