How to Cook Stuffed Bell Peppers Recipes

I love stuffed bell peppers! Certainly, its the presentation, but also eating becomes efficient too as your bowl doubles as your vegetable serving. I’m a bit silly, I’m aware. But if you’re wondering how to cook stuffed bell peppers, you’ve come to right place. Consider this a How to Cook Stuffed Bell Peppers 101 course.

There are a few rules I follow when making stuffed peppers and thought it would be a good to document them into our food traditions. I have a collection of stuffed pepper recipes written here (links below!)

How to Cook Stuffed Bell Peppers

Cooking methods –  I love to roast red and green peppers. They are mild in flavor and don’t really need to be blanched. I linked to a stuffed Anaheim chili recipe below where did I blanch the chili first. Also, be mindful of presentation when you cut your peppers. Cut lengthwise to showcase more of your stuffing, cut at the pepper’s stem to create a different look entirely. Not a huge deal, but something to think about. Once cook, line your bell peppers up in a shallow baking dish. Add an inch of water or so to help soften the bell peppers during cooking.

Stuffing: Grains – Although not always, my stuffing usually contain a grain. Experiment, depending on your flavor inspirations, with brown, wild or white rice (Jasmine would be wonderful), Barilla orzo pasta (which is shaped like rice), bulgar or mullet, or as shown here for Que Rica Vida, quinoa also makes a great stuffing addition.

Stuffing: Meat – To make dinner a one pepper stop, I add a lean protein to my stuffed bell pepper recipes. Generally, ground turkey or chicken, but I’ve also used shredded chicken or carnitas. Try different smoked sausages or chorizo. Ground beef would be great too, we just don’t typically eat it at home.

Stuffing: Veggies – Everything from kale to tomatoes can be used to fill out your stuffing mixture. For an Italian variety, use zucchini and yellow squash. Spinach is always a good addition. Not a veggie, but I use lots of beans in my stuffing mixtures. Black beans primarily, but you can also try out garbanzo beans or white beans.

Stuffing: Topping – I’ve used cheese to top my stuffed bell pepper recipes before, but you can also use panko breading. For Que Rica Vida’s recipe, I omitted a topping (in order to see the stuffing) and used a simple garnish of lime zested sour cream and cilantro.

Stuffed Bell Pepper Recipes

The stuffing recipe for these stuffed bell peppers is very similar (but not exact) to my Chayote stuffed squash recipe. Have you cooked with a Chayote squash before? They’re awesome! Stuffing squash is just as fun as stuffing peppers!

I also had fun making this chili relleno recipe using the mild Anaheim chili with a Cuban style stuffing. I blanched those chilies for a bit before roasting because this Cuban chick is a bit terrified of hot peppers.

What’s your favorite combination of flavors for pepper stuffing?