Easy Stuffed Peppers with Ground Beef (Family Favorite!)

Name: Easy Stuffed Peppers with Ground Beef
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 50 min
Ingredients: 6 large bell peppers; 1 pound ground beef; 1 1 ounce packet taco seasoning; 2 cups cilantro lime rice; ½ cup fire roasted tomatoes; 1 cup Colby Jack cheese

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These cheesy Stuffed Peppers with Ground Beef are filled with flavorful taco-style seasoning, cilantro lime rice, and fire roasted tomatoes, all stuffed into fresh bell peppers. With only 20 minutes of prep and 30 in the oven, this family dinner favorite is both easy and delicious!

A glass baking dish filled with stuffed peppers with ground beef and melted cheese, featuring vibrant yellow and red bell peppers, viewed from above on a white surface.

🫑 This recipe is incredibly versatile – swap the cilantro lime rice for Spanish rice, use pepper jack cheese instead of Colby Jack, or add diced green chilis for extra heat. The basic technique works with countless flavor combos!

My 2 Best Tips For Making Stuffed Peppers with Ground Beef
Easy Stuffed Peppers with Ground Beef Recipe
How To Make Stuffed Bell Peppers
Recipe FAQs
More Savory Beef Recipes To Try

My 2 Best Tips For Making Stuffed Peppers with Ground Beef

Use a Baking Dish with High Sides: A 9×13 inch baking dish works perfectly for six peppers. The higher sides help the peppers stay upright and create steam that helps cook them evenly. Add about ¼ inch of water to the bottom of the dish for extra moisture.

Let Them Rest Before Serving: Allow the stuffed peppers to cool for 5 minutes after removing from the oven. This helps the filling set up and makes them easier to serve without the contents spilling out when you cut into them.

🩷 Melissa

This stuffed peppers recipe comes together in just 50 minutes total, with only 20 minutes of prep time. It’s perfect for busy families who want a wholesome, satisfying meal without spending hours in the kitchen.

Each bell pepper is loaded with seasoned ground beef, cilantro lime rice, fire roasted tomatoes, and melted Colby Jack cheese. You’re getting protein, vegetables, and complex carbohydrates all in one colorful, nutritious package.

This meal store beautifully in the refrigerator for up to 5 days and reheat perfectly in the microwave! Make a big batch on Sunday for easy grab-and-go lunches throughout the week.

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Easy Stuffed Peppers with Ground Beef

By: Melissa Griffiths

Prep: 20

Cook: 30

Total: 50

Servings:

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Ingredients

▢ 6 large bell peppers
▢ 1 pound ground beef
▢ 1 1 ounce packet taco seasoning, or homemade taco seasoning
▢ 2 cups cilantro lime rice, Uncle Ben's is my favorite store-bought version, but I usually use my homemade cilantro-lime rice recipe.
▢ ½ cup fire roasted tomatoes
▢ 1 cup Colby Jack cheese

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 350°F. Wash your bell peppers and cut the tops off. Scoop out the insides and set your bell peppers aside.
Cook the ground beef over medium-high heat until it is cooked all the way through. Remove the excess grease from the pan.
Add in the taco seasoning, rice, tomatoes, and about half of the cheese. Stir to combine.
Fill your bell peppers with the meat mixture and top with the remaining cheese. (If the peppers won’t stand up on their own, cut a small sliver off the bottom to level it.)
Cook your stuffed bell peppers in the oven for 25-30 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly.
Remove from oven and let rest 5 minutes before serving for the filling to finish setting up.

Notes

Recipe Variations & Substitutions:

Pepper jack cheese is also super yummy in this dish!
A small can of diced green chilis can be added to the filling.
Switch out the cilantro lime rice for Spanish rice.
Any kind of ground beef can be used in this recipe. You’ll just want to drain the excess grease after browning the meat.

Pepper Choices: I like to use orange, yellow, or red bell peppers for this recipe. Green bell peppers have the least amount of sweetness, so I tend to avoid those but they will work in a pinch. Plus I just like how colorful it is when using different peppers!

Cilantro Lime Rice: I love my homemade Cilantro Lime Rice recipe, but you can also use a bag of store-bought microwave cilantro lime rice to cut down on prep time. Uncle Ben makes a great one! You can also make cilantro lime rice in the Instant Pot for some time savings, too.

Serving Suggestions: These bell peppers are great topped with salsa, guacamole, sour cream, or fresh cilantro.

Storing & Reheating Leftovers: Store your leftover stuffed bell peppers in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat 1-2 bell peppers in the microwave for about a minute, or until warm in the middle.

Nutrition

Serving: 1pepper, Calories: 540kcal, Carbohydrates: 58g, Protein: 24g, Fat: 23g, Saturated Fat: 10g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 9g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 75mg, Sodium: 238mg, Potassium: 554mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 6g, Vitamin A: 4047IU, Vitamin C: 153mg, Calcium: 196mg, Iron: 3mg

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How To Make Stuffed Bell Peppers

A skillet on a white marble surface contains the filling for stuffed peppers with ground beef—rice, shredded cheese, diced tomatoes, and taco seasoning all layered but not yet mixed together.

Step 1: Wash and prep the peppers. Cook the ground beef over medium-high heat until it is cooked all the way through. Remove the excess grease from the pan.

A skillet filled with a mixture reminiscent of stuffed peppers with ground beef, rice, tomatoes, and spices sits on a white marble surface.

Step 2: Add in the taco seasoning, rice, tomatoes, and about half of the cheese. Stir to combine.

Six halved bell peppers, red and yellow, are stuffed with a savory mixture of rice, tomatoes, and ground beef, arranged in a glass baking dish on a white marble surface—a classic recipe for stuffed peppers with ground beef.

Step 3: Fill your bell peppers with the meat mixture and top with the remaining cheese.

A glass baking dish with seven stuffed peppers with ground beef and rice, topped with melted cheese. The red and yellow peppers sit on a white marble surface, their savory filling peeking beneath a golden cheese layer.

Step 4: Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly. Remove from oven and let rest 5 minutes before serving.

Recipe FAQs

Do I need to blanch the bell peppers before stuffing them?

No blanching required! Many recipes call for pre-boiling the peppers, but we found this unnecessary. The bell peppers soften perfectly during the 25-30 minute baking time, maintaining a nice texture without becoming mushy.

What color bell peppers work best for this recipe?

I recommend orange, yellow, or red bell peppers because they’re naturally sweeter than green peppers. However, green bell peppers will work if that’s what you have on hand – they just have a slightly more bitter flavor.

What can I substitute for the cilantro lime rice?

Spanish rice, regular cooked rice, cauliflower rice, or even quinoa work well as substitutes. If using plain rice, consider adding some lime juice and fresh cilantro to brighten the flavors.