Have you ever had stuffed peppers? That delicious recipe is the inspiration for today’s Stuffed Pepper Rice Bake, which takes the classic “scoop and stuff” routine and transforms it into something so delicious and simple to make that you’ll wonder why you’ve never made it before!
Stuffed Pepper Casserole is like the cousin of traditional stuffed peppers — it has all of the flavor minus the hassle of scooping and stuffing. We’re kind of obsessed with this recipe, and hope you’ll fall head over heels for it, too!
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What makes Stuffed Pepper Casserole special
Stuffed Pepper Casserole is a casserole version of a super fun dish that involves stuffing peppers full of delicious goodies and baking them. In this recipe, we’re taking all the ingredients and mixing them together in a casserole dish, which we think makes it so much easier to prep and then cook.
It’s a super-simple, super-delicious recipe that is chock-full of vegetables and other nutrient-rich ingredients. We think your whole family is going to love it as much as ours do!
How Stuffed Pepper Casserole got its name
To answer this question, we’ve got to go back to the original! Stuffed peppers got their name pretty simply — it’s a description of what you’re eating. Then we added “casserole” because that’s what type of dish this recipe is.
A casserole is a common dish that colloquially just means something baked slowly in an oven. But the name itself apparently comes from the name of the dish that it’s cooked in. Kyathos is a Greek word for “cup” while casse is an old French word for “ladle.” And there’s the history of the word casserole!
How to make Stuffed Pepper Casserole
- Cook ground beef and season with your favorite seasonings. (We use 3 cloves fresh garlic, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp black pepper, 1/2 tsp oregano, and 1/2 tsp paprika.)
- Chop the red bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, and red onion.
- Rinse the rice until the water is clear.
- In a 12×8 baking dish add the rice, diced tomatoes with chilis, red bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, and onions.
- Mix in paprika, chili powder, onion powder, salt, black pepper, olive oil, low sodium broth, and garlic.
- Give everything a good mix to make sure it is combined.
- Cover and bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 45 minutes.
- Remove dish, add shredded cheese, and bake uncovered for an additional 10 minutes or until cheese is nicely melted.
- Garnish with fresh cilantro or Italian parsley. Serve immediately or cover and let sit until ready to serve.
Stuffed Pepper Rice Bake
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 4 cloves grated garlic, divided
- 1 1/2 teaspoon salt divided, to taste
- 1 teaspoon black pepper divided, to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons paprika divided
- 1 cup washed long grain or jasmine rice
- 10 ounces diced tomatoes with chilis
- 1/2 cup red bell pepper chopped
- 1/2 cup yellow bell pepper chopped
- 1/2 small red onion chopped
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 1 1/2 cups low sodium broth
- 10 ounces shredded Colby jack cheese
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro or Italian flat leaf parsley for garnish
Instructions
- In a pan on medium-high heat cook ground beef until no longer pink. Drain the fat and add 2 cloves minced fresh garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, 1/2 teaspoon oregano, and 1/2 teaspoon paprika.1 pound lean ground beef, 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano, 1 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon black pepper, 4 cloves grated garlic, divided, 2 teaspoons paprika
- Chop the red bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, and red onion.1/2 cup red bell pepper, 1/2 cup yellow bell pepper, 1/2 small red onion
- Rinse the rice until the water is clear.1 cup washed long grain or jasmine rice
- In a 12×8 baking dish add the rice, diced tomatoes with chilis, red bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, and onions.10 ounces diced tomatoes with chilis
- Mix in paprika, chili powder, onion powder, salt, black pepper, olive oil, low sodium broth, and garlic.1 teaspoon chili powder, 1/2 teaspoon onion powder, 2 Tablespoons olive oil, 1 1/2 cups low sodium broth
- Give everything a good mix to make sure it is combined.
- Cover and bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 45 minutes.
- Remove dish, add shredded cheese, and bake uncovered for an additional 10 minutes or until cheese is nicely melted.10 ounces shredded Colby jack cheese
- Garnish with fresh cilantro or Italian parsley. Serve immediately or cover and let sit until ready to serve.1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro or Italian flat leaf parsley
Equipment
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Nutrition
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My husband and I LOVED it!!! It was easy to make and I’ve shared the recipe with my family and friends so they can make it since we didn’t have any left over to share after eating it for dinner and taking leftovers for lunch the next day.
oh, I made it with Turkey instead of beef.
Yay! Love it! Thanks for sharing! xo, Alia & Radwa
I am a little confused on the spices. Instruction say to season the beef with, 3 cloves of garlic, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, 1/2 tsp Oregano & 1/2 tsp paprika. The it says to mix paprika, chili powder, salt, black pepper olive oil broth & garlic. So do I need additional garlic & black pepper
Sorry for the confusion, we adjusted the recipe so it is easier to understand! xo, Alia and Radwa
Love this! Takes just like stuffed peppers but way less work!
Right? That’s why we love it too! -Alia and Radwa
If I split this between 2 dishes can it be frozen? If so how long before I should use?
Yes, you can. To thaw: refrigerate overnight. This should last in the freezer for 3-4 months.
Made this last night, I had ground Italian Sausage so I subbed that for the beef. It was sooo good and so easy! My husband keeps asking where I am getting all these amazing recipes! Thank you
Yess! So glad to hear it was a hit and love that you modified it! xo, Alia & Radwa
Made this for meal prep this week and it was sooooo awesome!
Amazing recipe!! I tried this recipe and my whole family loved it! Tastes great with sour cream on top!
Awesome! Love that you top it with sour cream too! xo, Alia & Radwa
Absolutely delicious!!! I made this bake for a weekly lunch meal prep for myself and my husband and we couldn’t get enough. This recipe was quick and helped us make a delicious meal while juggling all our other Sunday tasks to get ready for the week. We constantly look to Fooddolls for meals like this and we have yet to be disappointed. Thank you Alia and Radwa for keeping our meals simple yet amazing!! I can’t wait to keep trying more and more of your incredible recipes!
Yay, this makes us so happy! We are all about making life easier, don’t forget to let us know what else you try! xo, Alia & Radwa
Loved this recipe so much! I used Trader Joe’s soy chorizo for the protein and added some roadster yellow corn. I now prefer this over actual stuffed peppers. So good and easy!
Love the addition of soy chorizo and corn! Thanks for giving it a try! xo, Alia & Radwa
Yum!!!!!! I want to make this!
This was so easy and delicious! I loved how I could do it all in one pot. And it came out perfect. It was a huge hit in my house.
This one was so easy and delicious!
Can this be made and then frozen.
Did you want to prep, freeze, and bake later?
Easy to make. Rich flavor with a hint of spiciness.
Thanks Kim! We love hearing this!
Xo,
Alia & Radwa
How much rice is required? Do you put into the dish uncooked?
It has 1 cup long grain or jasmine rice. The rice is put in uncooked!
This has been a huge hit with my very picky family. We have also done a meatless version and subbed beans. So tasty!
What size can of diced tomatoes do you mean?
Great question! 10 oz. Just updated the recipe! Sorry about that.
Made this for dinner tonight New favorite
Thank you It is Very nice dish & smells amazing .
Delicious recipe, I followed the directions as written. I would double the recipe if you need to serve more than 4 adults.
I made this Stuffed Pepper Rice Bake, in my crock-pot last night!! It was GREAT!!! New Family Favorite!! Thank you