Skinny Stuffed Peppers

Skinny Stuffed Peppers – I’ve turned a favorite hearty meal into an equally healthy treat! While they taste exactly the same as regular run-of-the-mill stuffed peppers, these are much healthier featuring ground turkey. Time to go pick a peck of peppers and start stuffing!

Stuffed peppers are one of my favorite dishes of all time. I’ve grown up eating these stuffed peppers, made the traditional Romanian way. Today I wanted to make a version that’s a bit healthier with turkey and rice instead of the classic fatty ground pork. Don’t get me wrong, ground pork makes those stuffed peppers delicious, but sometimes we want healthier alternatives. And that’s what I’ve done here.

For me, stuffed peppers are a true comfort food. They’re nostalgic and very satisfying! You eat one of these babies and you’re full, trust me. I’ve done all the scientific research. When creating a “skinny” version of my favorite childhood meal is as simple as switching out the meat, you know my heart will soar! Filling up on something so delicious AND healthy is a rare gem.

Ingredients

Keep scrolling down to the recipe card for a list of FULL ingredient amounts and instructions or click the “Jump to Recipe” button at the top of the page!

• Bell peppers – Any color. I used red because I love the sweetness I get from these peppers.
• Olive oil – Other types you can use are grapeseed, sunflower, safflower, canola, vegetable or avocado.
• Onion – Any type. Even something mild like green onion or shallot.
• Garlic – Use as much or little as you like.
• Rice – Long grain rice such as basmati.
• Ground turkey – Or ground chicken. If you use a ground meat such as pork of beef, keep in mind the caloric content will go up.
• Salt & pepper – Season to taste.
• Basil – I used dried. Fresh will work too.
• Cheese – Cheddar. Other cheeses you can use are red Leicester, gouda, gruyere, Monterey Jack, or Colby.
• Water

How to make skinny stuffed peppers

1. Prep oven and rice: Preheat oven to 350 F degrees. Cook the rice according to package instructions.
2. Sauté: Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Add onion and garlic, basil, salt and pepper, stir everything together and cook until the onion is translucent. Add the ground turkey and cook until the turkey is no longer pink. Stir in the rice and season with more salt and pepper if needed.
3. Stuff peppers: Stuff the peppers with the turkey and rice stuffing. Place them in a 9×13-inch casserole dish and pour about 1/2 cup of water in the bottom. Cover with aluminum foil.
4. Bake: Transfer the casserole dish to the oven and cook for about 45 minutes to an hour, or until the peppers are tender. Remove the pot from the oven and sprinkle some cheddar cheese over the peppers. Bake for another 5 minutes or until the cheese melts.

How to pick the perfect peppers

I decided to go with red bell peppers today. I love the touch of sweetness they offer to my savory dish. Red, orange, yellow, green, they’ll all work! They go from sweet to less sweet in that exact order.

When you’re selecting your perfect stuffed-pepper-peppers, find the ones that have lots of space on the inside. Find the peppers who don’t indent an immense amount along the crevices.

You also want to go with uniform-shaped peppers that will stand up nicely in a pan, don’t grab the ones with misshapen bottoms that will cause your stuffed peppers to topple over.

How to serve

I’m Romanian, so I think you already know where this is going. I am a staunch believer that you absolutely can’t serve your stuffed peppers without a good dollop of sour cream!

To me, a stuffed pepper is a meal all on its own. You have your meat, veggies, and carbs coming from the rice. If you want to serve some sides with your stuffed peppers, give these a try:

Salad

• Tomato Basil Salad
• Kale and Quinoa Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette
• Summer Salad with Herbed Ricotta

Homemade bread

• Artisan Bread
• Rye Bread
• No Knead Bread
• No Knead Skillet Bread

Leftovers

Transfer the leftovers to an airtight container and store in the fridge up to 4 days. Make sure the peppers have cooled down fully to room temperature before storing. You can also keep the peppers in the baking dish and just wrap it with foil or plastic wrap to store for easy reheating.

How to reheat stuffed peppers

1. Preheat the oven to 350F.
2. Place the peppers in a baking dish with a splash of either broth or water. Cover the dish with foil.
3. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until heated through.

You can also reheat your peppers in the microwave. Just pop the in and heat them for a couple minutes and you’re good to go.

Make ahead

You can bake your skinny stuffed peppers fully, then reheat using the instructions detailed above, or prep them ahead to bake fresh the day you’re ready to eat them.

To maintain the integrity of your bell pepper’s texture, I would pre-stuff them no more than 2 days ahead of time. Prep the peppers, arrange them in the baking dish, and cover with foil to store in the fridge. Add the water to the dish right before you bake them.

Freezing

Keep in mind that freezing bell peppers will cause them to soften after they thaw.

1. Bake the peppers as per the recipe instructions, excluding the cheese. Remove any excess moisture, if there’s any, from the pan and allow the peppers to fully cool down to room temperature.
2. Wrap the pan well with both plastic wrap and foil. Store in the freezer for 2-3 months.
3. Let the peppers thaw for a full 24 hours in the fridge.
4. Add a splash of water or broth to the baking dish, cover with foil, and bake at 350F for 15-20 minutes to reheat.

Loving this easy, skinny dinner? Try these:

• Italian Stuffed Peppers
• Spanish Chicken with Chorizo and Potatoes
• Asian Lettuce Wraps
• One Pot Chicken Drumsticks with Beluga Lentils
• Moroccan Chicken Couscous
• Chicken Thighs with Sweet Potatoes and Kale Bake
• Turkey Breast in Fire Roasted Tomato Sauce
• Turkey Meatballs