Deconstructed Stuffed Peppers
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Deconstructed Stuffed Peppers combine ground turkey, lots of peppers and tomatoes, beans, rice, enchilada sauce, and cheese. This “inside out” meal is an easy spin on stuffed peppers and makes great meal prep!
For a regular stuffed pepper recipe, try my Mexican Beef Stuffed Peppers!
Unstuffed Pepper Casserole
Let’s be unstuffy with this unstuffed pepper casserole. If you’ve ever stuffed anything, you know what I’m talking about! There is no pre-cooking whole peppers, stuffing them, and then baking again. While I love this both ways, THIS one is the cheat recipe!
This started out as a stuffed poblano recipe, but due to their strange size and structure, it was a no-go. I took those peppers and just sliced them up the first go-around (the failed recipe) and then quickly decided to use bell peppers for this batch.
To be clear, you can use any kind of peppers you prefer. Use poblano, bell, or anything spicy (like jalapeño or habanero) depending on who you are serving. I like using regular bell or mini bell peppers (as pictured). Slice them any way you want and add them to this recipe! Easy, huh?
Interested in another deconstructed recipe? Try our Deconstructed Burgers next!
Ingredient Notes
- Ground Turkey – I used 93% lean ground turkey. You could also use ground beef, pork, or chicken.
- Seasonings – Use a combo of seasoning including ground cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, kosher salt, and black pepper.
- Enchilada Sauce – You can use canned sauce or my homemade enchilada sauce.
- Veggies – A combo of peppers (poblano and bell peppers), onions, and tomatoes.
- Rice – I used white rice, but you could also use brown rice or quinoa!
If you want to take this recipe up a BIG notch, make my homemade enchilada sauce! It’s got the perfect level of spice and is unbelievably delicious!
How to make Deconstructed Stuffed Peppers
Step 1
Chop veggies. Thinly slice the peppers and onions. Chop the tomatoes.
Step 2
Sauté peppers and onions. Heat a stock pot over medium-high heat and add olive oil. Then add the peppers and onions and cook until softened. Remove peppers and onions to a separate bowl.
Step 3
Brown turkey. In the same skillet, add the ground turkey and cook until browned. Add the seasonings and cook for another couple of minutes.
Step 4
Add tomatoes, beans, and sauce. Add the chopped tomatoes, pinto beans, and the sauce to the pot. Simmer until everything is hot.
Like I mentioned, using homemade enchilada sauce is nice but not required. Just make sure you use a medium or spicy version for best flavor!
Step 5
Cook rice. Meanwhile, cook the rice. I prefer to cook the rice in my instant pot.
Step 6
Add peppers and rice back. Add the peppers back to the pot along with the rice. Stir and continue heating.
Step 7
Top with cheese. Add the cheese to the mixture, turn the heat off, and place the lid (or use foil) on the top to melt the cheese.
Step 8
Serve. Serve the deconstructed stuffed peppers with a sprinkle of cilantro and/or the sides mentioned below.
Recommended side dishes
Margaritas to pair
Some of my favorite margaritas are listed below!
Recipe Tips/Modifications
- Modify as you like. Use different ground meat (beef, chicken, pork), and other peppers (jalapeño or habanero for heat), skip the beans or add a different type (black bean or white bean), skip the tomatoes, and add other seasonings.
- Make sure you have some heat. If you use my homemade enchilada sauce, the heat will be just right. If not, make sure you use a canned sauce with some heat or add some red pepper flakes etc.
- Try using quinoa instead of rice for a protein boost!
- You can prep this casserole ahead, refrigerate it, and then heat up in the oven. Just add everything to a 9×13 casserole dish and bake.
- This recipe is a great one for meal prep and makes great leftovers!
Kitchen Tools Used: (affiliate links)
xoxo ~Sue
Deconstructed Stuffed Peppers
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 2 pounds ground turkey
- 1 medium onion – diced
- 1 medium poblano pepper
- 1 medium red bell pepper
- 1 medium yellow bell pepper
- 1 Tablespoon ground cumin
- 3 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper – to taste
- 3 cups tomatoes – chopped
- 15 oz. pinto beans – rinsed and strained
- 3 cups cooked white rice
- 20 oz. enchilada sauce (medium heat) – or use my homemade sauce
- 8 oz. Mexican cheese
- Tostito chips – to serve
Instructions
- Thinkly slice the peppers and onions. Chop up the tomatoes.
- Heat a stock pot (or LARGE skillet) over medium-high heat. Add olive oil and the peppers and onions, and cook until softened (about 5 minutes). Remove the mixture to a bowl and set aside.
- To the same pot, add the ground turkey and cook until browned, stirring frequently. Then add the seasonings (the cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper) and stir for a couple more minutes.
- To the pot, add the chopped tomatoes, beans, and the enchilada sauce. Simmer until hot.
- Meanwhile cook the rice. I normally use the instant pot for rice.
- Then add the softened peppers and onions and the cooked rice. Stir well and continue heating until hot.
- When the pepper mixture is hot and bubbly, add cheese to the top. Add a lid (or foil) to the top, turn the heat off, and let the cheese melt.
- Serve the deconstructed stuffed peppers with a sprinkle of cilantro and a side or two. Also great with a frozen margarita! (Ideas on the blog post!)
Notes
Recipe Tips/Modifications
- Modify as you like. Use a different ground meat (beef, chicken, pork), other peppers (jalapeño or habanero for heat), skip the beans or add a different type (black bean or white bean), skip the tomatoes, add other seasonings.
- Make sure you have some heat. If you use my homemade enchilada sauce, the heat will be just right. If not, make sure you use a canned sauce with some heat or add some red pepper flakes etc.
- Try using quinoa instead of rice for a protein boost!
- You can prep this casserole ahead, refrigerate, and then heat up in the oven. Just add everything to a 9×13 casserole dish and bake.
- This recipe is a great one for meal prep and makes great leftovers!
Sue – I made it tonight and it was delicious! I split it into two, putting half in a casserole pan to freeze and save for later.Then added cheese and had the rest for dinner. Easy to put together. Great directions. Looking to use the extra for a dip for a party using tortilla chips. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks so much for your feedback, Deb!
This was a perfect “clean out the fridge” recipe for us! We had some veggies and ground turkey that we wanted to use up, which made this recipe a home run. It was easy to make and delicious, and tastes just as good for lunch the next day!
We were only able to find mild enchilada sauce, so next time I want to try out the homemade enchilada sauce for a little more spice.
We added on the Mexican street corn salad for a side, which was also amazing!
Yay! I love the idea of this combo of recipes together!
5 STARS from us!! So easy to make, and oh so good!!
Thanks so much, Tiff! š