Stuffed Peppers are a fancy way to serve peppers! They are so easy, delicious and impressive enough to serve for special occasions or special guests!
While I often serve peppers in a stir fry or in a fresh Greek salad, I do love using the pepper itself as a serving vessel! We’ve filled these with a delicious beef, sausage and rice filling perfect for a quick and complete meal in one tidy package!
Stuffed Bell Peppers are easy to make and everyone loves them! We fill these with a mixture of beef and sausage but you can use one or the other (or even ground turkey if you prefer).
When choosing the color of pepper for your Stuffed Peppers recipe, it will depend on your personal taste preference. Green peppers are a bit more zesty and definitely less sweet than red, yellow or orange. Green peppers in this recipe really compliment the flavors in the beef, sausage, tomato-rice mixture.
How to make Stuffed Peppers
If you follow these easy steps, you will have perfect stuffed peppers every time!
- Brown meat and aromatics. Add tomato sauce, rice and seasonings and cook until rice is tender.
- While the filling is cooking, prepare your peppers by simmering 5 minutes to soften.
- Fill peppers with pasta sauce, meat and rice mixture.
- Top with cheese and bake until bubbly!
Do You Have to Pre-cook the Peppers Before Stuffing Them? No you don’t have to precook the peppers, but they do stay quite crisp if you don’t pre-cook them. I personally prefer starting with cooked peppers for this Stuffed Peppers recipe.
How Long to Cook Stuffed Peppers
Stuffed peppers should be cooked at about 350°F for about 45 minutes. Be sure to cover with foil during the initial 30-35 minutes to ensure they do not dry out. Uncover and top with cheese and bake for the remaining 10 minutes or so until brown and bubbly.
What to Serve with Stuffed Peppers?
Can you freeze Stuffed Peppers?
Yes, you definitely can freeze Stuffed Peppers and they are a great make-ahead meal! You will need to bake them first, then you can either freeze them individually or together in a baking dish. To re-heat, simply thaw in the fridge overnight and bake in a 350°F oven until heated through.
Keep this Stuffed Peppers recipe close at hand for a quick, easy and fun way to serve dinner! Prepped and ready in under 1 hour, this recipe is great for your busy schedule!
Stuffed Peppers
| PREP TIME 30 minutes | COOK TIME 45 minutes | TOTAL TIME 1 hour 15 minutes |
| SERVINGS 6 servings | COURSE Main Course | Cuisine American |
AUTHOR Zeeshan
Tender bell peppers stuffed with a zesty beef and rice filling with tomato sauce are baked until bubbly.
Ingredients
- 6 bell peppers
- 1/2 lb lean ground beef
- 1/2 lb Italian sausage
- 1 small onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 can small diced tomatoes 14 1/2 oz
- 1/2 cup white rice uncooked
- 1 1/4 cup water
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 2 1/2 cups marinara sauce divided
- 1/2 cup cheddar cheese shredded
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Cut the tops off the peppers (reserve the tops), remove seeds and membranes and discard. Chop tops of the peppers to add to the filling.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook peppers 5 minutes. Remove and drain well.
- In a large skillet, brown beef, sausage, onion & garlic over medium high heat until no pink remains. Drain any fat.
- Stir in the diced tomatoes with juice, rice, 1 1/4 cup water, diced pepper tops, Worcestershire sauce and Italian seasoning.
- Bring to a simmer, reduce heat and cover. Cook 15-20 minutes or until rice is tender. You can add more water if needed. Stir in 1/2 cup marinara sauce.
- Place 1 1/2 cups of marinara sauce in the bottom of a 9×13 pan. Fill each pepper with the rice mixture. Spoon remaining marinara sauce over peppers.
- Cover with foil and bake 35 minutes. Remove foil, baste peppers with any sauce in the bottom. Top with cheddar and bake an additional 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and peppers are tender.
Recipe Notes
If you firmer/tender-crisp peppers, skip the boiling step and bake as directed.
NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION
Calories: 385, Fat: 21 g, Saturated Fat: 8 g, Cholesterol: 64 mg, Sodium: 922 mg, Potassium: 933 mg, Carbohydrates: 29 g, Fiber: 4 g, Sugar: 11 g, Protein: 18 g, Vitamin A: 4255%, Vitamin C: 166.8%, Calcium: 137%, Iron: 3.7%
(Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.)
