These easy Stuffed Peppers with Ground Turkey are hearty, cheesy, and packed with veggies — the perfect cozy dinner for busy families.
Stuffed peppers always seem like one of those dinners that should take forever… but this Stuffed Peppers with Ground Turkey recipe proves they can actually be weeknight easy. Sweet bell peppers get filled with a hearty mixture of lean ground turkey, diced tomatoes, carrots, scallions, rice, Italian seasoning, and plenty of melty cheese. As they bake, the peppers soften and become slightly sweet while the filling turns warm, savory, and completely satisfying.
This is one of those back-pocket dinners that makes you feel like you’re serving something extra special without doing anything complicated. The filling comes together in one pan, it’s packed with protein and veggies, and the cheesy tops make everything feel cozy and comforting. Plus, each pepper is its own little complete meal — which somehow makes dinner more fun (and easier to serve). Perfect for busy families, meal prep, or those nights when you want comfort food that still feels fresh and balanced.
Want more tips for making busy family dinners easier? Click here for my Free Printable 5 Simple Steps to Easy Family Dinners!
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Why Busy Families Will Love This Recipe
Everyone will love these Stuffed Peppers, but they are especially great for busy families. Here are some of the reasons why.
- Complete meal in one — protein, veggies, and grains together.
- Make ahead to Save Time – Great for meal prep and leftovers.
- Kid-friendly with cheesy goodness in every bite.
- Easy way to sneak in extra vegetables.
- Simple ingredients you may already have on hand.
- Feels homemade and special without extra work.
Simple Ingredients and Substitutes
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- Sweet Bell Peppers – You can use any color you have or love. Red, yellow, and orange bell peppers will be sweeter than green peppers.
- Olive Oil – This is for cooking the Turkey. You can use any olive oil, vegetable oil, or even cooking spray.
- Ground Turkey – You can substitute in ground chicken or ground beef.
- Seasonings: I used dried Italian Seasoning and salt. An Italian blend is most convenient, but you can use any combination of dried oregano, basil, marjoram, thyme, or rosemary. Red pepper flakes will add a little kick too.
- Scallions – The scallions, also called green onions or spring onions, in this recipe provide the onion flavor. You could also use grated or diced yellow onion or red onion. You can also use onion powder or onion flakes.
- Fresh Garlic Clove, minced – Fresh is best in this simple recipe, but you can buy the pre-minced garlic sold in a small jar or use dried garlic flakes or garlic powder.
- Carrot, grated or pre-shredded – You can use whole carrots with the skin on or peeled. I peeled and grated for this recipe. You can substitute with diced baby carrots, parsnips, or even radishes.
- Diced Tomatoes (1 can) – I like the chunks of tomato that you get with diced. However, you can substitute in pureed, crushed, or whole tomatoes that you crush with your hands. You can also add a tablespoon of tomato paste for more deep flavor.
- Cooked Rice – I used white long grain rice. You can substitute quinoa, brown rice, or even croutons. You can also replace the rice with more veggies, such as diced zucchini, sliced mushrooms, or riced cauliflower.
- Shredded Cheese – I used Mozzarella, but any mix of cheddar, monterey jack, mozzarella or any melty cheese will work in this recipe.
- Parmesan Cheese, grated – Parmesan adds more depth, salty, and nutty flavor to the sauce. Shredded is fine too. If you don’t have parmesan cheese, you can substitute with shredded or grated pecorino romano cheeses, manchego cheese, cotija, gruyere, or other hard salty cheese.
See recipe card for quantities.
Simple Equipment
- For cooking the ground beef and making the filling for the stuffed peppers, you will need a large skillet/frying pan. I use my absolute favorite 12″ Ceramic Pan, which is great because food really does slide right off with minimal oil and I don’t have to worry about food sticking and burning.
- Then to bake the stuffed peppers, you need a medium or large casserole dish that’s approximately 10×10, 12×12, 10×13 or similar. You can also just use a large sheet pan.
- Oh, and mincing garlic is made super easy with a Garlic Press.
Time Saving Prep-Ahead Steps
We are all extremely busy and making dinner during the week can be overwhelming. Here are steps you can prepare ahead to save time on busy nights! (See the full recipe below)
To save the most time on this recipe, I recommend making the stuffing in advance 2-3 days. Then store it in the refrigerator in an airtight container until ready to stuff the peppers and bake.
Prepare the Vegetables
Clean the bell peppers and cut off the top ½ inch of the peppers including the stem.
Dice the tops for mixing into the turkey and discard the stems.
Grate or shred the carrot. Slice the scallions, setting aside the greens from 2 scallions to be used for garnish.
Drain the diced tomatoes, saving the
Make the Ground Turkey Stuffing
Preheat a large pan/skillet on High heat. To the hot pan, add the olive oil, ground turkey, Italian seasoning, and salt.
Mix! Cook for 5 minutes, stirring a couple times, until no longer pink and starting to brown on the pan.
Once the turkey is cooked, mix in the diced pepper tops, scallions, carrots, and canned diced tomatoes.
With the tomato juices, use a spatula to scrape up any of the browned bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Cook for 5 minutes or until the liquid is reduced a bit.
Mix in the cooked rice and cook for a few minutes to combine everything.
Turn off the heat and mix in the parmesan cheese and 1 cup of the shredded mozzarella cheese (the remaining will go on top).
Taste and add salt and pepper to taste.
Stuff and Bake
Preheat the oven to 400 F degrees. Stuff the peppers generously with the turkey mixture and then bake in the oven for 10 minutes. (if your filling was chilled, then add 2-5 minutes as needed until the center is hot)
Talking Tip!
If your stuffed red peppers are off balance, here’s a tip! Use folded pieces of aluminum foil to prop up uneven peppers that are leaning. This way, they won’t topple over spill out the delicious filling as they bake up.
Add the remaining shredded cheese on top of each pepper and bake under the broiler for another 3 minutes.
When the Stuffed peppers are done let them rest for 5 minutes, then serve and enjoy!
Variations on this Stuffed Peppers Recipe
These stuffed peppers are Italian seasoned, but check out this Tex Mex version! Or how about these other ideas for changing things up?
- Low-Carb Version: Skip the rice and add extra turkey and vegetables.
- Chicken Stuffed Peppers: Use ground chicken instead of turkey.
- Extra Veggie Version: Add zucchini, mushrooms, spinach, or corn to the filling.
- Mediterranean Twist: Add chopped olives and feta cheese.
FAQs for Stuffed Peppers with Ground Turkey
Yes! Assemble the peppers up to 2 days ahead and refrigerate until ready to bake.
You do not need to pre-cook the peppers for stuffed peppers. Since the peppers bake filled, they soften while keeping a little texture and shape.
Absolutely. Freeze before or after baking for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight before reheating.
Warm in a 350°F oven or microwave for 2–3 minutes until heated through.
Have you tried this recipe? If so, please leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ star rating in the recipe below! I love to hear your feedback and your rating helps others to find this recipe. Thanks so much!
Stuffed Peppers with Ground Turkey Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 Sweet Bell Peppers red yellow, or orange
- 4 teaspoons Olive Oil
- 1 pound Ground Turkey
- 5 Scallions (green onions)
- 1 Clove Garlic, minced
- ½ cup Carrot, grated or pre-shredded
- 2 teaspoons Dried Italian Seasoning
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 14 ounces Diced Tomatoes (1 can)
- 1 cup Cooked Rice
- 1 cup Shredded Cheese
- ¼ cup Parmesan Cheese, grated
Instructions
Prep Steps
- PREP VEGGIES. Clean the bell peppers and cut off the top ½ inch of the peppers including the stem. Dice the tops for mixing into the turkey and discard the stems. Grate or shred the carrot. Slice the scallions, setting aside the greens from 2 scallions to be used for garnish. Drain the diced tomatoes.
- COOK TURKEY. Preheat a large pan/skillet on High heat. To the hot pan, add the olive oil, ground turkey, Italian seasoning, and salt. Mix! Cook for 5 minutes, stirring a couple times, until no longer pink and starting to brown on the pan.
- FINISH PEPPER PREP. While the turkey is cooking, finish prepping the bell peppers by removing/discarding the seeds and inside membranes. Place into an oiled, casserole dish or on a sheet pan. (TIP: Use folded foil to prop up uneven peppers that are leaning)
- FINISH THE STUFFING. Once the turkey is cooked, mix in the diced pepper tops, scallions, carrots, and canned diced tomatoes. With the tomato juices, use a spatula to scrape up any of the browned bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Cook for 5 minutes or until the liquid is reduced a bit. Mix in the cooked rice and cook for a few minutes to combine everything. Turn off the heat and mix in the parmesan cheese and 1 cup of the shredded mozzarella cheese (the remaining will go on top). Taste and add salt and pepper to taste.
Cooking Steps
- STUFF & BAKE. Preheat the oven to 400 F degrees. Stuff the peppers generously with the turkey mixture and then bake in the oven for 10 minutes. (if your filling was chilled, then add 2-5 minutes as needed until the center is hot) Add the remaining shredded cheese on top of each pepper and bake under the broiler for another 3 minutes.
- When the Stuffed peppers are done let them rest for 5 minutes, then serve and enjoy!
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