Unstuffed pepper skillet with turkey and rice
30 min · 36 g protein · 506 cals / serving
Everything you love about stuffed peppers, made in one pan in half an hour: ground turkey and four sweet peppers in a smoky, herby tomato sauce, with brown rice stirred through at the end. Four hearty bowls for dinner and lunch, no oven and no stuffing.
Ingredients
- 1 tsp canola oil
- 1 1/2 lb ground turkey (93% lean)
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 3 red bell peppers, yellow or orange, in 2 cm (3/4-inch) pieces
- 1 bell pepper, green, in 2 cm (3/4-inch) pieces
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tsp paprika, smoked if you have it
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
- 2 cans (14.5 oz each) diced tomatoes
- 1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 1/2 pouches (8.8 oz / 250 g each) or 2 cups leftover brown rice, cooked brown rice
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
Steps
- Heat the oil in a deep 5-quart (5-litre) sauté pan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the turkey and onion and cook, breaking up the meat, 6 minutes, until no pink remains (165°F).
- Add the peppers, garlic, paprika, oregano, basil and pepper flakes and cook 3 minutes, stirring, until the peppers start to soften.
- Stir in the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, salt and pepper. Simmer uncovered 10 minutes, stirring now and then, until the peppers are tender but still have a bite and the sauce has thickened.
- Meanwhile heat the rice pouches in the microwave (or break up cold leftover rice). Stir the rice into the skillet and heat through for 2 minutes, then scatter over the parsley.
- Serve hot. To keep it, spread the rest out in shallow containers so the rice cools quickly and refrigerate within an hour: it keeps 3 days and freezes for 3 months. Reheat until piping hot, with a splash of water.
Good to know
Can I cook raw rice in the pan instead?
Yes, the original way: add 1 cup long-grain brown rice and 2 1/2 cups water or broth with the tomatoes, cover and simmer 40 minutes, stirring twice, until the rice is tender. It takes about an hour in all.
Can I use beef?
Yes: lean ground beef works the same way and tastes a little richer. Cook it until no pink remains (160°F).
What about cheese on top?
If you eat dairy, scatter a handful of grated mozzarella or Monterey Jack over the top, cover for 2 minutes off the heat and let it melt, like the stuffed-pepper original.
Per
- Calories
- 79
- Protein
- (29%)
- 6 g
- Fat
- (36%)
- 3 g
- Carbohydrates
- (35%)
- 8 g
- of which sugar
- 3 g
- Fiber
- 1 g
- Sodium
- 177 mg
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Computed from the ingredients with our published formula, not yet kitchen-tested. How
As written, 2026 kcal goes into the pot and 2873 g of ingredients comes out as about 2550 g of food: 79 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.