Stuffed Peppers
A classic comfort dish, this Stuffed Peppers recipe is hearty, flavorful, and so easy to make. Colorful bell peppers stuffed with beef, rice, and cheese, these peppers are perfect for dinner.
Servings 6 servings
Calories 387kcal
Equipment
- Skillet
- Casserole dish
Ingredients
- 6 bell peppers medium to large (any color)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ large yellow onion chopped (about 1 cup)
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 ¼ pounds lean ground beef (563g)
- 1 can diced tomatoes drained (14.5-ounce/411g)
- 1 can tomato sauce (8-ounce/227g)
- 1 ½ cups cooked rice (300g)
- ¼ cup finely chopped fresh parsley plus more to garnish
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 ½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese divided (170g)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Cut the tops off peppers and remove seeds and ribs from the inside. Stand the peppers up inside a large casserole dish.
- In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender and browning around the edges, about 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook 2 minutes more.
- Add ground beef and cook until browned, about 10 minutes, stirring and breaking up any chunks with the back of a spoon while cooking. Stir in the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, cooked rice, parsley, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is heated through, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. Fold in 1 cup mozzarella cheese.
- Spoon the filling into the peppers Sprinkle the filling with the remaining 1/2 cup cheese.
- Bake for 20 minutes or until the peppers are tender and the cheese is starting to brown. Let cool for about 5 minutes before serving. Garnish with fresh parsley, if desired.
Video
Notes
- I like long-grain rice for the stuffed peppers as they hold up well as they cook. However, you can use short-grain rice as well.
- I like to use a medium to large pepper for this recipe. Because bell peppers can vary so much in size, if the ones you find are too large for the amount of filling, just trim off the tops of the peppers to decrease their capacity.
- You can also substitute ground turkey for ground beef.
- Instead of mozzarella cheese, you can try using pepper jack cheese or sharp cheddar cheese.
- Careful not to overbake the peppers as it’ll cause them to become soggy. Also, make sure there isn’t excessive liquid going into the peppers. If your ground beef is fatty, drain it first.
- Make sure you wash and pat dry the bell peppers before stuffing them.
- Feel free to add other vegetables you have in the fridge to the filling. Try mushrooms, corn, or peas. Legumes such as beans or chickpeas are a great filling addition as well.
Nutrition
Calories: 387kcal | Carbohydrates: 30g | Protein: 31g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 81mg | Sodium: 1268mg | Potassium: 1129mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 12g | Vitamin A: 4712IU | Vitamin C: 171mg | Calcium: 223mg | Iron: 5mg