This Deconstructed Stuffed Pepper Casserole offers you all the great flavors of stuffed peppers, but ready in a fraction of the time. This casserole really does taste like real stuffed peppers and it’s perfect for any busy weeknight!
Today I’m sharing with you another favorite recipe of mine, deconstructed stuffed pepper casserole. I know it’s a mouthful, literally and figuratively. I grew up eating lots of stuffed peppers and let me tell you they still a spot near and dear to my heart.
My version here is actually something that I would have loved as a child, because while there is bell pepper in here, you don’t really taste it and it just blends in nicely with the rest of the ingredients. So if you’re looking for a recipe that masks all those veggies nicely, this is the one for you. Best part is it’s all ready in 30 minutes!
This casserole really does taste like just like stuffed peppers but it’s all done in one pot and in 30 minutes, which is why this recipe made it to my book.
Ingredients
Detailed measurements and instructions can be found on the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page.
- Meat – Ground pork and ground beef make up the protein base for our casserole today. Feel free to use as much or as little of either as you’d like.
- Olive oil – We want a nice neutral tasting oil to brown our meat and onion in.
- Bell pepper – I mean if it’s what the recipe is named for then be sure to include it! I just used 1 large bell pepper chopped up.
- Spices – Smoked paprika, red pepper flakes, and garlic powder.
- Herbs – Dried dill and fresh parsley. The dill will be included in our recipe and the parsley is for garnish at the end.
- Rice – I used uncooked long grain rice today, it’ll cook up in the casserole and absorb all that amazing flavor!
- Diced tomatoes – 1 large can to add some liquid and acidity to the dish.
- Broth – Low sodium chicken broth for flavor and liquid for that rice to cook in.
- Cheese – I used shredded cheddar cheese, totally optional but completely delicious. The picture below is from my cookbook and does not have cheese on it, so totally up to you if you add it.
- Sour cream – A nice fat dollop once the dish is done and ready to be served as garnish!
- Seasoning – Salt and pepper.
How To Make Deconstructed Stuffed Pepper Casserole
- Brown the meat: Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ground pork and ground beef; brown and crumble the meat. Cook for 5 minutes, or until the meat is no longer pink.
- Saute the sauteables: Add the onion and bell pepper to the skillet. Stir in the smoked paprika, garlic powder, red pepper flakes, dill and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook for 5 minutes, or until the vegetables begin to soften.
- Assemble the casserole: Add the rice to the skillet, then stir in the chicken broth and the diced tomatoes, including the juice. With the heat on medium, continue to cook for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the rice cooks through and absorbs all the liquid.
- Finish the dish: Sprinkle with the cheddar cheese and garnish with parsley. Within a couple minutes the cheese should melt on top. Serve immediately with a dollop of sour cream.
What Can I Serve With This Casserole?
This dish is more than delicious and satisfying on its own but if you’d like to turn it into a full spread, I recommend pairing a nice salad like the ones below:
- Creamy Cucumber Salad
- Mediterranean Couscous Salad
- Kale And Quinoa Salad With Lemon Vinaigrette
- Tabbouleh Salad
- Kale Salad With Blueberry Vinaigrette
Storing Leftovers
Be sure to store this dish as soon as it’s cooled as rice is a breeding ground for bacteria. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 – 4 days. If freezing store this dish in a freezer bag with the air pressed out. Thaw overnight in the fridge and fluff the rice before reheating. This dish will last up to 3 months in the freezer.
More Delicious Casseroles To Try:
- Chicken Bacon Ranch Casserole
- Lemon and Chicken Rice Bake
- Moroccan Chicken Couscous
- One Pot Cheesy Chicken Rice Casserole
- Chicken Rice Pilaf
- 3 Ingredients Mexican Rice
- Chicken Enchilada Rice Casserole
- Easy Tuna Noodle Casserole
- No Peek Chicken Rice Casserole
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Deconstructed Stuffed Pepper Casserole
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound ground pork
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 onion chopped
- 1 large green bell pepper chopped
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon dried dill
- 1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper or to taste
- 1/2 cup rice uncooked
- 1 cup chicken broth low sodium
- 14.5 ounce diced tomatoes (1 can including juice)
- 1 cup cheddar cheese shredded
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley chopped
- sour cream for serving optional
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ground pork and ground beef; brown and crumble the meat. Cook for 5 minutes, or until the meat is no longer pink.
- Add the onion and bell pepper to the skillet. Stir in the smoked paprika, garlic powder, red pepper flakes, dill and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook for 5 minutes, or until the vegetables begin to soften.
- Add the rice to the skillet, then stir in the chicken broth and the diced tomatoes, including the juice. With the heat on medium, continue to cook for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the rice cooks through and absorbs all the liquid.
- Sprinkle with the cheddar cheese and garnish with parsley. Within a couple minutes the cheese should melt on top. Serve immediately with a dollop of sour cream.
Video
Recipe Notes
- If you’d like to make a vegetarian version, feel free to leave out the meat and substitute with extra of your favourite vegetables. Mushrooms would make an excellent substitution.
- You can use whichever type of bell pepper you prefer. Yellow or red bell peppers are a bit sweeter, and more kid-friendly.
- The recipe in the book uses instant rice to speed up the cooking process. In this recipe I used a long grain rice. Either rice works in this recipe.
- The recipe in the book does not included the cheddar cheese, so the cheese is optional.
- Be sure to store this dish as soon as it’s cooled as rice is a breeding ground for bacteria. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 – 4 days. If freezing store this dish in a freezer bag with the air pressed out. Thaw overnight in the fridge and fluff the rice before reheating. This dish will last up to 3 months in the freezer.
- Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.
Has anyone made this in a crockpot? Any advice about cooking on hi or low, how long and if using regular rice when to add? Or minute rice? My stovetop is dead. I have a crockpot, and electric roaster oven.
Thank you for an easy, family friendly stuffed pepper alternative. Everyone enjoyed it… some scooped it with a tortilla, some had it with cheese and others without!
I used a half pound of ground beef and 1 1/2 lbs can chicken breast in this recipe and it is AWESOME!!! It tastes so good that after I put away the leftovers, my husband has went and gotten them back out just to take a couple bites every couple of hours! He says he is making sure it is staying the same flavor while being stored! He loves traditional beef and rice stuffed peppers and was very skeptical about these. He now says they are better than traditional and wants this recipe from now on!! Not an easy accomplishment in changing his mind, so huge kudos Ms. Jo!! Thank you for sharing!
Yay! I’m so happy you (and your husband, especially lol) liked it!
I had to cook it a lot longer and add more broth for the rice to cook but the biggest note is that MY 2 YEAR OLD ATE IT ALL! So it was a success!!
I followed the exact recipe and the rice is not cooking. I keep adding more and more broth to it.
Hmm that’s interesting. You can try covering the pot with a lid and letting the rice steam up!
You can also try soaking the rice or partially precooking it. That is what I have done with my casserole and with my stuffed peppers. Cause Crunch rice ain’t no fun for anyone.
Was I supposed to drain the grease after cooking the meat? It didn’t say in the recipe so I didn’t and it came out way too greasy. I’d make again but definitely will be draining the meat next time.
It completely depends on the type of ground meats available to you. Our grocery store always carries extra lean ground beef, so if yours has a different % of fat, there will be excess grease.
wondering if I could use riced cauliflower instead of rice?
You can give it a try! I’d suggest leaving out the chicken broth entirely so the casserole doesn’t turn out watery without the rice to absorb it.
Made this for dinner (threw out all my other dinner plans!) after seeing it posted on Facebook today and it was a hit. Thank you Jo!
Glad you enjoyed it, Debbie!
I really enjoyed this dish and will make it again. I loved the use of smoked paprika in it. I was a little afraid of using a whole tablespoonful of dill but took a leap of faith and it was perfect. This is the first recipe I’ve made from your cookbook and can’t wait to try more.
Smoked paprika is one of our favorite ingredients! We’re happy you’ve been enjoying Jo’s book. Let us know what else you make!
After I brown the meat in the instant pot’ do I add all ingredients including the rice and put on rice setting?
Yes that will work perfectly! I wouldn’t step browning the veggies in step 2- do that all on the saute setting.
Can this rice recipe be done in an instant pot?
Absolutely!! It’d be perfect for the Instant pot.
This has become our family’s go-to ‘stuffed pepper’ recipe. Amazing flavor without feeling like you’re getting a mouth full of bell pepper, which — while growing up — was always my one complaint about stuffed peppers. Amazing, Jo. Thank you for a wonderful, perfect recipe that comes together quickly and deliciously.
Hi! I made this tonight and the flavors were fantastic. However I had problems with the rice cooking especially since the fish isn’t covered while it cooks. After 15 mins the rice wasn’t cooked at all. I had to add more broth (ended up twice as much) and covered it for another 15 mins. Thoughts on what I did wrong? I used long grain white rice. Should I have used the parboiled kind instead? Otherwise it was a hit with my teens and my husband and me!! Thanks and happy new year!!
Huge hit! Perfect meal for busy weekday! Don’t forget the cheese!!!!