Hearty ground beef, cauliflower rice, and cheese combine to make our quick and filling Keto Stuffed Peppers.
A Perfect Weeknight Meal
Bell peppers are a colorful and MILD veggie (or fruit?) that can add just the right pop of sweet and sharp flavor to just about anything. They are good in a breakfast burrito, delicious diced up in the filling for egg rolls or lettuce wraps, and even great as raw slices dipped in some smooth and creamy hummus.
But are Bell Peppers ready for the leading role in a main course? Yes. Believe it.
Our Gluten Free Stuffed Peppers are the quintessential quick and easy dinner. Here’s why:
- You can make them ahead of time. Cooked Keto Bell Peppers will store in the freezer for up to 3 months. Just pop them in the oven, and dinner is served!
- They don’t take long. Even if you don’t make them in advance, these Stuffed Peppers are still fast to whip up. 25 minutes of prep, then you can clean up the kitchen while they bake.
- They’re an entire meal. This recipe is basically a whole meal by itself. You’ve got your meat, veggies, cauliflower rice, and cheese. No need to make a side dish! Two birds with one stone, folks.
Key Ingredients for Keto Stuffed Bell Peppers
- Bell peppers. The backbone of this recipe. The vessel that will deliver meaty, cheesy goodness to your taste buds. The humble bell pepper. You can use any color of bell pepper, but green peppers have the lowest amount of carbs for keto diets. If you have an extra bell pepper left over, use it in our keto-friendly Creamy Taco Soup or maybe our Philly Cheesesteak Sloppy Joes.
- Ground beef. You’ll need one pound for this recipe, which makes 6 servings.
- Fire roasted tomatoes. Make sure to get a sugar free version if you’re following a keto diet. If you’d like, you can also replace the fire roasted tomatoes with marinara sauce. Reduce the Italian seasoning to 1 teaspoon.
- Cauliflower rice. This is a great low-carb substitute for rice. But if you’re not following a keto diet, you can replace the cauliflower rice with regular rice or quinoa.
- Shredded cheese. We used cheddar cheese in our Stuffed Peppers, but you could use mozzarella cheese for a more Italian flavor.
How to Make Our Keto Stuffed Peppers with Cauliflower Rice
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with nonstick spray.
- Cut peppers in half lengthwise, remove seeds, and place in the baking dish, cut side up.
- Cook the ground beef in a nonstick skillet over medium heat until brown, about 7 minutes. Drain meat and set aside.
- Place the skillet back on medium heat. Add the olive oil and onion. Cook onions until tender, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the minced garlic and cook another minute, taking care not to burn the garlic.
- Add the tomatoes, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Reduce heat to medium low. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 3 minutes until the tomatoes are warmed.
- Add the cooked meat and cauliflower rice. Stir together. Cook another 2-3 minutes until warmed through.
- Remove the pan from the heat. Add half of the cheese. Stir together until the cheese melts.
- Divide the filling into the cut pepper halves. It’s ok if it’s overfilled, they won’t spill during baking. Top with the remaining cheese.
- Spray a sheet of aluminum foil and place it over the stuffed peppers, sprayed side down. This will keep the cheese from sticking to the foil.
- Bake in a preheated oven for 30 minutes, then remove the foil and bake another 15 minutes or until the peppers are fork tender.
Storage Tips for Gluten Free Stuffed Peppers
- Store leftover peppers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4-5 days. Reheat in the microwave for 2-3 minutes until warmed.
- Cooked peppers can be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months. Individually wrap each pepper in plastic wrap and place them all inside of a freezer bag. To reheat, thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Place in a baking dish and cover with foil. Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes or until warmed.
- You can also reheat in the microwave. Frozen peppers will come out a little more soggy than when they were originally baked.
FAQs
Should the Bell Peppers Be Cooked Before Stuffing?
Some recipes will have you bake the bell peppers before you stuff them, but you don’t need to for our version.
Do You Brown Meat for Keto Stuffed Peppers?
Yes. Make sure there is no pink in your ground beef before you stuff the bell peppers. It should take about 7 minutes over medium heat.
More Gluten Free Ground Beef Recipes
We’ve got oodles of gluten free recipes around here! For a comforting night in, try our Hamburger Soup, No Bean Chili, or Gluten Free Meatballs.
Add these Mexican recipes to your Taco Tuesday line-up: Tortilla Lasagna, Walking Taco Casserole, and Ground Beef Lettuce Wraps.
Keto Stuffed Peppers Recipe
Our Gluten Free Stuffed Peppers are cheesy, meaty, and perfect for a keto diet. Make them ahead of time for an easy weeknight meal!
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Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 3 large bell peppers
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ cup yellow onion (diced)
- 1 tablespoon garlic (minced)
- 1 14.5 ounce can fire roasted tomatoes (make sure to get sugar free)
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 cup cauliflower rice (steamed)
- 1 ½ cups shredded cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with nonstick spray.
- Cut peppers in half lengthwise, remove seeds, and place in the baking dish, cut side up.
- Cook the ground beef in a nonstick skillet over medium heat until brown, about 7 minutes. Drain meat and set aside.
- Place the skillet back on medium heat. Add the olive oil and onion. Cook onions until tender, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the minced garlic and cook another minute, taking care not to burn the garlic.
- Add the tomatoes, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Reduce heat to medium low. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 3 minutes until the tomatoes are warmed.
- Add the cooked meat and cauliflower rice. Stir together. Cook another 2-3 minutes until warmed through.
- Remove the pan from the heat. Add half of the cheese. Stir together until the cheese melts.
- Divide the filling into the cut pepper halves. It’s ok if it’s overfilled, they won’t spill during baking. Top with the remaining cheese.
- Spray a sheet of aluminum foil and place it over the stuffed peppers, sprayed side down. This will keep the cheese from sticking to the foil.
- Bake in a preheated oven for 30 minutes, then remove the foil and bake another 15 minutes or until the peppers are fork tender.
Notes
- The peppers used here were pretty large. For normal palm size peppers, we’d suggest using 4-5 peppers.
- Green peppers have the lowest amount of carbs for keto diets.
- Replace the fire roasted tomatoes with marinara sauce. Reduce the Italian seasoning to 1 teaspoon.
- Replace the cauliflower rice with regular rice or quinoa if not following the keto diet. Or omit rice altogether.
- Replace cheddar cheese, shown in photos, with mozzarella cheese for even more of an Italian flavor.
- Store leftover peppers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4-5 days. Reheat in the microwave for 2-3 minutes until warmed.
- Cooked peppers can be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months. Individually wrap each pepper in plastic wrap and place them all inside of a freezer bag. To reheat, thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Place in a baking dish and cover with foil. Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes or until warmed.
- You can also reheat in the microwave. Frozen peppers will come out a little more wet than when they were originally baked.
