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Stuffed Peppers is loaded with amazing flavor. Ground beef mixture is stuffed into a bell pepper and topped with melted cheese for an easy weeknight meal!
Stuffed Peppers is a filling and hearty meal that is loaded with savory flavors. The seasoned ground beef mixture stuffed into a softened bell pepper makes the best meal idea. My entire family is always excited when this is on the menu.
It is a delicious main dish recipe and completely customizable. In fact, these are some of our delicious variations Chicken Stuffed Peppers, Chicken Stuffed Poblano Peppers, Stuffed Pepper Soup, Stuffed Pepper Casserole, Taco Stuffed Peppers and Instant Pot Stuffed Pepper Soup.
What's in this post: Stuffed Peppers
Why We Love Stuffed Peppers
Stuffed Pepper Recipe taste amazing because of the delicious combination of ingredients. This classic recipe is a crowd favorite and made with simple spices.
Prep time is minimal and makes the perfect meal to make ahead of time. Make stuffed bell peppers for a delicious, healthy meal idea.
Ingredients
- Lean Ground Beef – Feel free to substitute the beef with ground turkey or make it with combination of both ground beef and turkey. You can also add in Italian Sausage or use ground chicken.
- Large Red, Yellow or Orange Bell Peppers – Cut and clean out peppers to prepare for baking
- Extra-Virgin Olive Oil – Use oil of your choice
- Yellow Onion – Finely Chopped onion with a vegetable chopper. You can also use chopped scallions
- Cloves Garlic, minced – Learn How to Mince Garlic Cloves
- Worcestershire Sauce – See The Best Worcestershire Sauce Substitutes if you are out
- Tomato Sauce – Crushed Tomatoes or diced tomatoes is a great substitute
- Cooked Long Grain Rice – We recommend making the cooked rice ahead of time in a saucepan on the stovetop
- Shredded Monterey Jack Cheese (divided) – You can use shredded cheddar cheese, pepper jack cheese or Mozzarella Cheese instead of Monterey jack cheese if you prefer.
Scroll to the bottom for the full recipe in the recipe card.
Variations Ideas
- Vegetarian – This recipe is can easily be made as a vegetarian dish. Black beans is a great substitute for the meat.
- Seasoning – Feel free to change the spices to what you prefer. We have even added in ½ teaspoon of cumin and chili powder for warm flavors.
- Veggie – We have even add in roasted corn to the ground beef mixture for even more flavor.
- Toppings – Serve the Stuffed Peppers topped with Guacamole Recipe and Fresh Lime Juice.
How to Make Stuffed Peppers
- Step 1 – Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F and make sure that rack is in the middle of the oven.
Step 2 – Cut sides in half from the pepper stem to the bottom and remove all the seeds and the membranes from the peppers. Place them in the baking dish cut side up. Drizzle with tbsp of oil and sprinkle with salt then bake.
Step 3 – Add the remaining oil to a large skillet and heat it over medium high heat. Add the onions and 1 lb of ground beef to the pan. Break up the beef as it browns and cook until the onions are soft. Add in the minced garlic and cook for 1 minute.
Step 4 – Stir in the Worcestershire sauce, dried oregano, remaining salt, black pepper and tomato sauce. Bright the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat to medium low and simmer on low for 3-4 minutes.
Step 5 – Stir in the cooked rice and 1 cup of the shredded cheese. Heat until melted and then remove the pan from the heat.
Step 6 – Spoon the meat mixture evenly into the peppers.
Step 7 – Sprinkle the remaining shredded cheese on top. Bake for 10-15 minutes until the filling is heated through and the cheese is melted. Serve warm, topped with chopped fresh cilantro and enjoy!
Expert Tips
- Cutting Peppers – When cutting the peppers, press down on the top and the top and surrounding area will fall into the center of the pepper. Then continue to cut and clean out the peppers. This is so you don’t have to cut out the tops when preparing the peppers.
- Baked Peppers – Some liquid will accumulate in the peppers when they are cooked by themselves. This is normal and you can soak up the water with a paper towel if you’re concerned about it but it’s not required. Baking time will vary depending on the size of the peppers.
- Ground Beef – This is a great recipe to use leftover ground beef. We recommend to drain the grease before combining with the other ingredients.
What to Serve with Stuffed Peppers?
Stuffed Peppers is delicious served with many side dish recipes. These are some that we like to serve for a complete meal idea.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, after cutting and removing the insides of the peppers, drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt. Then bake the peppers for about 20 minutes before stuffing. This ensures that the pepper is softened before adding the ground beef mixture.
Store the leftover stuffed peppers in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Yes, this is a great recipe to meal prep with and freeze for another meal. Once the stuffed peppers have cooled, wrap them individually in plastic wrap then with aluminum foil. Place in a freezer safe container and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight when ready to reheat.
Reheat the leftovers in the microwave or in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes.
More Easy Stuffed Pepper Recipes
Easy Slow Cooker
Crockpot Stuffed Peppers
Quick and Easy Chicken
Buffalo Chicken Stuffed Peppers
Quick and Easy Instant Pot
Instant Pot Stuffed Peppers Recipe
We love to hear from you. If you make this Stuffed Peppers Recipe, please leave us a comment or a star review.
Stuffed Peppers
Ingredients
- 1 pound Lean Ground Beef
- 3 Large Red Yellow or Orange Bell Peppers
- 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil divided
- ½ Yellow Onion finely chopped
- 3 cloves Garlic minced (or 1 Tablespoon Minced Garlic)
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire Sauce
- ½ teaspoon Dried Oregano
- ¾ teaspoon Salt divided
- ½ teaspoon Black Pepper
- 1 can Tomato Sauce 8 ounces
- 1 cup Cooked Rice
- 1 ½ Cup Shredded Monterey Jack Cheese divided
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Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit and make sure that rack is in the middle of the oven.
- Cut the peppers in half from the stem to the bottom and remove all the seeds and the membranes from the peppers. Place them in the baking pan cut side up.
- Drizzle with half of the olive oil and use a basting brush to brush both sides of the peppers with the oil. Sprinkle ¼ teaspoon of salt on the peppers.
- Bake for 20 minutes until tender and slightly brown around the edges of the peppers.
- Add the remaining oil to a large skillet and heat it over medium high heat. Add the onions and ground beef to the pan. Break up the beef as it browns and cook until the onions are soft. Add in the minced garlic and cook for 1 minute.
- Stir in the Worcestershire sauce, dried oregano, remaining salt, black pepper and tomato sauce. Bright the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat to medium low and simmer on low for 3-4 minutes.
- Stir in the cooked rice and 1 cup of the shredded cheese. Heat until melted and then remove the pan from the heat.
- Spoon the meat mixture evenly into the peppers and sprinkle the remaining shredded cheese on top.
- Bake for 10-15 minutes until the filling is heated through and the cheese is melted.
- Serve warm and enjoy!
5 star
I love stuffed peppers but these were my favorite. making again
Healthy and easy!!!
Easy healthy option for dinner!!
These look amazing! Completely different than the ones my Mom used to make… Cs
Thank you Deb! I hope you try them.
A recipe for a fabulous meal and enough for a second meal!
Woohoo! I’m so glad you enjoyed them.
Loved this recipe! So fun and yummy.
Loved this recipe!
Love stuffed peppers
Love stuffed peppers. They are easy to make and easy to change it up. I always precook my peppers in the oven
Definitely a recipe to try
Looks amazing!
Certainly takes less time than the way I learned 60 years ago!?
Woohoo! I hope you enjoy it too.
Can’t wait to try this and where you say it’s even better as a leftover definitely something I want to try 🙂 Thanks for such good recipes.
I love how simple and quick this was without sacrificing taste. Perfect for a busy weeknight meal. I’ll be adding this to my regular rotation.
Yum Yum and in my tum!!
Red peppers are the best!
Quick, easy and tasty. The qualities I look for when cooking!
I love using the red peppers too! Thank you so much for sharing Mary!
I’m so glad you see you use red and yellow peppers as my daughter doesn’t like green peppers. I’m pretty sure she’ll like these!!
I love making this meal when we want to switch up dinner!
I love stuffed peppers and there are so many ways to make them. To make them Keto-friendly, I just leave out the rice or use riced cauliflower in place of rice. They are so delicious, no matter which way you make them.
Yes, I agree Tammy – Thank you for sharing and thank you for the positive review.
Sounds yummy! Just like my daddy used to make!
Woohoo! Thank you Stephanie!
I love making stuffed peppers I appreciate you sharing your recipe
Thank you so much Mary!
Make stuffed peppers often, but loved the edition of Monterey Jack cheese on the top. Added a nice “zing” to the dish which isn’t in my usual recipe.
These peppers look fabulous. I am curious though why not green bell peppers?
Teresa – You can definitely use green bell peppers if you like but I like to use red, yellow or orange as they are a bit sweeter and I like the taste of them in this recipe.
Ohhh these not only taste great but they are beautiful as well.
Thank you so much Michael!
These were very easy to make and tasted delicious. My Mom used to make these for us when we were kids.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it Linda! Thank you for sharing and thank you so much for the positive review.
Thanks for sharing. Stuffed peppers became a favorite of mine as I got older. I don’t know how to explain that- but I really enjoy them!!!! Yum!!
I can’t wait to make these for my husband!
I love finding new recipes and variations for stuffed peppers. Thanks for sharing!
Such a great recipe! Full of flavor . Definitely making this again!
These are soooo delicious! I can’t get enough of them.
Stuffed Bell Peppers are my husband’s favorite.
Absolutely love your recipe!
Thank you!
The stuffed peppers look delicious and so colorful.
I am going to have to try these! What is the best way to heat them for leftovers? Put them back in the oven?
Yes, I would reheat them in the oven or in the microwave.
So yummy and easy! I didn’t have tomato sauce on hand but had green chili enchilada sauce leftover, so I used that instead. Give it such a fantastic southwest flavor!
Perfect for meal prep! Made 2 batches of these yesterday, one to freeze individually for future quick dinners/lunches and one to eat this week.
Delicious and super easy to make for a weeknight dinner!
I like stuffed peppers but can’t eat cheese; any cheese. What can I use to punch up the flavor?
You can easily make this recipe without the cheese and it will still be delicious. You don’t need to add in anything else.
These look and sound amazing! I love filled peppers and un-stuffed peppers are super fun
I love stuffed peppers but haven’t found a solid recipe until now. Thanks for the expertise.
I have a go-to stuffed pepper recipe that I’ve used for years, but I’m excited to try this one. It looks/sounds delicuous.
This are my all time favorite. I cooked these for our Easter dinner Yummy!!!!!!
Love love LOVE stuffed peppers! I make them frequently and always change them up a bit but they are a big hit!
I buy the tri colored 3 pack of peppers and make this for our weekly meal set up!!! Love love them ! Easy to re- heat and so full of everything u need, veggies, protein, carbs ??????
Yes, I agree Nancy! Thank you so much and thank you for the positive review.
This sounds delicious! I can’t wait to make it.
I hope you enjoy it Michele!
This is my new favorite recipe! Yummy and cheesy!
Such a great recipe!
We love this eod recipe for stuffed peppers!
Such a yummy and fun recipe!
Incredible meal for a busy week!
Better than my moms
So easy to make and delicious! I love making these for lunch throughout the week.
Very good and simple to make and tasty
I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe Charmaine – Thanks for sharing!
I forgot how much I love these! I’m glad I saw your recipe! Cm ants sit to make your version!
I love them too Dina. I hope you enjoy this recipe.
Delicious flavor and was so easy to make!