Cheesy Topped Stuffed Peppers

Stuffed Peppers - the ultimate stuffed peppers with ground beef (mince), rice and a delicious melted cheesy topping. An easy One Pot to Oven recipe. 

The Ultimate Stuffed Peppers with Ground Beef and Rice

Ever go grocery shopping and pick up an item that you think you are out of only to get home and realize you already have a bag of them in the fridge? Well, that's what happened this week when I went grocery shopping without making my usual shopping list.

So with a huge amount of peppers that I knew needed to be used up, I figured stuffed peppers was the way to go, because who doesn't love a delicious baked pepper stuffed with ground beef and rice and topped with melted cheesy goodness?

Easy Stuffed Pepper Filling

When it comes to doing fillings for anything, if I can ensure less washing up at the end of it, it's a bonus for me. So you'll be pleased to see the filling for this recipe is all done in one pot. 

I love the ease of one-pot recipes, and if I can cut corners to make something easier you will sure that is the way I will go. Plus cooking the rice in the same pan as the beef means it absorbs all those yummy flavours, creating an even more delicious Stuffed Pepper dish.

Using different Ground Meats (Mince)

In this recipe, I use extra lean ground beef (beef mince) because it was what I had at the time and the kids prefer it.

But if you are trying to be healthier and want to swap the beef for some even leaner ground turkey or chicken, go right ahead. It will work fine. The only change I would make is to use a stock that compliments the flavour of the meat you are using. So for example using chicken stock for ground turkey or chicken.

Pork Mince would work too if that's what you have to use. But we personally prefer beef or chicken.

Can this be made vegetarian?

I haven't tested this with a vegetarian meat substitute, so I can't say how well it will work out. Vegetarian mince substitutes usually take a lot less time to cook, so my own concern is that it might become a little dry. 

Another option is to use some lentils or beans along with the rice instead of the meat, but again without testing the liquid ratio may need to be altered.

Watch this space though, as I plan of creating a vegetarian option soon.

Types of Rice for Stuffed Peppers

So what rice is best for Stuffed Peppers? I use long grain rice, just the basic stuff (not jasmine or basmati). Basmati should work okay if that's all you have, but Jasmine rice is quite sticky so I don't recommend it in this recipe. 

Brown rice will take a lot longer to cook, and will not work well with my one-pot method. 

Slicing the Peppers for Stuffed Peppers

When it comes to slicing the peppers for stuffed peppers, there is no right or wrong method. Most recipes tend to use the whole pepper to stuff, but just slicing on the top as a lid. 

I prefer however to cut my peppers in half, so I get two pepper boats, per pepper. I just find the peppers cook better and look prettier with all the melted cheese on top.

You will notice I don't use green peppers in this recipe. Green peppers usually take along to soften than the red, orange and yellow varieties. So to ensure an even cooking time I choose not to use them. 

Sides to Serve with Stuffed Peppers

I don't go for many sides with these stuffed peppers. One serving is two halves of stuffed pepper, and that is pretty filling with the beef and rice stuffing.

So I simply serve with a baby green salad (spinach, baby kale) and my favourite dressing. 

More Bell Pepper Recipes

Wondering what other recipes you can make using up some bell peppers? Check out these other recipes:

• ONE POT TACO BEEF PASTA
• BREAKFAST LAYERED CRUSTLESS QUICHE
• PEACH BARBECUE CHICKEN TRAY BAKE
• ONE POT CUBAN STYLE RICE (WITH CHICKEN AND SAUSAGE)
• CHINESE CASHEW CHICKEN
• MEDITERRANEAN LAYERED BAKE
• ONE POT SPEED PASTA
• ROASTED VEGETABLES WITH FETA AND PASTA
• ROASTED VEGETABLES AND HAM COUSCOUS

or head on over to my Full Recipe Index with over 900 delicious Slimming Eats and Weight Watchers friendly recipes all fully searchable by meal type, ingredients etc

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Recipe Card

Stuffed Peppers

Yield: SERVES 5

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 35 minutes

Stuffed Peppers - the ultimate stuffed peppers with ground beef (mince), rice and a delicious melted cheesy topping. An easy One Pot to Oven recipe.

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Ingredients

• 1lb (455g) of extra lean ground beef (beef mince)
• 1 cup (185g) of long grain rice
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 150g (5.5oz) of zucchini (courgette), finely diced
• 1 tablespoon of paprika (not smoked)
• 1 teaspoon of cumin
• 1 teaspoon of oregano
• ½ teaspoon of onion powder
• ½ teaspoon of dried parsley
• ½ teaspoon of dried basil
• 1 400g can of diced tomatoes
• 1.5 tablespoons of tomato paste (puree)
• splash of Worcestershire sauce
• 2.3 cups (560ml) of beef stock
• salt and black pepper
• ¾ cup (180ml) of passata
• 5 large mixed bell peppers (use a mixture of red, orange and yellow varieties)
• 100g of mozzarella, grated
• 90g of cheddar, gratedolive oil cooking spray
• fresh parsley, chopped

Instructions

1. Add the ground beef, onion and garlic to a pan oven a medium-high heat and cook until lightly browned.
2. Add the paprika, cumin, onion powder, dried oregano, parsley and basil and stir to coat.
3. Add in the diced tomatoes, tomato paste, zucchini, splash of Worcestershire sauce and rice. Stir to combine, ensuring you scrape anything stuck to the bottom of the pan.
4. Add in the stock, bring to a boil, cover, then simmer (liquid should still slightly bubble), when stock is just absorbed (should take approx 10 minutes). Turn off heat, but leave with the lid on for an additional 12 minutes. The steam trapped underneath will continue to cook the rice to perfection.
5. While this is cooking, slice all the peppers in half, so you have 10 pepper boats and scoop out all seeds or white flesh parts and discard.
6. Preheat oven to 200c/FAN 180c/400f or gas mark 6
7. Place them all skin side down in a large baking dish or tray.
8. Spray over the top of the peppers with the olive oil cooking spray and season with a pinch of salt and black pepper.
9. Once beef and rice mixture is cooked, taste and season as needed with salt and black pepper.
10. Spoon the beef and rice mixture into the pepper boats.
11. Spoon the passata onto the top (this helps keep them moist).
12. Top with the grated cheese and then loosely cover with some foil (watch you don't press the foil down onto the peppers or the cheese will stick).
13. Bake for 30 minutes, then remove foil and place back in the oven and bake until cheese is all melted and golden (another 15 minutes approximately).
14. Sprinkle with fresh chopped parsley.
15. Serve and enjoy!!

Notes

Please see below for full nutritional info and additional details about recipe:

• Calories - scroll down to nutritional info box
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Nutrition Information

Serving Size 1 SERVING (2 halves)
Amount Per Serving Calories 485Total Fat 15.1gSaturated Fat 7.8gCholesterol 90mgSodium 635mgCarbohydrates 52.6gFiber 5.6gSugar 11.5gProtein 36.6g

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