Stuffed peppers are popular in many cultures, in our house we usually go Italian or Mexican style depending on the mood. They have become so popular in my house that I use stuffed pepper night to clear the veggie drawer and pantry using whatever I have on hand. For your stuffed peppers your filling will be a grain such as rice or quinoa flavored with meat or other protein such as lentils of you want to go vegetarian or vegan. Use your favorite aromatics and season to fit your desire. Here are some recipes that I have made.

Italian Style Ground Turkey Stuffed Bell Peppers

(Base recipe: https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/222002/chef-johns-stuffed-peppers/)

I made these using leftover sauce from something I had made a few days earlier and ground turkey meat. For the filling I mixed rice with the browned turkey meat (cooked with diced onions and seasoned with salt and crushed red pepper flakes), diced tomatoes, garlic, Parmigiano-Reggiano, salt and pepper. I put the sauce on the bottom of the baking dish, stuffed the peppers that I got from my local farm which were incredibly fresh, topped with some more Parm and baked for just under one hour at 375*. Simple and incredibly delicious!

Mexican Style Vegetarian Stuffed Poblano Peppers

These are a a crowd pleaser for sure. You start by charring the peppers, steam, then remove the skin. Slice carefully to make a pocket for the filling. For the filling I made yellow rice, added already cooked lentils (from Trader Joe’s) to a pan of softened diced onions, peppers and garlic, added some diced tomatoes and seasoned it all to taste. I stuffed the peppers, topped with pepperjack cheese and baked for 10 minutes, leaving them under the broiler for a minute at the end to brown the cheese. You can serve with toasted pumpkin seeds for a little crunch and cilantro or parsley to finish.