Unstuffed Peppers have all of the flavors of our favorite stuffed peppers but this casserole is quick to make in just one pan!
A zesty rice and sausage skillet filled with sweet bell peppers is on the table in no time at all!
Unstuffed peppers have all of the flavors of our favorite stuffed peppers recipe but needs just one pot! Top with cheese and serve this easy dish casserole style.
Easy One-Pot Meal
Who doesn’t love an entire entrée that can be prepared in one pan? We love all the healthy ways unstuffed peppers can be made. No meat? No problem! We like unstuffed peppers made with cauliflower rice for a low-carb, keto version, quinoa for a high protein version, or brown rice for a super high-fiber version. Just adjust cooking times as necessary.
Ingredients and Variations
Unstuffed peppers are not only super easy to make, but almost anything can be tossed into the skillet along with the original ingredients or subbed out with other ingredients.
VEGGIES: Add mushrooms, diced zucchini or other squash, frozen veggies.
PROTEIN: Sausage adds lots of flavor but you can substitute it for ground beef, or for a lower fat version, switch out the sausage for ground turkey or even leftover shredded chicken.
How to Make Unstuffed Peppers
This dish is so easy to make, but so tasty and filling everyone will want seconds!
- BROWN MEAT
Brown the sausage, onion, & garlic, drain fat. - COOK RICE
Add tomatoes, rice, water, seasonings, salt, & pepper. Simmer until thickened. - SIMMER PEPPERS
Add diced bell peppers & continue to cook until rice is tender.
That’s all there is to it. Remove from heat, top with cheese & cover until cheese is melted (or pop it under the broiler if you’d like)!
Tips and Tricks
- For extra flavor and texture, place the skillet under the broiler until the cheese topping gets golden brown and bubbly.
- If subbing the rice out for cauliflower rice, quinoa, or brown rice, adjust the cooking time as necessary.
- Store unstuffed peppers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
- It’s easy to freeze! Scoop into zippered bags, label with the date and store for up to two months in the freezer.
More Bell Pepper Favorites
- Taco Stuffed Pepper Casserole – family fave
- Mexican Stuffed Peppers
- Easy Pepper Steak
- Stuffed Pepper Soup
- Sausage and Peppers
- Crock Pot Stuffed Peppers
- Stuffed Peppers – Classic recipe
- Tamale Pie
- Ground Turkey Stuffed Peppers
Did you love these Unstuffed Peppers? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below!
Unstuffed Peppers
Ingredients
- 1 pound Italian sausage
- 1 small onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic
- 14 ounces crushed tomatoes canned
- 14 ounces canned diced tomatoes with juices
- ½ cup long grain white rice uncooked
- 1 ⅔ cup water or as needed
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
- salt and pepper to taste
- 4 bell peppers any color, diced
- ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- In a large pan, brown sausage, onion & garlic over medium heat until no pink remains. Drain fat.
- Add tomatoes, rice, water, Worcestershire sauce, Italian seasoning, and salt & pepper to taste. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to simmer and cook covered 10 minutes.
- Stir in diced peppers and cook an additional 15-20 minutes or until rice is tender.
- Stir and add cheese on top. Remove from heat, cover with a lid and rest 10 minutes before serving.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Beef, Dinner, Entree, Main Course
Cuisine American© 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.
Definitely making this again!
I added a seeded jalapeño.
Delicious!
Great recipe as usual. I love spendwithpennies recipes. I had to edit a bit as for some reason rice/pasta tend to stick to my dutch oven. I ended up having to throw everything in a casserole dish and bake and after my experience here is how I would do it next time.
I doubled the recipe. I would cook the meat/onions/garlic/drain fat. Then I’d add that with the tomatoes/uncooked rice/etc into a bowl and mix it all together. Spray my 13×9 pan with spray, put the mixture inside. I tried 350 but it was too low and rice wasn’t done…Next time I’ll do one hour at 375 degrees, pull it out, add cheese and put it on broiler for a handful of minutes till the cheese is browned up a bit.
In case anyone else needs a way to double a recipe. Also I did use the 2 pounds for a double recipe on the beef but I only used 5 bell peppers (if you double it calls for 8) and you don’t need that much. Everything else stayed the same. Water I only used 2 cups total and that seemed fine, eventually your rice will soak all that extra juice near the top but I did put a pan underneath just in case but didn’t need it.
Hope that helps someone else for tweaking but spendwithpennies recipes are the best and easy to tweak/change to fit your needs and of course always super yum! :)
Thank you for sharing your tweaks, Chelsea! So glad you enjoyed it.
This is a quick, easy, delicious week night dinner which I have made several times! Last night, I used cooked rice, leftover from another dinner, which “disappeared” in the casserole. My advice: follow the recipe!.
Can’t do rice (keto) but wondering if it would be good without rice and if so…your thoughts on adjusting recipe?
You could sub cauliflower rice to make it low carb and it would be delicious Mary!
I just assembled this for supper tonight. Wow ! I don’t think I’ll ever stuff another pepper. I did adjust for my personal taste. Half beef half sausage. A tablespoon brown sugar, pinch of allspice. So easy and flavorful. I love your recipes and I’m never afraid to put a spin on them. Thank you.
You are so very welcome George. Similar taste, but oh so easy, right?!!
I had trouble getting it to thicken up. I only made one change in the tomatoes – didn’t have crushed so used stewed and crushed them up. Should I have not added 1-2/3 c of water right away? Not sure – it was good just soupy..
Hi Laurie, we slowly add 1 ⅔ cup water or as needed. Depending on how juicy your tomatoes are you may not need the entire amount of water.
Can this recipe be made in a crockpot? If so, do you recommend doubling the recipe and how long should it be cooked for in the slow cooker?
Hi Rose, I haven’t tried this recipe in the slow cooker, but think it’d work to cook on low 4-6 hours or just until rice is cooked. Once done, turn slow cooker off, sprinkle cheese on top and let sit 10 minutes to set and melt cheese. Let us know if you try it!
Winner!! I’m a big fan of stuffed bell peppers except for (1) the time involved making them & (2) my favorite peppers to grow now are NOT bells so a little hard to stuff. This was the perfect solution as well as delicious! All the flavors I remember and came together very quickly. Thanks for the recipe!
So glad you enjoyed it, Yvonne. It is all the flavors of stuffed peppers without all the work!
What is the serving size?
This recipe makes 4 servings. It’ll be approximately 2 cups per serving depending on your exact ingredients. Enjoy Lindsey!
Do you have a recommended Worcestershire sauce replacement or can it be left out due to an allergy?
You can leave it out.
Wow, I loved this!!! I only had three sweet peppers so I added 2 Hungarian peppers to give it some zip. It was excellent!
I didnt realize the rice was meant to be cooked in the pot and not separately. It still smells yummy. I am hoping to cook the sauce down a little.
Delicious!!! Will be making this again, and this recipe came together very quickly. Thank you so much for sharing Miss Holly!!!
So glad you liked it, Shawnae! :)
A very good recipe. When asked what’s for dinner tonight I told my wife “unstuffed peppers”. She remembered my making it prior and commented that she recalled it was good in that it had the flavors of stuffed pepper having to eat a big honking pepper. I call that a double win.
When searching for food recipients, there are certain bloggers that I try to go to. SpendWithPennies is one of my go to recipe sites and this one certainly does not disappoint. A simple, very easy, healthy, one dish meal that comes together quickly and easily.
Feel free to adjust and tweak the seasoning and you’ll still come out with a winner. I accidentally forgot the Worcestershire sauce, but added a dash of red pepper instead which turned out to be a workable substitution.
I do recommend, making it in a larger flat bottomed skillet or pan with a lid as it helps the rice absorb. Speaking of which, the recipe is very forgiving of the amount of water to rice and can be adjusted on the fly as needed. If the pan has a lid, the cheese will melt on top to delicious effect.
This is definitely a go to recipe.
Thank you so much for sharing your tips and for your kind words Matt, you made my weekend. I’m so glad you’ve enjoyed the recipes.
Can you hamburger instead of Italian sausage
Sure you can! You might like to add a little bit of extra seasoning (Italian seasoning, salt, a sprinkle of chili flakes if you’d like).
I would use cooked rice and use less water
yummy to my tummy!!!!
This Unstuffed Pepper was sooooo good. My husband couldn’t get enough. Thank you for another great recipe.
This was a really simple good recipe. A definite keeper and really easy quick to clean up after.
WOW! We love stuffed peppers here, but this looks SOOOO much easier. With all the produce available this time of year the bell peppers are fresh, sweet and delicious. I’m fixing this for supper tonight. THANKS!!!
Let us know how this turns out for you, Liz! :)
Love making unstuffed peppers a favorite meal