Add As A Trusted Google SourceThese are the best stuffed peppers I’ve ever made! With Italian seasonings, ground beef, rice and cheese, they’re an easy dinner the whole family will love.
Stuffed Peppers You’ll Make Again and Again
This stuffed peppers recipe has been a reader favorite for over a decade, and it’s easy to see why. My family loves the classic Italian flavors in this recipe, and I love that it comes together easily with simple ingredients!
What makes my stuffed peppers recipe especially easy is that you don’t have to pre-cook the peppers. Instead, I add a little bit of water to the bottom of the baking dish, then cover the dish while baking. This traps steam inside which softens the peppers up perfectly as they bake.
Ingredient Notes
- Rice: I like to use brown rice; white rice also works well. If you have leftover rice, this recipe is a great way to use it! Or substitute in cooked quinoa.
- Bell Peppers: Use any color of bell peppers that you like. I like to use a mixture of colors so that everyone at the table can choose their favorite.
- Onion and Garlic: For flavor.
- Ground Beef or Ground Turkey: I’ve made this recipe with both ground beef and ground turkey. Use whichever you prefer.
- Diced Tomatoes & Tomato Sauce: Adding tomatoes to the filling brings out the Italian flavors and keeps the filling from being too dry.
- Seasonings: You’ll need Italian seasoning, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
- Cheese: Use shredded mozzarella or cheddar, or a combination of the two. Half of the cheese is mixed into the filling and the other half is melted on top of the peppers.
How to Make Stuffed Peppers
Cook the rice. Follow my method for How to Cook Rice or How to Cook Brown Rice.
Prep the bell peppers. Use a knife to cut the tops off of the peppers. Use your fingers or a small knife to remove any membranes and shake out the seeds.
Make the filling. Sauté the onion in olive oil, then add the ground beef and cook until browned. Add the garlic, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce and the seasonings to the skillet. Simmer for 5 minutes to blend the flavors together. Stir in the cooked rice and half of the cheese.
Spoon the filling into the bell peppers, then top with more cheese.
Bake. Pour 1/2 cup of water into the baking dish and then add the peppers. Bake, covered with foil, for 30 minutes. The water will create steam which will help to soften the peppers. The steam will also keep the peppers and filling from drying out. Then uncover and bake for 5 more minutes, until the cheese is lightly browned.
What to Serve with Stuffed Peppers
My favorite side dishes for stuffed peppers include:
- A big, fresh Green Salad.
- Garlic Bread is such an easy addition to the meal, and my kids love it.
- When I have a bit more time, I make my easy Focaccia Bread. There’s no kneading or mixer required!
More Stuffed Pepper Recipes We Love
This classic stuffed peppers recipe is my very favorite, but sometimes it’s fun to try something a little different:
- Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers. They’re filled with rice, beans, corn, taco seasonings and cheese. You won’t miss the meat!
- Quinoa Stuffed Peppers. With quinoa, white beans and veggies.
- Stuffed Pepper Casserole. For those days when you don’t want to stuff the peppers and bake, make this easy one pan meal instead.
- Stuffed Pepper Soup. The same delicious classic flavors in a cozy soup!
Did you make this recipe? I’d truly appreciate if you leave a comment and star rating below! Your review will help others who want to try this recipe. Thank you! 💛
Stuffed Peppers
Ingredients
- ¾ cups uncooked brown rice, or white rice, (1 ½ cups cooked if using leftover rice)
- 6 bell peppers, any color
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- ¾ cup finely chopped yellow onion
- 1 pound ground beef, or ground turkey
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 15 ounce can diced tomatoes
- 8 ounce can tomato sauce, ¾ cup
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, or cheddar cheese, 4 ounces, divided
Instructions
- Cook rice according to package directions or your preferred cooking method. See How to Cook White Rice or How to Cook Brown Rice. Set aside to cool.¾ cups uncooked brown rice
- Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400° F.
- Cut the tops off the peppers and remove seeds and membranes.6 bell peppers
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until it starts to soften, 2-3 minutes.2 teaspoons olive oil, ¾ cup finely chopped yellow onion
- Add the ground beef (or ground turkey) to the pan and cook, crumbling, until browned and cooked through. Drain off any excess grease. Add the garlic and cook, stirring for 30 seconds.1 pound ground beef, 3 cloves garlic
- Add the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, salt and pepper to the pan. Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring for 5 minutes.15 ounce can diced tomatoes, 8 ounce can tomato sauce, 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon pepper
- Remove pan from the heat and stir in the cooked rice and half of the cheese.1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- Pour ½ cup of water into a baking dish. Fill bell peppers with the meat and rice mixture and place in the baking dish. Sprinkle on the remaining shredded cheese.
- Cover with a piece of aluminum foil that you have lightly sprayed with cooking spray to prevent sticking. Bake for 30 minutes, uncover, and bake 5 minutes more, until cheese is lightly browned and filling is hot. Serve.
Notes
- To Freeze: I tested this recipe as a freezer meal and it worked well. The only difference that I noticed is that the filling of the frozen peppers had a bit more liquid in it after baking. To freeze, prepare the peppers as directed in the recipe, but do not bake them. Let peppers cool completely and then place them in a baking dish in the freezer. Freeze for 1-2 hours, then transfer to a zip-top plastic freezer bag and store in freezer for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to bake them, thaw completely in the refrigerator (this will take about 24 hours). Then, bake as directed in the recipe, adding about 15 minutes to the covered bake time.
- Make Ahead: You can assemble the stuffed peppers and refrigerate them for up to one day before baking. When baking cold-from-the-fridge stuffed peppers, add about 15 minutes to the covered baking time.
- Storing Leftovers: Once baked, stuffed peppers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat them in the microwave (I find that cutting the peppers in half helps the filling to heat through better) or in a covered dish in a 375° F oven, until steaming hot.
- Crockpot Instructions: Add 1/2 cup of water to the bottom of the slow cooker. Then add the stuffed peppers, cover and cook on low for about 6 hours or high for 3 hours.
I originally shared this recipe in November 2010. Post updated in 2018, June 2023 and July 2026.
This is one of my favorite recipes! I’ve made these stuffed peppers several times and they are always so yummy. And I agree, it is difficult to get a good photo of them! 🙂
These look excellent. Love the colors in the pics. I just made these recently, yours look alot better than mine!?
Thank you, James! You are too kind. 🙂
These were delicious and definitely something I’ll be making again!
I am so happy to hear that!
Do you have to cook ground beef before you stuff the peppers my mom never did?
I find that the flavor is better when you brown the meat first, but you don’t have to. If you choose to skip the step of cooking the meat first, you should poke a few holes in the bottom of the peppers to let the juices drain out. You might need to increase the cooking time if using uncooked ground beef.
I made these with Minute Brown Rice and Quinoa to save time. They came out delicious!! They freeze so well too so you can have them again in a week or two ?
Yes! I love to freeze these for a quick dinner later on.
Just made these, wow really good, it’s been a long time since I had stuffed peppers. I retired Jan 3 and I Love to walk and cook and I hit the farmers market and got a good deal of peppers and corn. So my wife says what you are gonna do with all these peppers, And I say Stuffed Peppers I quess, and here We Are. Thank You ,My Wife says I make a good Wife hahaha.
Haha, I’m glad this recipe was a hit with you and your wife! Walking, cooking and going to the farmer’s market sounds like a great way to enjoy life!
What degree to you bake the stuffed peppers at?
400 degrees F.
I made this tonight with ground turkey and white rice and then added an 8oz can of tomato sauce and 8oz water in bottom of the pan. Was delicious!
Looks so yummy!! Is there a way to modify this to make it in an instant pot?
Here is my Instant Pot Stuffed Peppers recipe. Enjoy!
WANT TO PRINT OFF STUFFED PEPPERS RECIPE
Hi Kim, In the box with the recipe ingredients and directions, there is a green print button that will take you to a printer-friendly version.
These are the best stuffed pepper my husband and I have ever had! Thanks for the recipe. It’s goibg to be a go-to for us!
I am so happy to hear that! Thank you for taking the time to leave a comment. 🙂
Anyone tried this using Ground chicken instead of turkey or beef?
If vacuum sealed will these last longer in the freezer?
Possibly, I haven’t tried using a vacuum sealer.
Suzy, I used my seal a meal. I stuffed them, xcept for the cheese on top, used my seal a meal and froze them for months. They were as good as freshly made. Hope this helps. Enjoy!!!
Holy guacamole! I made this dish with spicy rotel instead of regular diced tomatoes, and substituted cheddar cheese; what a wonderful and perfect dish. I can not wait to enjoy these stuffed peppers again! Thank you for sharing your recipe!
I love this recipe. It’s very good every time I make it. Thank you for sharing.
These Stuffed Peppers sound & look amazing! This might sound like a silly question, but I’m assuming that you drain the diced tomatoes before adding them in? Also, what would you suggest as a ‘binder’ other than rice – perhaps Barley? I’d use Brown Rice for us, but I’d like to make these for our friends who are going through a rough time, & they don’t eat rice. Thank you Kristine, for all of your lovely recipes. ?
I don’t drain the tomatoes. (I will always note in the recipe if canned tomatoes should be drained.) Barley may work as a binder, but I would also suggest trying quinoa. I use quinoa in my Quinoa Stuffed Peppers and it works perfectly! Enjoy!
Thanks for the easy stuffed peppers recipe. It’s going to be a go-to for us!
What do you recommend substituting for cheese in recipes like this? Thank you in advance, and great job on this website!
I would probably just leave it out without substituting in a recipe like this one. You could also try a dairy free shredded cheese, such as Daiya.
Maybe a parmesean cheese crustini.. or crutons?
Vegan cheese is decent when melted if you wanted that effect…
I’m doing a Hispanic version with tortilla chips and cheese on it 🤞
Maybe an Asian version with sesame topping..
Think it salad toppings you like they usually work. Lol
These stuffed peppers were delicious and I will definitely be making them again!
Instead of Italian seasoning I used Chili Powder and Cumin and Mexican style diced
tomatoes. Love your recipes and am always looking for new ideas! Thanks!
I am doing the same as well as adding chorizo to mine… hopefully comes out as good as yalls!
Great recipe.
It was simple and delicious. Thank you, Kristine.
These were awesome!! 😋
I made this tonight and it was delicious! I did do a couple of things differently, I used diced tomatoes and tomato sauce with Italian seasoning. So I cut back the actual Italian seasoning to 1/2 a tbsp. It turned out great and I’ll definable this again!
I loved this! The only thing I did differently was to use stewed tomatoes instead of diced (juice drained)
Definetly delicious however it needs to cook much longer than stated . The peppers were too crunchy for me .
Shop for peppers that can stand up on their own.
While this is an Italian style flavor it would be super easy to make them Mexican or even Indian style too.
Thanks for reminding me of a taste from my childhood… oh so long ago.
PS any old spaghetti sauce in a jar will work and a can of diced tomatoes. Use the Rotel kind if going Mexican.
used 1 lb ground turkey and Zataran’s dirty rice. Boiled peppers for 5 min before stuffing. Left out tomato sauce. used half Mozzarella and half chedder. Family loved it.
This was wonderful! Are the calories in kilocalories? Does that mean 1 pepper = 318000 calories?
I’m glad you enjoyed these! What are commonly referred to as “calories” are actually kcals. So 381kcal would be what we commonly refer to as 381 calories.
These very super easy and oh so good. I substituted quinoa for the rice and used leftover Italian sausage. I also blanched the peppers and cut them in half before baking. Will make again.
Delicious!! Added spinach for extra veggies but great recipe!
Yummy! I didn’t want to open a can of tomato sauce for just a little bit, so I substituted with a squeeze of ketchup. (I also used rotes tomatoes for a bit more kick.
(I had 4 large peppers, and have enough filling to stuff another 3 or 4 more. No problem: we’ll gladly eat them again)
These stuffed bell peppers are easy and delicious!!!
Delicious! I used lean ground turkey with brown rice, doubled the garlic & used diced tomatoes with green hatch chilies. Added cumin & red pepper flakes. Used shredded Asiago cheese. It came out perfect. Will definitely make again!
Made these today with red peppers. Delicious! Only had mild red enchilada sauce instead of tomato sauce, & my husband really liked them. Thank you!
Like any recipe I used it as a guideline. I blanched my peppers before stuffing with onions, garlic, and turkey Italian sausage. Instead of tomato sauce & diced tomatoes I used chunky spaghetti sauce (works like a champ). Baked them off & then topped with mozzarella and a few more min in the oven. Added a tossed salad & vitamin G (garlic) bread. Winner winner fire house dinner.
Amazing! I added a second pound of ground beef and adjusted some of the ingredients accordingly. It’s a big hit with or without being stuffed in a pepper!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Love thus recipe. I’m trying tonight!
The only thing the original recipe doesn’t have a BAKE @ TEMP… I did see 375°F in the rebook recipe, so I am going with that until peppers soft and cheese melted…
No biggie just letting you know for future recipes.!
Thanks again, can’t wait to try!! ( I am adding chorizo to my ground beef also.. fingers crossed 🤞)
Step 2 of the recipe gives the baking temperature, 400° F. Step 9 of the recipe tells you how long to bake. Be sure you’re looking at the recipe card, which has the full ingredient list with measurements and the instructions. I hope you enjoy the stuffed peppers!
Tried this recipe and it was so easy and delicious. Only variation was to chop up the tops of the peppers (minus the stems of course) and add when sautéing the onions for a little extra veggies.
I love that you chopped up the pepper tops to add to the filling! I’m glad you enjoyed these!
This was a quick and easy recipe. The flavor was really good but i did up the amount of garlic powder and Italian seasoning just a bit. I used Colby Jack cheese in the mixture with mozzarella on top just because i was out of Cheddar cheese. In the future I plan to cook it just a bit longer which I think will help the flavor and texture of the peppers. But this is definitely a keeper and I will be making this recipe again.
Hi Lynn,
Happy you enjoyed these stuffed peppers! Thanks for sharing your modifications.
Made this recipe for the first time. I used ground beef 🥩 and added a small can of tomato 🍅 sauce over the finished dish. Turned out well.
I just prepared these. I put in my crock pot on low. They smell delicious .
This recipe hits every time!!! This is my favorite stuff pepper recipe my pastor keeps asking me when am I going to make some more? So I made some today
I was looking forward to these, but they just weren’t as delicious as I hoped. I don’t know if using green bell peppers fresh from my garden makes a difference, but the peppers were still too crunchy. I might try this again either with yellow and red peppers or by baking them longer. The filling was delicious though! I could that over and over!
I pre-steamed my bell pepper and I don’t use the green. Hope this helps
Was real good I mixer sausage and habanero peppers perfect,
thank you.
Perfection! I used different cheeses and also stuffed poblanos as well.
I’ve made your before and absolutely loved it, since it’s been a while and I’ve got peppers again from my garden it was time to make again. However, instead of stuffing the peppers this time I diced them and combined with the meat and rice in one pan after I cooked it separately and oh my word, it’s so good! 😋
Just made these today with ground chicken and they came out excellent!! Thanks for an amazing recipe!!! Used yellow, red, and orange peppers.
My mother made stuffed peppers when I was growing up. She didn’t leave a recipe. Im making this recipe for the 2nd time. Just like moms !
Made these for dinner last night and they were delicious. Simple recipe easy to make ty
They turned out delicious!
Delicious! Very easy recipe and I had some extra filling to enjoy with the peppers too. Highly recommend!
Thank you for posting this recipe.We thoroughly enjoyed it.
I’m confused on “brown rice uncooked” and then it says to cook the rice? Do you cook the brown rice before baking peppers or not lol
You cook the rice before baking the peppers. The ingredient is uncooked rice, and then step 1 of the recipe is to cook it. Sorry if that was confusing. 🙂
Hi, making these tonight (first time)May I ask what’s the reason of adding water to the baking dish ?
Adding water to the baking dish and then covering the dish with foil creates steam to help soften the bell peppers. 🙂
Fantastic favorite of our family in Rockport, TX! We always double the recipe when we make it & then use a food saver to freeze what’s left. Then all we have to do the next meal we use for this is already made! Big time saver!
super yum!! my daughter even took the leftover filling and put it inside a Grilled Cheese!!!!