Try this Unstuffed Pepper Skillet if you need a simple dinner for tonight! Made with rice, ground beef and peppers, this meal cooks in a single skillet for easy prep and a quick cleanup.
I love a quick skillet meal! My Mexican Beef and Rice Skillet is one of my most popular dinner recipes, so I’m thinking you’re going to love this Unstuffed Pepper Skillet just as much.
While I do enjoy a good stuffed pepper (especially my Crockpot Stuffed Peppers!), many days are just too hectic and I won’t think about dinner until it’s almost too late. And that’s when a quick prep, easy ingredient dinner like this one comes in handy!
Ingredients you’ll need
Here is a visual overview of the ingredients in the recipe. Scroll down to the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post for quantities!
Ingredient notes
- Beef: I prefer extra-lean ground beef here. Feel free to use regular and then drain off the fat after browning. Ground turkey is also a good alternative, or use a plant-based substitute to make it vegetarian.
- Ground paprika: Use chili powder in place (or in addition) of the ground paprika if you want to add some heat.
- Bell peppers: I used one red and one yellow pepper. Feel free to use any color you enjoy. I personally do really love green pepper here, but my family won’t eat it… So red and yellow it is for us!
- Rice: I use parboiled white rice here (NOT instant rice) and it cooks in around 20 minutes in this recipe. If you use regular white rice or brown rice, the cooking time and liquid required may increase. If you use instant rice, reduce the broth to ¼ cup and then add more as needed during cooking. Instant rice will cook in around 8-10 minutes.
- Broth: If you don’t have beef broth on hand, chicken or vegetable broth can be used. The flavor will be a little different, but still good.
- Cheese: I love parmesan and mozzarella cheese for this recipe. If you prefer cheddar or an Italian cheese blend, feel free to go for it!
How to make Unstuffed Peppers
1. Start by browning the ground beef in olive oil in a large skillet (mine is a deep 12 inch skillet). Feel free to drain off any extra grease.
2. Add the onion and seasoning and cook until the onion has softened. Make sure to stir in the seasoning well to have it evenly distributed!
3. Next, you’ll want to stir in the uncooked rice. Make sure to use medium-low heat here, you do not want the rice to crisp up/brown!
4. Add the sliced peppers to the skillet and cook for a couple of minutes, stirring often. The peppers don’t need to fully cook at this point, they just need to start softening up a little.
5. Now, pour the beef broth into the skillet. Scrape any browned bits off the bottom of the pan – this is where a lot of the flavor sits!
6. Stir the tomato sauce and diced tomatoes into the rice. Bring to a simmer.
7. Now close the lid and cook over medium-low heat for around 20 minutes, until the rice is done.
8. Once the rice is ready, stir in the cheese. I like to stir in parmesan cheese and then sprinkle mozzarella on top – close the lid and allow the cheese to melt a few minutes before serving!
Recipe tips
- Make sure to cook the onion until softened, otherwise it will retain a raw onion taste.
- Only use medium-low heat when you stir in the rice, you do not want it to brown/burn! Burnt rice stays crispy and will ruin the meal.
- I prefer to slice the peppers into short strips, but feel free to dice them if you want.
- The cooking time and liquid requirement will greatly depend on your exact rice used. Feel free to add more broth if the rice isn’s soft after 20 minutes and the skillet seems dry. Be careful not to add too much though, or you’ll have unstuffed pepper soup!
Serving ideas
I enjoy a sprinkling of fresh parsley and some sliced cherry tomatoes on top of the skillet. Just adds a pop of freshness and flavor!
If you’re looking for more side dish ideas, try one of these:
Salad sides
- Cucumber, Tomato and Avocado Salad
- Caprese Cherry Tomato Salad
- Tossed salad greens with Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing
Vegetable sides
Bread sides
More ground beef recipes
PS If you try this recipe, please leave a review in the comment section and add a star rating in the recipe card – I appreciate your feedback! Follow along on Pinterest, Facebook or Instagram.
Printable recipe
Unstuffed Pepper Skillet
Recipe details
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 yellow onion thinly sliced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon ground paprika
- salt & pepper to taste
- 1 cup long grain white rice I used parboiled; my rice says it cooks in 15 minutes on the package
- 2 bell peppers seeded and sliced into short strips
- 1 cup beef broth I used low sodium
- 23 ounces tomato sauce I used one 8-oz can and one 15-oz can
- ⅓ cup diced tomatoes I used cherry tomatoes, but regular OR drained from a can work, too
- 1 cup shredded cheese I used ½ cup parmesan and ½ cup mozzarella
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add ground beef and brown, crumbling beef as it cooks.
- Reduce heat to medium. Add onion, garlic and all seasoning to the skillet with the beef. Cook for 2-3 minutes, until onion has softened.
- Reduce heat to medium-low. Stir through uncooked rice, then stir through sliced peppers. Cook for 2-3 minutes, until peppers are starting to soften.
- Stir through beef broth, scraping any browned bits off the bottom of the pan. Add tomato sauce and diced tomatoes and stir well. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat.
- Reduce heat to medium-low, making sure liquids are still gently simmering. Cover skillet with a lid and cook until rice is done, around 20 minutes for par-boiled white rice.
- Once rice is done, take off the heat and stir well. Add cheese (I stir in ½ cup grated parmesan, then top with ½ cup shredded mozzarella). Cover with a lid again for 2 minutes, until cheese has melted. Serve immediately.
Notes
Ingredient notes
- Beef: I prefer extra-lean ground beef here. Feel free to use regular and then drain off the fat after browning. Ground turkey is also a good alternative, or use a plant-based substitute to make it vegetarian.
- Ground paprika: Use chili powder in place (or in addition) of the ground paprika if you want to add some heat.
- Bell peppers: I used one red and one yellow pepper. Feel free to use any color you enjoy. I personally do really love green pepper here, but my family won’t eat it… So red and yellow it is for us!
- Rice: I use parboiled white rice here (NOT instant rice) and it cooks in around 20 minutes in this recipe. If you use regular white rice or brown rice, the cooking time and liquid required may increase. If you use instant rice, reduce the broth to ¼ cup and then add more as needed during cooking. Instant rice will cook in around 8-10 minutes.
- Broth: If you don’t have beef broth on hand, chicken or vegetable broth can be used. The flavor will be a little different, but still good.
- Cheese: I love parmesan and mozzarella cheese for this recipe. If you prefer cheddar or an Italian cheese blend, feel free to go for it!
Recipe tips
- Make sure to cook the onion until softened, otherwise it will retain a raw onion taste.
- Only use medium-low heat when you stir in the rice, you do not want it to brown/burn! Burnt rice stays crispy and will ruin the meal.
- I prefer to slice the peppers into short strips, but feel free to dice them if you want.
- The cooking time and liquid requirement will greatly depend on your exact rice used. Feel free to add more broth if the rice isn’s soft after 20 minutes and the skillet seems dry. Be careful not to add too much though, or you’ll have unstuffed pepper soup!
Anna Smith says
I NEVER rate recipes but this one is an epic fail. It never even made it to the table. First this recipe isn’t possible. onions don’t get soft in 3 minutes, neither do peppers and if they’re soft and basically boiled why do they looked so crisp in her pics? sigh. so after waiting 10 minutes for my onions to soften and another for my peppers I was getting frustrated. I added in my liquid ingredients and it didn’t say to reduce heat like most recipes.. I kept a close eye on it but my pot is now covered in burnt on beef and rice because I didn’t reduce heat. I don’t know how she made it possible but from experience cooking I guess I should have read the recipe better before trying..
Nora says
“Reduce heat to medium-low, making sure liquids are still gently simmering.” Reading the recipe would definitely have helped, Anna.