Mexican Stuffed Bell Peppers - stuffed with ground beef, black beans, rice, tomatoes, spiced just right with Mexican spices, topped with grated Cheddar and Mozzarella cheese. Baked in a meatless tomato sauce (right from the jar).
These delicious Mexican stuffed bell peppers make an amazing dinner! They are baked in tomato sauce because it doesn't let them dry up during baking process and also expands your options for serving. These stuffed bell peppers can be served as-is, on a regular plate without the tomato sauce:
Or, you can serve them in a bowl, with a little bit of the tomato sauce at the bottom, which makes beef and beans stuffed bell peppers more moist and flavorful - I prefer them that way:
How to make stuffed bell peppers
They are super easy to make - stuff the bell peppers with the filling (made with ground beef, rice, black beans, and tomatoes) according to the recipe, and place them in a baking dish:
Next, fill the baking dish with tomato sauce and sprinkle the bell peppers and the sauce with cheese:
Finally, cover with foil and bake bell peppers stuffed with ground beef and black beans until heated through! Enjoy!
Other Mexican inspired recipes
- Mexican Chicken Pasta - sliced chicken breast cooked in Mexican spices, with bell peppers and green chiles, and then smothered in a creamy sauce made with Cheddar and Mozzarella cheeses and spices.
- Mexican Street Corn Black Bean Chicken Bake - chicken breasts topped with Chili powder, corn kernels, black beans, Cotija cheese, and baked in the oven for about 25 minutes.
Mexican Stuffed Bell Peppers
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ pound ground beef
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup rice , cooked, or ½ cup rice (uncooked)
- 8 oz black beans from the can, rinsed
- 1 tomato , chopped into small slices
- 6 green bell peppers , medium size
- ⅔ cup tomato sauce (meatless marinara sauce)
- ⅔ cup water or use less - judge for yourself
- ¼ cup mozzarella cheese , shredded
- ¼ cup cheddar cheese , shredded
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Heat the skillet on stove top until hot, add olive oil - it should sizzle. Immediately add ground beef and cook it constantly stirring intill nicely browned and cooked through. Remove from heat. Drain all excess fat. Add 1 teaspoon chili powder, 1 teaspoon cumin, ¼ teaspoon salt to cooked ground beef, stir to combine.
- To the same skillet, off heat, add black beans, chopped tomatoes, and cooked rice. Note: make sure to rinse black beans really well and drain. Add more spices: 1 teaspoon chili powder, 1 teaspoon cumin, ¼ teaspoon salt to beef, stir to combine.
- Prepare bell peppers for stuffing: cut the tops off, stem and seed them.
- Stuff each bell pepper with the filling. Fill the baking dish with marinara spaghetti sauce and up to ⅔ cups of water (don't pour all water at once - just pour enough to make the marinara sauce less dense). Place stuffed bell peppers tightly into prepared baking dish, cavity side up. In my case, I used 2 large bread pans. Top each pepper with both shredded Mozzarella and Cheddar cheese. Sprinkle some cheese over the tomato sauce too. Cover with foil
- Bake stuffed bell peppers for 30-40 minutes, until the peppers are tender and the filling is hot. Serve in shallow bowls, with some of tomato sauce on the bottom.
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer:
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
The recipe calls for black beans but doesn't specify how they're prepared. Shouldn't they be soaked, rinsed, and cooked before being added to filling mix?
The recipe calls for canned beans. They are cooked during the canning process. If you are using dried beans you will need to cook them before adding them to the meat mixture.
Has anyone tried using enchilada sauce instead of marinara? I found this recipe when I googled 'sauce-less stuffed peppers'
I planned on making my regular recipe but realized I am out of marinara. I do have enchilada sauce so I think I'm going to try it. I'll follow up!!
This looks fantastic! I'm definitely going to try it 🙂
This just looks so delicious !! Totally making this
Glad to hear it! 🙂
look delish - can they be frozen and cooked later?
Yes, they can.
Loving the Mexican flavors in this stuffed peppers! Yum 🙂
Thanks, Kiran! 🙂
Stuffed peppers always make me think of my childhood - we ate them all the time! These sound delicious - especially with the mexican spin!
Hi Julia, I've just discovered your lovely blog whilst browsing Pinterest. I love finding great food blogs. Your recipe for stuffed peppers looks really delicious and the photos are beautiful. Julie
Julie, thank you so much for your sweet comment!
Bell Peppers are so tasty and versatile and I love the filling with a spicy Mexican touch!
Oh Julia, I love this Mexican version of stuffed bell peppers...they look absolutely delicious...
Have a wonderful weekend 😀
Hi Julia,
I must admit that one of my favourite meals is stuffed peppers. I tend to do ours with a mix of oatmeal, breadcrumbs, cheese, egg, onions, mushrooms and sometimes chestnuts. It makes a very easy and satisfying meal. I hadn't thought of taking a Mexican twist, but yours do look delicious! 🙂
Gahh!! I am drooling over this twist on stuffed peppers! What a great idea! Your pictures are gorgeous as always! Pinned!
Julia - I love these stuffed peppers with cumin, so versatile and fun- what a great dinner idea - thank you!
Totally making these!
Julia these are great! I love how almost every culture has their own version of stuffed bell peppers - ours has no cheese but I'll be honest this looks sooooo good! Who doesn't like melted cheese!