Turkey Quinoa Stuffed Peppers
Turkey Quinoa Stuffed Bell Peppers are an easy weeknight dinner that is healthy and hearty. These stuffed bell peppers are great for any time of year. Made with turkey, quinoa, tomatoes, corn and beans, all stuffed in a bright bell pepper and topped with cheese!
Turkey Quinoa Stuffed Peppers Recipe
This Quinoa stuffed bell peppers recipe is a staple my whole family loves! This recipe became a favorite for us while we were living with my parents because it's easy to multiply and customize for people with very different taste palates.
At one point we had someone who didn't like beans, a vegetarian and someone who didn't like spicy food all under one roof. And this meal worked for all of them!
Quinoa is such a fun grain to work with because it is mild, but it is also really easy to combine other flavors with. Plus, it is pretty high in protein which make this a very filling meal.
Ground turkey is a great way to provide extra protein without the calories of beef. I use ground turkey in other easy weeknight dinners like ground turkey stir fry and turkey sloppy joe bowls.
You can also use leftover turkey from other meals, or even shred up some leftover chicken and use that in this quinoa stuffed peppers recipe.
Making a healthy dinner recipe doesn't have to lack great flavor! Skip the "healthy" meals that taste like cardboard and make this delicious and easy recipe.
Why You'll Love this Recipe
- This quinoa stuffed pepper recipe makes plenty for leftovers or snacks, making a great make ahead meal prep item!
- Stuffed peppers are a seemingly complicated and fancy dish, but they're actually really easy to make. The cook time and prep time are pretty minimal with a few easy tricks.
- You can easily adapt this meal to fit your needs. Make a few simple changes for a vegetarian meal, a vegan option, or to remove a few things a picky eater may not eat.
Ingredients
Grab these few ingredients on your next trip to the grocery store:
- bell peppers
- ground turkey meat
- canned corn
- can of Rotel tomatoes with chiles
- canned black beans
- cilantro
- quinoa
- shredded cheese
Substitutions and Variations
If you're not a fan of black beans, swap them out for kidney beans, pinto beans, white beans, or leave them out entirely if you prefer.
You can use any shredded cheese that you'd like. Cheddar cheese, Monterey jack cheese, pepper jack, mozzarella cheese or a Mexican blend.
This recipe of course calls for cooked quinoa, but you could use white rice or brown rice instead. Use cauliflower rice for a grain-free option!
Feel free to add anything you want to the quinoa stuffing. Pico de gallo, minced garlic, taco seasoning, vegetables, sour cream, etc. The possibilities are endless!
Any type of bell peppers can be used in this great recipe! Use green bell peppers, red bell peppers, yellow, or orange. Each have a slightly different flavor, so you can make a couple of each to see which one you prefer.
How to Make Turkey and Quinoa Stuff Peppers
Cook quinoa according to package directions. You can make instant pot quinoa (or instant pot brown rice) to make things a little easier on yourself!
Brown the turkey meat in a large skillet, drain off any excess fat, and set aside once it's complete. While that's going, start a pot of boiling water.
Remove the core and seeds from all bell peppers, and cut in half down the center. Place each bell pepper into the boiling water for 5 minutes, or until the colors turn vibrant.
Using tongs, remove the bell peppers from the water and set aside.
In a large bowl, combine the fluffy quinoa, corn, black beans, diced tomatoes, cilantro and half of the shredded cheese.
Stuff the bell pepper halves with the quinoa mixture, and top each one with a little cheese. Then, bake the quinoa stuffed peppers in a baking dish at 450°F for 25 minutes until the cheese is melted and gooey.
What to serve with Quinoa Stuffed Peppers
Quinoa stuffed peppers are a complete meal all on their own, but you can of course serve your favorite side dishes too!
Whipped cream fruit salad or a green salad like a spinach salad are great healthy side dish options. Or make an easy vegetable like oven-roasted green beans or oven-roasted broccoli.
Tasty options like oven-baked potato skins or french fries would pair well with stuffed bell peppers too!
How to Store Leftover Stuffed Bell Peppers
You can store the quinoa stuffed bell peppers, or just the quinoa filing, in the fridge and freezer.
Place leftovers in an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. You can also store leftovers, in an airtight container, in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Thaw leftovers completely before reheating! To reheat, place bell pepper halves in the oven for about 10 minutes, or until warmed through.
Tips for Success
- Grease the bottom of your baking dish with olive oil cooking spray or butter to keep the bell peppers from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
- Need to speed up the cooking process even more? Use pre-cooked quinoa to make the delicious filling!
- If you'd like to make bigger servings, cut the top off of a bell pepper and core it. Then stand it up in a pan and fill it vertically!
FAQ
Boiling bell peppers before baking them will help them come out with a nice, tender texture. If you skip the boiling step, they could become rubbery and chewy.
If you end up with mushy peppers, you likely over-baked them. Everything in a stuffed pepper is cooked already, so the 25 minutes of baking is to soften the bell pepper and melt the cheese. Don't bake them too long!
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Turkey & Quinoa Stuffed Peppers
Ingredients
- 6 bell peppers variety of colors, core removed and cut in half
- 1 lb ground turkey meat
- 1 can of no salt added corn
- 1 can of Rotel tomatoes with chiles
- ½ can of black beans optional
- 1 handful of cilantro chopped
- 1 cup quinoa cook according to package instructions
- ½ cup of shredded cheese
Instructions
- Cook quinoa according to package instructions.
- Brown turkey meat and set aside when complete.
- Boil a large pot of water.
- Remove core and seeds from bell pepper and cut in half, down the center.
- Place bell peppers into boiling water for 5 minutes or until colors are vibrant.
- Remove bell peppers using tongs and set aside.
- Combine remaining ingredients in a bowl (reserving half the cheese).
- Stuff each pepper with mixture and top with remaining cheese.
- Bake at 450 degrees for 25 minutes or until cheese is melted.
Nutrition
Quinoa Stuffed Bell Peppers
Equipment
Ingredients
- 6 bell peppers variety of colors, core removed and cut in half
- 1 lb ground turkey meat
- 1 can of no-salt-added corn
- 1 can of Rotel tomatoes with chiles
- ½ can of black beans optional
- 1 handful of cilantro chopped
- 1 cup quinoa cook according to package instructions
- ½ cup of shredded cheese
Instructions
- Cook quinoa according to package instructions.
- Brown turkey meat and set aside when complete.
- Boil a large pot of water.
- Remove core and seeds from bell pepper and cut in half, down the center.
- Place bell peppers into boiling water for 5 minutes or until colors are vibrant.
- Remove bell peppers using tongs and set aside.
- Combine remaining ingredients in a bowl (reserving half the cheese).
- Stuff each pepper with mixture and top with remaining cheese.
- Bake at 450°F for 25 minutes or until cheese is melted.
Did a vegetarian version of these for dinner tonight with Quorn mince instead of Turkey. Went down well!
Thanks for the inspiration, Madison!
Nisha x
That's great! I'm so glad you were able to make a vegetarian substitution! We have also done this recipe with Beyond Beef before.
What would you recommend for replacing the quinoa with rice?
I've made these plenty of times with just plan white rice. You just need to cook it according to the directions and add it to the mix!
Awesome. Have you used a rice cooker before? I literally do not know how to cook rice otherwise. We Cajuns don't use anything else!
Lauren
Here We Geaux
Subject: Re: Comment on Quinoa Stuffed Bell Peppers
I haven't but you can cook the rice anyway you want. As long as you're adding cooked rice in, you'll be good to go!
These stuffed peppers look great. I've never thought of using quinoa to fill them. I will have to give this a try.
These sound delicious--I love finding new ways to cook with quinoa!
It's such a great ingredient!
I love how pretty these are! So far I'm not crazy about bell peppers, but I need to try them again. Quinoa is my fave right now, so this would be the perfect way to give bell peppers a shot.
I didn't use to like bell peppers either, but I actually learned to love them through stuffed peppers recipes! Maybe you'll be the same way 🙂
This looks delicious! I had to save this recipe! Thanks for sharing! xx
Thanks JLynn!
uhhhh....YUUUMMMMM!!!!!
I love love stuffed bell peppers and this recipe sounds delicious!!
Thanks Emily! It is super easy too.
Yum! Aren't peppers so pretty? And I love how "in" quinoa is right now because it's soooooo good
They are SOO pretty. I just love them! And I know, I'm totally on a quinoa kick too! I didn't think I'd like it at first but I really do.
Yum! These look great! I love stuffed peppers but always put rice in them. I'll have to try quinoa next time and see how I like it.
You can try cauliflower in them, too! Especially right now for you, cauliflower might be better than using rice! My parents love using it. You just cook it and then mash it up into smaller pieces and add that in with your mixture.