When a recipe title says that something is “stuffed” one immediately assumes that the dish will be decadent and delicious yet I have found most stuffed pepper recipes fall flat in this regard. The peppers are usually filled with a boring mixture of meat and rice and end up turning a pale shade of green when baked before toppling over in the casserole dish. Sometimes, however, a few simple tweaks to an otherwise basic recipe can transform a “ho-hum” dish into something truly extraordinary and such is the case with these Blue Cheese, Rosemary, and Wild Rice Stuffed Peppers. Traditional stuffed pepper recipes usually call for green bell peppers but in this recipe I use red, green, orange, and yellow bell peppers. The combination of colored peppers adds a visual vibrancy to the dish which is reason enough to use them, but I also like that the skins on the red, orange, and yellow peppers retain their brightness when baked, unlike the green peppers whose color becomes dull when cooked.
This gluten-free dish is so simple to prepare. After boiling the peppers for just 3 minutes and setting them aside to dry, combine the remaining ingredients. There are no special mixing instructions – just throw everything in a bowl and mix it up with your hands or in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.
Cutting the peppers in half lengthwise allows you to lay them flat in a casserole dish instead of trying to get them to stand upright, which can be difficult if the pepper bottoms are uneven. I like the way the peppers look with the stems on so I try to leave some of the stem intact on each pepper when I cut it in half.
The bold flavors of blue cheese and fresh rosemary make a perfect marriage with the beef, and the wild rice is nutty and earthy and adds a pleasing texture that will delight your taste buds.
This is a fantastic make ahead dish for casual entertaining. It only takes 30 minutes in the oven and when paired with a tossed green salad makes a complete meal. Serve Blue Cheese, Rosemary, and Wild Rice Stuffed Peppers with your favorite marinara or Roasted Garlic Ketchup.
- PEPPERS
- 4 bell peppers (1 green, 1 orange, 1 red, 1 yellow) cut in half lengthwise, ribs and seeds removed
- 1 Tablespoon salt
- STUFFING
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 ½ cups cooked wild rice
- 1 cup crumbled blue cheese/ 4 ounces
- 1 small onion (3 ½ to 4 ounces in size), finely chopped
- 1 large egg
- 2 Tablespoons of chopped fresh rosemary
- 2 medium cloves of garlic, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- Preheat oven to 375° F. Bring a large stock pot of water to a boil. Add 1 Tablespoon of salt and the pepper halves. Cook for 3 minutes then remove and place cut side down on a clean dish towel.
- Combine the stuffing ingredients. Using clean paper towels, pat the pepper halves dry on the inside and out and then divide the stuffing evenly between the peppers.
- Place in a casserole dish and bake on the bottom rack of the oven for 30 minutes.
- Serve with your favorite marinara or homemade ketchup.
Variation: Turkey, Goat Cheese and Sun-Dried Tomato Wild Rice Stuffed Peppers. Use ground turkey or chicken in place of the beef. Substitute goat cheese for the blue cheese and ½ ounce of fresh basil for the rosemary. Add ½ cup of finely chopped sun-dried tomatoes to the stuffing.
LIKE THIS RECIPE? PIN IT FOR LATER!
Mona.
I. am. obsessed. with these. I’ve made them twice in the past week (for my boyfriend and me) and have shared your link on Instagram and Facebook… they’re one of the best things I’ve ever made! What a killer combo of flavors.
Alessandra
Alessandra I am so happy you like them and thank you very much for sharing! Be sure to try the turkey, goat cheese and sundried tomato variation. Ground chicken with basil and boursin cheese would also be delicious.
Hello and thank you for the recipe. I am going to make these in about 10 minutes. There is no reference to browning the beef. It may be way off course but I’m going to lightly brown the meat first. Instead of cooking the onion in the browning meat I like the idea of folding it in uncooked. I’m just weary of getting the beef to cook sufficiently while stuffed inside the peppers along with the other ingredients. I guess we’ll know in about an hour. I’ll follow up with the results.
Hi Gary – I’ve made these peppers countless times and have never had a problem with the meat not cooking sufficiently. I’m sure they turned out just fine the way you made them as the recipe is quite forgiving. Please let me know how you like them and thanks for stopping by!
These were amazing and have been one of our favorite stuffed pepper recipes. the only change i made is browning beef ahead of time.
So glad you like them Julie! It’s not necessary to brown the beef ahead of time but if you’re worried about undercooking the meat, or have an unreliable oven, it certainly can’t hurt. Thanks for your feedback.
These were amazing and one of my favorite stuffed pepper recipes!! We make a lot of different kinds of stuffed peppers as my in law’s garden is huge and supplies alot. So glad I stumbled on this variation. amazing and healthy!
So glad you liked the recipe Julie!
This recipe sounds delicious, but I have a question about your suggestion to serve it with marinara sauce. Would it enhance or ruin the flavor if I mixed the marinara into the stuffing mixture to have the flavor more integrated into the entire stuffing? If so, how much marinara sauce would you recommend? I don’t necessarily care for the intensity of marinara sauce “straight up!”
Hi Rhonda – I think that would work just fine and add some nice flavor. I’d start with a 1/4 cup and see how that affects the taste and texture. You can always increase it slightly from there but my guess is that 1/4 to 1/2 cup would work great.
Thank you so very much for taking time to reply! I’ll try to remember to let you and others know how it turns out!