This stuffed pepper recipe is easy to make. Perfect for meal prep, this recipe freezes and reheats well too!
Stuffed bell peppers are filled with a savory mix of beef, sausage, rice, and marinara. They’re baked with cheese until tender for a classic, cozy meal.
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Holly’s Recipe Highlights
- Flavor: Savory ground beef, tender veggies, and fluffy rice come together in a rich tomato sauce, all topped with golden, melty cheese.
- Budget Tip: Replace half of the meat with black or kidney beans. You can stretch the filling further by adding extra rice or veggies and filling some extra peppers.
- Prep Note: Depending on the size of your peppers, you might end up with extra filling. It’s great in zucchini boats or as a filling for portobello mushrooms.
- Prep Ahead/Freezer: These can be prepared 2 days ahead or prepared and frozen before baking (freezing instructions below).
Easy Ingredients and Add-Ins
- Bell Peppers: Choose any color of bell peppers. Green peppers are more earthy in flavor, while red, yellow, or orange peppers are a bit sweeter. Just cut the tops off and remove the seeds.
- Meat: Ground beef and Italian sausage add a lot of flavor. You can use just one, or any combination of ground meat, including ground turkey or chicken, ground pork, or turkey sausage.
- Rice: Use uncooked long-grain rice. If using cooked rice, simmer in the sauce for just 5 minutes.
- Sauce: Use a jar of pasta sauce, or control the flavors and try homemade marinara sauce.
- Cheese: Optional, but I love a cheesy topping! Try mozzarella or an Italian blend.
How to Make Stuffed Peppers
- Pre-cook the peppers and brown the meat mixture (recipe below).
- Add the remaining filling ingredients and cook until the rice is tender.
- Fill upright peppers with the meat and rice mixture. Sprinkle with cheese and bake until bubbly.
Save It for Later
- Store leftover stuffed peppers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat peppers in the microwave, air fryer, or stovetop in a pan with a little water at the bottom on medium-low heat.
- To freeze, line the baking dish with parchment paper and assemble the peppers as directed without baking. Ensure the filling is cooled and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bake as directed, adding 15 minutes to the baking time.
Savory Stuffed Pepper Recipes
Did you make these Stuffed Peppers? Leave a rating and comment below.
Ingredients
- 6 medium bell peppers any color
- 8 ounces lean ground beef
- 8 ounces Italian sausage
- 1 small yellow onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 (14.5 ounce) can canned petite diced tomatoes with juice
- 1¼ cups water
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- ½ cup long grain white rice uncooked
- ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2½ cups marinara sauce divided
- ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese or cheddar cheese, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9×13-inch casserole dish.
- Cut off the tops of the bell peppers. Discard the stems, finely chop the tops, and set aside for the sauce. Core the peppers, discarding the membranes and seeds.
- To cook the peppers, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook the peppers for 5 minutes and then drain them well. Alternatively, air fry the peppers at 400°F for 5 minutes.
- For the filling, heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef, Italian sausage, diced onion, and minced garlic. Cook, breaking it up with a spoon, until no pink remains. Drain the fat.
- Add diced tomatoes with their juices, water, Worcestershire sauce, rice, the diced pepper tops, Italian seasoning, and ¼ teaspoon each salt and black pepper.
- Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat to a low simmer, and cover. Cook until the rice is tender, about 15 to 20 minutes, adding more water if needed. Remove from the heat and stir in ½ cup of the marinara. Taste and season with more salt and pepper if desired.
- Place 1 ½ cups of marinara sauce in the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Add the peppers, cut-side-up, and divide the rice mixture evenly into the peppers. Spoon the remaining marinara sauce over the top.
- Cover tightly with foil, bake for 35 minutes.
- Carefully remove the foil and spoon the sauce from the bottom of the dish over the peppers. Top with cheese (if using) and bake uncovered for an additional 10 to 12 minutes or until the peppers are tender and the cheese is fully melted.
- Rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Video
Notes
Rice: If using cooked rice, skip the water and simmer the rice in the sauce for about 5 minutes. Brown rice should be pre-cooked.
Peppers: For firm to tender-crisp peppers, skip the boiling step and bake as directed. I prefer the texture when the peppers are softer.
Seasoning: Marinara sauce can vary in salt levels and seasonings. Taste a bit of the filling and add salt to taste.
Additional vegetables, such as diced zucchini or chopped mushrooms, can be added to the filling.
Nutrition Information
Calories: 397 | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 19g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 0.5g | Cholesterol: 63mg | Sodium: 980mg | Potassium: 1023mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 4384IU | Vitamin C: 168mg | Calcium: 123mg | Iron: 4mg
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Beef, Casserole, Dinner, Entree, Main Course, Pork
Cuisine American, Italian© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
I cook mine 1 hr. & don’t cover. A topping of tomatoe sauce, mustard, brown sugar is delicious
Your topping sounds so amazing!
Your stuffed pepper recipe was delicious- huge hit !
Thank you Mary!
OUR TRADITIONAL STUFFED PEPPER. BUT YOUR RECIPTE YUMMY THANKS
Made the stuffed peppers for dinner last night. Really a great recipe . Looking forward to do it again.
So glad you loved them Jim!
What is the purpose of putting the sauce in the pan before it’s being baked? Wouldn’t it burn to the pan, making it hard to scrub off?
It doesn’t burn to the pan, the peppers will also release moisture.
My husband loves them! It is a really good recipe. I added a TBS of Tomato paste to the mix because I like a deep rich tomato flavor but the recipe is outstanding as is. I missed/don’t see where it said to add the marina sauce into to the meat mixture prior to stuffing which i caught when I saw the video. My peppers were about to go into the oven so I just stirred in the amount I had poured on top and when mixed added more to the top. They are wonderful. The melted cheese on top…..yummmmmm.
I have the same question, in the video it shows mixing marinara sauce into the meat mixture, but doesn’t say it anywhere in the recipe itself. Either way, my wife and I loved it, our 2 year old even loved it. Can’t wait to make it again, I think I might even try it with ground chicken and turkey next time.
Pete, I’m so glad to hear that your family loves these stuffed peppers! Great idea to try them with ground chicken or turkey! In step 7, we use the marinara on the bottom of the pan, then top the peppers with the remaining marinara. Hope that helps.
This is the first time in 52 years of marriage that I made stuffed peppers. These were absolutely fantastic!! I will definitely be making them again in the near future!!
I’m so glad you loved these Elaine!
Red or yellow peppers are much better since they are sweeter.
I was just wondering if you can use wheat rice? I know I would have to cook the wheat rice first . They say wheat rice is a little chewy. So I well cook It longer than white rice.
I haven’t tried it but I’m sure it would work!
What is the name is the first kitchen gadget you used in the pan? I must have one!!
I call it a meat chopper (I don’t know if that’s the ‘real’ name) and you can find them here on Amazon or at Walmart!
You can use a potato masher. I’m sure you have one of those laying around!
I got mine from Pampered Chef.
This was sooo good. The filling it self could be a main dish. Next I’ll probably use less of the diced tomato cause i don’t really like tomatoes. This was PERFECT!!!!!!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it Nick!
I use an electric frying pan to cook the filling. I also use ground venison and stews tomatoes. Then I spoon the mixture into the peppers and set them on top of the filling left in the pan and set on simmer until the peppers are cooked. This is good for those who don’t like the peppers but gives the filling a good flavor. Also I like the crunchy pieces of mixture in the frying pan. Yummy!
Great tip, thank you!
Made this last night. They were delicious! Added additional oregano and Italian spice. Topped with mozarella cheese.
I’m so glad you loved them!
If you cook these in a slow cooker there is no need to blanch the peppers, they come out nice and soft. I would put some water in the bottom rather than the sauce. 6 hours on low.
Thank you for sharing!
Can I use minute rice?
I have only made the recipe as written.
wHAT KIND OF RICE DO YOU USE? lONG GRAIN OR INSTANT?
I use long grain white rice. Enjoy!
My family loves these. We even like them for a Christmas Eve supper (red and green, lol) . Sometimes the peppers are just too big and overwhelming so we stsryedcmaking stuffed pepper “rings” making three or more rings from each and having lots of extra stuffing. Love your recipe.
I love the stuffed pepper rings idea! Thank you for sharing!
Oh my, yes to all of this. The end of the summer is the perfect time to have a huge grillout in the backyard.
This recipe sounds amazing! Question though, if using cauliflower rice, do you need to pre-cook the cauliflower rice or simply follow the same directions? Thanks!
It should be fine just as is. Enjoy!
I’m in the 35 minutes now.. The stuffing was great tasting.. Can’t wait for cheese topping and to be able to cut in that bell… Thank you , Very easy to follow!
I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe, it’s a favorite for us too!
Hi! Just came across this recipe and can’t wait to try it (after heatwave is over)! Just one question, is rice a long grain rice or an instant rice?
I use long grain white rice. Enjoy!
these were the best stuffwd peppers I’ve ever made over the last 40 years. My new go ro recipe
Oh Kathy, you just made my day! Thank you so much and I’m so glad you loved the peppers!
Thankyou Kathy! You have made my day! I’m sure your recipies will be a smash!