Paleo stuffed peppers with cauliflower rice
Sweet bell pepper halves heaped with seasoned beef, tomatoes and cauliflower rice, then baked under a spoonful of tomato sauce until soft and caramelised at the edges. Everything you expect from the family classic, and it reheats very well.
- Time
- 90 min (20 prep + 70 cook)
- Servings
- 4
- Per serving
- 403 kcal
- Protein
- 38 g
Ingredients
- 4 large red bell peppers, halved lengthwise through the stem, seeded
Filling
- 1/2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1 1/3 lb ground beef (93% lean)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp paprika
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, check the label for no added sugar
- 4 cups riced cauliflower, from a small head, or bought
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
- 1 cup tomato sauce, plain canned, no added sugar
Steps
- Heat the oven to 375°F. Set the pepper halves cut side up in a large baking dish or two.
- Heat the oil in a large deep skillet over medium-high heat. Soften the onion for 3 minutes, then add the beef, salt and pepper and cook, breaking it up, 6–8 minutes, until browned and 160°F.
- Stir in the garlic, oregano, cumin, paprika and tomato paste and cook for 1 minute.
- Add the tomatoes and cauliflower and simmer, stirring, 8–10 minutes, until the liquid has mostly gone. Stir in the parsley and taste for salt.
- Heap the filling into the peppers, spoon any extra around them and pour the tomato sauce over the top. Cover with foil and bake 35 minutes, then uncover and bake 15 minutes more, until the peppers are soft and browned at the edges.
- Serve two halves per person, with the sauce from the dish. They keep 4 days in the fridge and freeze for 3 months. Reheat covered, at 325°F or in the microwave.
Good to know
Why cook the cauliflower before baking?
Raw cauliflower lets out water in the oven and floods the peppers. A few minutes in the pan drives that off and leaves a filling that holds together.
Can I use ground turkey?
Yes, use the same weight of 93 % lean turkey, at about the same score. Add a little more salt; it needs it.
Alternative
Per
- Calories
- 73
- Protein
- (39%)
- 7 g
- Fat
- (33%)
- 3 g
- Carbohydrates
- (28%)
- 6 g
- of which sugar
- 3 g
- Fiber
- 1 g
- Sodium
- 199 mg
More meals
Computed from the ingredients with our published formula, not yet kitchen-tested. General guidance, not medical advice. Talk to your prescriber. How
As written, 1613 kcal goes into the pot and 2677 g of ingredients comes out as about 2217 g of food: 73 kcal per 100 g. Cooking moves water and energy density is the score's biggest lever, so the dish is scored as cooked, not as an average of its parts. Every ingredient links to its food page, with the same data and score. The label's percentages are each macronutrient's share of the calories. The full formula.