A little bit of work goes a long way. These peppers are perfect for weekly meal prep, freezer storage for later, or a weeknight dinner. Colorful peppers stuffed with Southwest flavor.
Stuffed peppers is hands down one of my favorite meals. It is not the most friendly, and anti-inflammatory, but it also isn’t the worst. It has some spice, tomatoes (nightshades), and optional dairy. I was born and raised in Southern Louisiana from an Italian family, so spice and tomatoes are part of my blood composition.
Chance loves to say he hates when I make stuffed peppers. The funny thing is, he eats them anyway and always eats 2 at a time in under 5 minutes. He will be the first to admit he hates this meal, yet licks the plate clean every time. Yes, he literally licks his plate clean.
Too Much “Stuff?”
There are some pros and cons to this meal. I don’t make it very often, because it does have a lot of ingredients and requires quite a bit of work. You’ll see this recipe is what I define as “quite a bit of work.” I take into account the amount of ingredients and dishes, prep time, cook time, and clean up time.
The Pros:
Serves A Lot: I usually can make 2 meals out of the stuffing in this recipe. I will freeze half of it, and save it for another time.
Ingredients: You can add as much or as little as you like. I make this meal so infrequently I also feel like I’m making it up as I go every single time. I tailored a lot of the ingredients to add more nutrients i.e. quinoa and black beans. You can easily omit them.
Taste: It is really good, and even better leftover!
Multipurpose: The stuffing of this recipe is also multipurpose. You can use the leftovers to roll up into a tortilla and air fry for taquitos. Add it to the topping of a salad. Stuff it in some avocados and bake them. The possibilities are endless really.
The Cons:
Directions: There really are a lot of steps to creating these tasty peppers
Time: The prep time and the cook time are about the same. This meal will end up being over an hour total to come together
Equipment: Quite a few items are needed – deep skillet, colander, cutting board, baking dish. That’s a lot of clean up for me, after I’ve already been cooking.
I’m not trying to get you to immediately “x” out of this page, trust me. These peppers are worth the work.
Ingredients
Here is the ingredient line up. Fresh ground beef, onion and garlic (IYKYK), taco seasoning, rotel, quinoa, chicken broth, and black beans. Can’t forget the peppers – your favorite color!
I’m all about creating shortcuts here, that is why I share these meal ideas with you. I don’t have many for this recipe, because I do just genuinely love them so much. You can use Siete taco seasoning. Check out my taco salad recipe for why I love this brand so much.
You can omit the black beans, broth, and quinoa if it is just too much. Feel free to be creative with this recipe! Make it your own. Add your favorites, and leave out the rest.
For The Stuffing
I start by browning the ground meat first and then straining the grease once cooked. Next, add in the onions and garlic. This can be another optional step if you are just now in the mood for chopping. Once the veggies are cooked and aromatic, add the beef back into your skillet. That is the only hard part.
Then you are literally just going to throw everything else in and give it a stir! Taco seasoning, rotel, broth, and quinoa. You can add the beans here too, but I add them in at the end right before stuffing the peppers. I don’t really have an explanation for that other than I think I just decided to add them in at the last minute on a whim one time.
You are then going to let everything simmer until the quinoa is cooked. Don’t worry if you are not familiar with quinoa, when it’s done it will look like little spirals instead of the sprinkles it started out as.
While your stuffing is cooking, you can prep your peppers by cutting them in half. I like to cut them lengthwise rather than just cutting the top off. Feel free to use whichever color your like – green, red, orange, yellow. I’ve had them all and they still taste great! Stuff your peppers with your filling and load them up in a baking dish.
Oven Time
This part is important! Add a little bit of water or chicken broth to the bottom of the baking dish. This will allow the peppers to steam and soften as they are cooking. You’ll want to cover them with foil as well for the same purpose. I like my peppers to still have a little crunch to them, so I find that 35 minutes is the perfect time for me. Feel free to add an extra 5-10 minutes if you prefer them softer.
Next, remove the beautiful stuffed peppers, pop the top and layer them with as much cheese to your liking. Put them back in for a few more minutes until the cheese is nice and melted.
Guaranteed To Leave You Stuffed
I usually don’t serve this with a side, but I do add lots of toppings! Some options can be sour cream, cilantro, green onion, tomato, avocado, jalapeño, literally whatever your heart desires!
Energy Level = 4/5
HIGH
Long prep, multiple dishes
Quinoa Mexican Stuffed Peppers
Description
These peppers are perfect for weekly meal prep, freezer storage for later, or a weeknight dinner. Colorful peppers stuffed with Southwest flavor. Guaranteed to leave you stuffed!
Ingredients
Toppings:
Instructions
- Start by browning ground meat in a deep skillet or heavy pot on medium heat.
- Strain cooked meat and set aside. To the same skillet, sauté chopped onion and garlic until fragrant.
- Return meat to skillet and combine with onion and garlic. At this point add in package of taco seasoning and Rotel. Stir to combine.
- Next, add in quinoa and chicken broth and stir to combine. Lower heat and allow stuffing mixture to simmer. Cover with lid, and stir occasionally.
- Preheat oven to 375. Begin to prepare peppers by cutting them lengthwise. Remove seeds and internal portion.
- Once quinoa is cooked, add black beans to the stuffing mixture.
- Spoon stuffing mixture into peppers and place into baking dish. You will have leftover mixture. You can set aside and freeze, or make 2 more peppers (4 halves) with remainder.
- Add 1/4 cup of chicken broth to the bottom of baking dish with peppers and cover dish with foil. Bake at 375 for 35 minutes, longer for softer peppers.
- Remove from oven, top with cheese and cook uncovered 5 more minutes or until cheese is melted
- Serve with preferred toppings.
Video
Notes
- I only use 3 peppers, because that is enough for 2 people with leftovers.
- This recipe will make enough stuff for 4 -5 peppers depending of size.
- I like to freeze the leftovers for a second meal, but you can fill more peppers depending on the number of people you are serving.
I have ALWAYS wanted to like this meal, but I’m not a bell pepper fan! Looks so delicious though 🙂
Aw man! You can still use the filling in a salad, wrapped in a tortilla, or maybe to make some zucchini boats!