Stuffed Pepper Casserole Recipe
This is the Best Stuffed Pepper Casserole. It's an easy dinner recipe to make filled with delicious flavors and ingredients!
Serving4 Servings
Ingredients
- 1 ½ Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound ground lean beef
- 1 onion, diced
- ½ cup red bell pepper, diced
- ½ cup yellow bell pepper, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon paprika powder
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 10 ounces canned chopped fire-roasted tomatoes or classic tomatoes
- ¼ cup tomato sauce
- ⅔ cup long grain rice, rinsed, drained
- 1 cup vegetable or beef stock
- ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
- ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions
Heat the oven:
- Preheat oven: prepare a 9x13-inch baking dish. Preheat your oven to 350℉.
Prepare the beef:
- Cook the beef: Heat olive oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet or saucepan. Add the beef, season with salt and pepper to taste, and cook while breaking up lumps until the meat is no longer pink about 7-8 minutes. Drain any excess fat or liquid.
- Add the vegetables: Stir in the diced onion, red bell pepper, and yellow bell pepper. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until slightly tender.
- Add the flavor: add minced garlic and paprika to the meat and cook for 1 minute.
- Add the remaining ingredients: stir in canned chopped tomatoes, tomato sauce, rice, and vegetable or beef stock. Simmer for 10-15 minutes, then remove from the heat. Stir in ¼ cup of shredded cheddar cheese and ¼ cup of mozzarella cheese until well combined.
Assemble for baking:
- Transfer to the baking dish: add the meat-rice mixture into the baking dish.
- Bake: Cover the casserole with aluminum foil and bake for 30-35 minutes. Remove the casserole from the oven and add the remaining cheddar and mozzarella cheese on top.
- Broil: Set your oven to broil and broil the casserole for 2-3 minutes or until the cheese is melted and golden.
Serve:
- Cool the casserole for 10 minutes before serving.
Notes
- In this recipe, you can use any rice except instant rice.
- If you do not have fire-roasted tomatoes and still want that smoky flavor, you can use smoked paprika instead of plain paprika powder.
- This post was updated in March of 2026 with a range of cooking times for the simmering and in the oven after some users noted that their rice was not fully cooked. If you are nervous about uncooked rice, extend the simmering step by a few minutes to make sure it's cooked to your liking.
Nutrition
Calories: 461 kcal · Carbohydrates: 36 g · Protein: 34 g · Fat: 19 g · Saturated Fat: 8 g · Polyunsaturated Fat: 1 g · Monounsaturated Fat: 8 g · Trans Fat: 0.4 g · Cholesterol: 95 mg · Sodium: 676 mg · Potassium: 626 mg · Fiber: 2 g · Sugar: 5 g · Vitamin A: 1455 IU · Vitamin C: 63 mg · Calcium: 226 mg · Iron: 4 mg