Colorful Air Fryer Stuffed Peppers are filled with a savory beef and rice filling and topped with melty mozzarella and parmesan cheeses. These peppers pack big flavor without heating up your kitchen!
Perfect Peppers – No Oven Required!
Using the air fryer to cook these Italian inspired stuffed peppers is fast and easy, and you won’t need to turn on your oven in the hot summer months.
The key to perfectly cooked air fryer stuffed peppers is to air fry the peppers by themselves first, while you prepare the cooked ground beef filling in a large skillet on the stovetop. Then we’ll put everything together for another trip to the air fryer to get the cheese melty and browned.
Ingredient Notes
Complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
- Bell Peppers: It’s not a requirement that you use different colors of peppers, but I love how pretty they look! Choose bell peppers with flat, rather than pointy bottoms so that they will stay upright in the air fryer.
- Ground Beef: Use lean ground beef (90/10) for beefy flavor and minimal grease. You can also make this recipe with ground turkey or ground chicken to reduce the calories and fat. Try ground Italian Sausage for even more flavor.
- Rice: Use cooked rice in this stuffed peppers recipe. Because it’s cooked first, you can use either brown rice or white rice, or another grain like quinoa. Leftover rice works really well, or you can quickly cook up a small amount of rice before you start making the peppers. To make this recipe low carb, leave the rice out. Replace it with cauliflower rice, more beef, or some sauteed mushrooms.
- Garlic and Onion: These vegetables create a savory base flavor for the stuffing. Choose fresh garlic cloves rather than pre-minced garlic.
- Tomatoes: Use a can of diced tomatoes, or try fire-roasted diced tomatoes for extra flavor.
- Cheese: Freshly grated parmesan and low-moisture mozzarella are added to the filling, and then even more is piled on top of each pepper.
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Air Fryer Recipe Tips
- Air fryer time may vary. The length of time that you cook the peppers before filling them will depend on how soft you like them, and how big the peppers are. Start with 10 minutes. Check on the peppers, then cook at 3-5 minute intervals until you’re happy. I find that 15 minutes is a good amount of time to get the peppers to a crisp-tender state.
- Use your time wisely. While the unstuffed peppers are cooking in the air fryer, make your meat filling on the stove. This will reduce the overall amount of time it will take to make the recipe.
- If your peppers are too tall for your air fryer, simply trim the tops of the peppers until they fit. You can also try halving the peppers rather than cutting out the tops – that will make them shorter, but not as many peppers will fit.
- To avoid soggy air fryer stuffed peppers, don’t overcrowd the basket. Make sure that there is room around each pepper so that any moisture created can cook off. It’s also important to drain off any grease from the ground beef, and avoid overstuffing the peppers.
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Air Fryer Stuffed Peppers
Colorful bell peppers are air fried until perfectly tender and then filled with a savory beef and rice filling. A melty topping of two cheeses is the perfect finish.
Stuffed Peppers
Colorful bell peppers are air fried until perfectly tender and then filled with a savory beef and rice filling. A melty topping of two cheeses is the perfect finish.
Equipment
- Paring knife
- cutting board
- Pastry brush
- Medium Skillet
- Wooden Spoon or spatula
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Heat‑resistant spoon
Ingredients
- 5-6 medium bell peppers tops removed, seeds discarded (about 2 pounds / 900 g)
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml) extra‑virgin olive oil divided
- 1 pound (450 g) lean ground beef 90/10
- 1 medium yellow onion diced
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 can (400 g) diced tomatoes undrained (14 ounces / 400 g)
- 1 cup (225 g) cooked brown or white rice prepared from about ⅓ cup (65 g) uncooked rice
- ¼ cup (30 g) grated Parmesan cheese divided
- 1 cup (113 g) shredded low‑moisture mozzarella cheese divided
- Fresh basil leaves torn, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer to 350°F (180°C) for 5 minutes.
- Slice the tops off the bell peppers. Remove seeds and membranes with a paring knife.
- Brush the insides of the peppers with 1 tablespoon olive oil and stand them upright in the air fryer basket.
- Air fry the peppers for 10 to 15 minutes until crisp tender. The cook time depends on how tender you want the peppers.
- Meanwhile, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat.
- Add ground beef, diced onion, Italian seasoning, kosher salt, and ground black pepper. Cook, breaking up the meat, until the beef is no longer pink.
- Stir in garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
- Add diced tomatoes and simmer, stirring, for 5 minutes or until the mixture thickens.
- Remove the skillet from the heat. Fold in the cooked rice, 2 tablespoons of Parmesan, and ½ cup of mozzarella until well combined. Taste and adjust seasoning.
- Carefully spoon the hot filling into each bell pepper. Be careful, as the peppers will be hot.
- Sprinkle the peppers with the remaining Parmesan and mozzarella.
- Reduce the air fryer temperature to 300°F (150°C). Air fry for 2-3 minutes or until the cheese is melted and golden but not burnt.
- Garnish with basil leaves and serve hot.
Notes:
- Dice any usable pepper tops and sauté them with the onion to avoid waste.
- If the peppers are still too firm after filling, air fry them for a few extra minutes before adding the cheeses.
- Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-5 days.
- Cooked stuffed peppers can also be frozen for up to 4 months.
Nutrition Information
Serving: 1stuffed pepper, Calories: 301kcal, Carbohydrates: 20g, Protein: 24g, Fat: 14g, Saturated Fat: 5g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 6g, Trans Fat: 0.3g, Cholesterol: 63mg, Sodium: 654mg, Potassium: 674mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 7g, Vitamin A: 3345IU, Vitamin C: 135mg, Calcium: 222mg, Iron: 3mg
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
© Little Sunny Kitchen
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