Stuffed Bell Peppers are a warm and comforting meal. Sweet bell peppers, stuffed with beef, onion, rice and cheese. Make them spicy with jalapenos in the filling, or crushed red pepper. Make them ahead and cook them when you’re ready. The leftovers are great for lunch or make them for meal prep. They are a favorite at our house.
What you need
Bell peppers
Ground beef or ground turkey
Onion
Tomato sauce
White rice
Worcestershire sauce
Cheese
Salt
Pepper
How to make Stuffed Bell Peppers
Wash the bell peppers and slice them in half from the top Attempt to keep part of the green stem on each half. This looks nice, but it not always possible. You can use any color of bell peppers.
Wash the bell peppers and cook them in the microwave for 8 minutes. If you start with bell peppers that are completely cooked they will be too soft when finished. If you start with raw bell peppers they will be undercooked. When partially cooked they will be soft, but not mushy when ready to eat. I have found that 8 minutes is just about right. Transfer to an oblong baking sheet and sprinkle the inside of the bell peppers with 1 teaspoon of the salt. Set aside.
Dice about half an onion to get ½ cup. Brown the onion in a large, deep pan along with a pound of either ground beef or ground turkey. If you use ground beef, drain after browning. Ground turkey doesn’t need to be drained as it is pretty lean.
Add the tomato sauce, rice, water, Worcestershire sauce, pepper and the remaining teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer on low heat for 20 to 25 minutes, until the rice is tender. Adjust with additional water and cooking times if necessary to cook the rice. The rice needs to be fully cooked before it goes into the oven.
When the rice is tender, stir in 1 cup of the shredded cheese. Distribute the mixture evenly between the peppers and top with the remaining half cup of shredded cheese.
Spray a piece of foil with nonstick cooking spray so that the cheese won’t stick.
Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and cook for another 10 minutes, until the cheese is melted.
Stuffed Bell Peppers
Ingredients
- 4 large bell peppers
- 1 pound ground beef or ground turkey
- 1/2 cup diced onion
- 7 ounces tomato sauce
- 1/2 cup white rice
- 3/4 to 1 cup water
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 teaspoons salt, divided
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 2 cups shredded mild cheddar cheese
Directions
- Step 1 Wash the bell peppers and slice them in half from the top Attempt to keep part of the green stem on each half. This looks nice, but it not always possible. You can use any color of bell peppers.
- Step 2 Wash the bell peppers and cook them in the microwave for 8 minutes. If you start with bell peppers that are completely cooked they will be too soft when finished. If you start with raw bell peppers they will be undercooked. When partially cooked they will be soft, but not mushy when ready to eat. I have found that 8 minutes is just about right. Transfer to an oblong baking sheet and sprinkle the inside the bell peppers with 1 teaspoon of the salt. Set aside.
- Step 3 Dice about half an onion to get ½ cup. Brown the onion in a large, deep pan along with a pound of either ground beef or ground turkey. If you use ground beef, drain after browning. Ground turkey doesn’t need to be drained as it is pretty lean.
- Step 4 Add the tomato sauce, rice, water, Worcestershire sauce, pepper and the remaining teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer on low heat for 20 to 25 minutes, until the rice is tender. Adjust with additional water and cooking times if necessary to cook the rice. The rice needs to be fully cooked before it goes into the oven.
- Step 5 When the rice is tender, stir in 1 cup of the shredded cheese. Distribute the mixture evenly between the peppers and top with the remaining half cup of shredded cheese.
- Step 6 Spray a piece of foil with nonstick cooking spray so that the cheese won’t stick.
- Step 7 Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and cook for another 10 minutes, until the cheese is melted.
