Taco stuffed bell peppers with rice and ground beef (or turkey) take only 30 minutes to make. They're super yummy, healthy, quick and easy. The perfect easy weeknight dinner when things get busy (and even gluten free)!
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Your whole family is going to love this tasty, Mexican inspired dish. Mix things up next taco Tuesday and give this fun meal a try!
Whip it up by blanching your peppers in boiling water. Stuff them with taco meat filling, sprinkle with cheese and bake in the oven for around 10 minutes. It's that simple!
Leftovers reheat very well and are excellent as an easy, make-ahead lunch.
More Stuffed Pepper Recipes
Check out these Chicken Taco Stuffed Bell Peppers, Buffalo Chicken Stuffed Peppers, Sausage Stuffed Peppers With Cauliflower Rice, or my delicious Stuffed Pepper Crock Pot Soup!
Jump to:
- More Stuffed Pepper Recipes
- Ingredients
- How To Make Beef Taco Stuffed Peppers
- Step By Step Photos
- Sides For Stuffed Peppers
- Can I make this recipe without rice?
- Why do you boil peppers before stuffing them?
- How To Store Leftovers
- Freezer Instructions
- Handy Tips
- More healthy, Mexican inspired recipes!
- Beef Taco Stuffed Peppers Recipe
Ingredients
This easy recipe requires only 9 simple ingredients!
Large bell peppers: green, orange, red or yellow. Mix and match or pick your favorite!
Ground beef: or substitute a leaner ground meat like turkey or chicken. Shredded beef is another great alternative.
Yellow onion: diced into small pieces.
Diced canned tomatoes: Rotel will also work great!
Instant rice: brown or white instant/minute rice will work. If you don't have instant rice, you can use cooked regular rice.
Corn: frozen or canned.
Black Beans: drain and rinse before adding to filling.
Gluten free taco seasoning: I like to use homemade taco seasoning. It's easy to make and tastes SO good! You can also use store bought. However, if gluten is an issue for you, be sure to select a brand that is marked gluten free (many are not).
Cheese: cheddar or a Mexican blend!
Optional: serve with all of your favorite taco toppings like sour cream, healthier queso, poblano sauce, Baja sauce, salsa, hot sauce, a splash of lime juice, diced red onion, homemade guacamole, avocado slices, chopped cilantro and more!
How To Make Beef Taco Stuffed Peppers
Keep scrolling for the full recipe. We'll start here with a quick overview!
- Place a large pot of hot, salted water on the stovetop and turn heat to high. Cut peppers in half, place them in the hot water and boil for about 10 minutes.
- Brown hamburger meat in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions and allow the two ingredients to cook together for 5-10 minutes. Then add canned diced tomatoes (with juices), uncooked instant rice, black beans, corn and gluten free taco seasoning. Mix well!
- Set oven temperature to 350°F. While it heats up, scoop beef taco filling into blanched bell pepper halves. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese and then place peppers in the preheated oven. Bake 10-15 minutes!
- Allow peppers to cool a bit and then serve with your favorite toppings.
Step By Step Photos
Sides For Stuffed Peppers
- Homemade guacamole
- Tortilla chips (regular or low-carb)
- Warm tortillas (regular or low-carb)
- Simple garden salad
- Refried Black Beans
Can I make this recipe without rice?
If you're following a low carb diet and you'd like to make stuffed peppers without rice, you can simply cut it out! Your stuffed peppers will still be delicious. Another great option: substitute cauliflower rice.
Why do you boil peppers before stuffing them?
Blanching peppers is a quick way to soften them up. You can also soften them by roasting in the over, but this takes much longer. If you'd prefer a crisp pepper, you can skip this step or only boil for a couple of minutes. It really depends on your preference!
How To Store Leftovers
Allow peppers to cool and place them in an airtight, food storage container or Ziploc baggie. Press on the bag or container to remove as much excess air as possible. Refrigerate for 3-5 days.
Freezer Instructions
You can also freeze your leftover stuffed peppers! Allow them to cool completely and then arrange in a freezer-safe, food storage container. Remove excess air and store in the freezer for 2-3 months. To reheat, thaw in the refrigerator overnight and then microwave in 30-60 second increments or bake at 350°F until warmed through.
Handy Tips
- Leftover filling: You may have leftover beef mixture after stuffing peppers. Since they vary so much in size, this recipe yields plenty. Luckily, the filling is super tasty on it's own, mixed into a salad or wrapped in a warm tortilla. It's also delicious when topped with guacamole, a few slices of fresh avocado or sour cream!
- Taco seasoning: You can buy taco-seasoning mix at the store, but if gluten is an issue for you, make sure to find a brand that is specified as gluten-free (many are not). To avoid additives and gluten, you can also make your own taco seasoning mix at home. It's super easy!
- Spice it up: if you'd like a spicier stuffed pepper, consider using hot Rotel (not mild or original) instead of diced tomatoes. You can also mix in a can of diced jalapenos, red pepper flakes or a bit of your favorite hot sauce!
- Don't overboil peppers: be careful not to boil your peppers for too long before stuffing them with filling. They may become so tender that they start to fall apart and get mushy. I normally boil mine for about 10 minutes. I wouldn't go much longer than that.
Pin it for later!
More healthy, Mexican inspired recipes!
- Taco Salad Bowls With Shredded Chicken
- Stupendous Shredded Beef Tostadas
- Blackened Mahi Mahi Fish Tacos
- Easy Low Carb Taco Casserole
- Chicken Enchiladas With White Sauce
- Creamy Chicken Taco Soup
- Super Tasty Shrimp Tostadas
- Classic 5 Ingredient Skinny Margaritas
- Refreshing Tequila Soda
Beef Taco Stuffed Peppers Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 large bell peppers *see note below
- 1 pound lean ground beef *see note below
- 1 small yellow onion *diced
- 1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
- 1 cup instant rice *see note below
- 1 15oz can black beans *drained and rinsed
- ½ cup corn *frozen or canned
- ¼ cup gluten free taco seasonings *see note below
- 1 cup shredded cheese *cheddar or Mexican blend
Optional Toppings:
- Sour cream, guacamole, salsa, hot sauce, chopped cilantro, diced red onion, lime juice, avocado slices
Recipe notes:
Large bell peppers: I find it helpful to have peppers similar in size and height. Use any color you like! Ground beef: sub ground turkey or chicken if desired. I use 93/7 ground beef, if you're using a higher fat content meat, drain fat before adding onion to the sauté pan. Instant rice: white or brown will work. You can sub cooked, regular rice if you don't have any instant rice on hand. Taco seasoning: You can buy taco-seasoning mix at the store, but if gluten is an issue for you, make sure you find a brand that is specified as gluten-free (many are not). To avoid additives and gluten, you can also make your own taco seasoning at home: it’s super easy! I think homemade taco seasoning offers better flavor! General: if preferred, you can make four large stuffed peppers rather than eight small ones. Just cut the tops off of each pepper instead of slicing them in half!Instructions
- Fill a large stock pot with HOT water, salt generously and place on stovetop on high heat.
- Cut peppers in half lengthwise, remove stem and seeds. Place them in the stock pot. Once water comes to a boil, reduce heat to medium low and allow peppers to simmer for 10 minutes. If you like a crunchier pepper, reduce simmering time. (*Tip: be careful to over cook your peppers or they will become mushy and start to fall apart).
- While peppers simmer, place a large, deep sauté pan on the stove top. Turn heat to medium, add ground beef and allow it to brown. I recommend using a 3-5 quart sauté pan, or larger. All other ingredients will be added to this pan so you will need adequate space. You can also use another large pot in lieu of a sauté pan.
- Once your meat has finished browning, add diced onion. Sauté together until onion starts to become soft and translucent (5-10 minutes).
- Add canned diced tomato (with juices), instant rice, black beans, corn and gluten free taco seasonings and mix well.
- Preheat your oven to 350°F.
- Remove peppers from hot water with tongs and line them in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Spoon meat mixture into peppers and sprinkle with cheese.
- Bake peppers for 10-15 minutes and then broil for 1-2 minutes if you want to brown cheese.
- Allow peppers to cool for 5-10 minutes and then serve with desired toppings!
Storage Instructions:
- Allow peppers to cool and place them in an airtight, food storage container or Ziploc baggie. Press on the bag or container to remove as much excess air as possible. Refrigerate for 3-5 days or store in the freezer for 2-3 months. To reheat, thaw in the refrigerator overnight and then microwave in 30-60 second increments or bake at 350°F until warmed through.
Video
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe?!
Wahoo! Thank you so much for trying it out – would you leave a rating and review in the comment section below?! Your feedback is so important to me.
Ruthanne Combs says
My husband & I are doing a trial run of being gluten-free to see if it helps my symptoms with my autoimmune disease. This is the first GF dinner I made for us and it was a hit! We paired it with corn tortilla chips. This will definitely be a repeat in our house, and I have a lot of your other recipes pinned to try too. 🙂
stacey_olson says
Hi, Ruthanne! I'm so glad this recipe was a hit. Thanks for pinning and trying my recipes, it means so much! Good luck on your gluten free adventure, I hope it helps!
Kristine says
I made the taco stuffed peppers for dinner one night. It’s just my husband and I so I had some left over. I put them in a freezer container and froze them for a quick meal. I put the frozen peppers in my ninja foodi and baked them on bake/ roast cycle at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Other than the cheese getting a little crispy they were just as delicious as the day I made them. Thank you the recipe, it’s a definite keeper!!
stacey_olson says
So glad you enjoyed this recipe, Kristine! I appreciate your comment and review. Thank you!
Skay says
It was really easy and tastes very good !!!
stacey_olson says
Thank you so much! I'm really glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Paula@SweetPea says
This looks so good and I can't wait to try it.
stacey_olson says
Thank you so much!
Josie says
This was great and my son loved it!! Thanks for sharing!
Garlic Salt & Lime says
I am so glad to hear that! Thank you, Josie!
Sherry says
Oh my goodness, this is easy and delicious! My whole family loved these. I substituted cauliflower rice for regular rice. Thank you!
Garlic Salt & Lime says
I'm so glad you and your family enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for the kind words and rating, Sherry!
Amanda P says
Holy cow!!!! This wasn’t sure how I felt about corn and beans in stuffed peppers, but I’m so glad I tried it. This was amazing. Definitely going to be a repeat in my house. I would even just eat the filling without the peppers it was that amazing. Thank you for sharing.
Eliza says
Really good! The only thing I changed was omitting the corn and using a can of green chiles instead. These reheat great too, although my husband likes them better cold the next day.
Garlic Salt & Lime says
Hi, Eliza! So glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe! Thanks for the rating and review!
Kristin Hill says
Turned out great! The taco seasoning was the “it” I was missing when making these before, trying other recipes. With a little avocado on top and guacamole and chips to finish them out - delicious! TY for sharing!
Garlic Salt & Lime says
Thank you so much, Kristin! I'm so glad you enjoyed this recipe!