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    Home » Recipes » GAPS

    The Best Whole30 Stuffed Peppers (gluten-free, paleo)

    Modified: Jan 17, 2025 • Published: Oct 15, 2021 by Dr. Erin Carter • This post may contain affiliate links • Leave a Comment

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    These are the best Whole30 stuffed peppers! They are surprisingly easy to make with cauliflower rice, canned tomatoes and ground beef and this healthy comfort food is also gluten-free, dairy-free and paleo. This is a meal the whole family will love!

    A baking pan full of cooked Whole30 stuffed peppers garnished with cilantro.

    Ground beef recipes like my grain free meatloaf and Whole30 sloppy joes make for some of the best healthy dinners which is why I am so excited to share this stuffed peppers recipe with you!

    Table of Contents
    • Why you will love this recipe:
    • Ingredients and substitutions: 
    • Recipe variations and add ins:
    • How to make Whole30 stuffed peppers: 
    • Top Tips:
    • How to serve:
    • How to store:
    • Whole30 stuffed peppers FAQs:
    • Other Whole30 recipes you will love:
    • Recipe

    Why you will love this recipe:

    • The taste! These healthy stuffed peppers are bursting with Mexican inspired flavour. The combination of lean ground beef, diced tomatoes, spices, and cauliflower rice is just perfect. 
    • They are really easy to make and don't require any complicated or hard to find ingredients.
    • These Whole30 taco stuffed peppers make great leftovers and are perfect for meal prep.
    • Because these stuffed peppers are made with cauliflower rice instead of white rice they are lower in carbs compared to most stuffed pepper recipes.
    • If you have picky eaters in your house this recipe is a great way to get them to eat more veggies!
    • This Whole30 stuffed peppers recipe is made without rice and is also gluten-free, dairy-free, grain free and paleo.

    Ingredients and substitutions: 

    The ingredients needed to make stuffed peppers separated into bowls including cauliflower rice, diced tomatoes, onion, spices and bell peppers.
    • Sweet bell peppers - you can use any colour of sweet bell pepper that you like including red bell peppers, yellow bell peppers, orange bell peppers or green bell peppers. I like to use a few different colours so that it looks really pretty in the pan. 
    • Coconut oil - this is the fat used to sauté the ground beef. You could swap this for another fat or oil such as ghee or avocado oil.
    • Lean ground beef - this is the protein used for this recipe. You could swap the ground beef for ground chicken, ground pork or ground turkey.
    • Canned chopped tomatoes or canned diced tomatoes - to help make the delicious Mexican inspired sauce for these healthy stuffed peppers. 
    • Onion - to help give these Whole30 stuffed peppers so much flavour. You can use any type of onion that you like including white onion, red onion, yellow onion, sweet onion, or green onion.
    • Cauliflower rice - to keep these stuffed peppers grain free and gluten free and packed full of vegetables. You can either rice your own cauliflower florets using a food processor or hand grater, or buy pre-chopped cauliflower rice.
    • Spices - the combination of dried oregano, ground cumin, sea salt, and black pepper combine to give this recipe a fun Mexican flavour. 

    Recipe variations and add ins:

    • Free free to change up the seasonings when making these peppers - taco seasoning, onion powder or garlic powder would all be a great options or you could add some red pepper flakes or chili powder if you want a little more heat.
    • You could add 1-2 cloves of crushed garlic for even more flavour.
    • Instead of cauliflower rice you could make these Whole30 stuffed bell peppers with sweet potato rice.

    How to make Whole30 stuffed peppers: 

    A casserole dish with bell peppers with their tops chopped off sitting in the dish.
    1. Step 1: First, preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and while it is preheating cut the tops off of the peppers and scoop out the seeds and membranes. Place the pepper halves cut side down in a baking dish or casserole dish with about half an inch of water. Once the oven has come to temperature cover the dish with aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes.
    A pan with chopped red onion cooking in it.
    1. Step 2: While the peppers are baking, place a large pan or skillet on the stovetop on medium heat. Add the coconut oil to the pan and allow it to melt. Once melted add the chopped onion and cook it until it's translucent.
    A pan on the stovetop with ground beef cooking in it.
    1. Step 3: Now add the ground beef to the frying pan and cook until it's browned and no longer pink. Stir the ground meat regularly to break it apart and ensure it cooks evenly.
    A pan on the stovetop with cooked ground beef, chopped onion and tomato sauce in it.
    1. Step 4: ​Add the remaining ingredients to the pan with the meat mixture and cook everything together for 5-10 minutes, stirring regularly to break apart the riced cauliflower until it is mixed in.
    A casserole dish with stuffed peppers in it.
    1. Step 5: ​Once the peppers have finished baking, remove the peppers from the pan and drain any remaining water from the pan and the peppers. Fill the bell peppers with the meat and tomato sauce mixture and place them back into the casserole dish (cut side up). Cover the dish with foil and bake for 20 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Then remove the foil and bake the peppers uncovered for another 10-15 minutes. 
    A stuffed pepper that has been cut in half so you can see the ground beef and tomato filling in the pepper.
    1. Step 6: Let the stuffed peppers cool for a few minutes, then enjoy!

    Top Tips:

    • Try to remove all the seeds and membranes from the peppers or else you could end up with some unexpected crunch!
    • Be sure to remove all the water from the baking dish and the peppers before you stuff the peppers with the cauliflower rice mixture or they will turn out soggy.

    How to serve:

    These Whole30 stuffed peppers are delicious served as is, but you could also add other toppings or side dishes. Here are a few of my favourite ways to serve this dish:

    • Top them with mango salsa or mango habanero salsa.
    • Top them with dairy free sour cream or regular sour cream if you tolerate dairy.
    • Top these Whole30 stuffed peppers with healthy chunky guacamole or avocado.
    • Top these paleo stuffed peppers with fresh cilantro or chopped green onion.
    • If you tolerate dairy you can add some shredded mozzarella cheese or shredded cheddar cheese before serving.
    • If you like a little spice, top these peppers with hot sauce or vegan buffalo sauce.

    How to store:

    Store any leftover Whole30 stuffed peppers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.

    A pan of cooked stuffed peppers garnished with fresh cilantro.

    Whole30 stuffed peppers FAQs:

    Can you eat bell peppers on the Whole30?

    Yes! The Whole30 program allows you to eat all types of vegetables, including bell peppers. 

    Do you have to boil peppers before stuffing them? 

    It is recommended that you cook bell peppers in water for about 20 minutes before stuffing them. This allows the peppers to soften a bit before you stuff them. However, if you are short on time and don't mind more crunchy bell peppers you can skip boiling them. 

    Are these stuffed peppers paleo?

    Yes! Besides being Whole30 compliant this is also a paleo stuffed peppers recipe. It's also gluten free and dairy free.

    Other Whole30 recipes you will love:

    • A pan filled with a chicken and vegetable stir fry with broccoli and chopped bell peppers.
      Healthy Gluten-free Chicken Stir Fry (paleo & Whole30)
    • A bowl of healthy meat sauce garnished with fresh parsley.
      The Best Healthy Meat Sauce with Olives
    • A bowl of Whole30 teriyaki chicken and broccoli with chopsticks in it.
      Whole30 Teriyaki Chicken and Broccoli
    • A casserole dish filled with a spinach and artichoke ground beef casserole with a serving spoon in it.
      Spinach and Artichoke Ground Beef Casserole

    Since you made it this far we are basically best friends so be sure to follow me on Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok and Facebook where I share even more recipes and healthy living tips! And don’t forget to leave this recipe a star rating before you go!

    Recipe

    A pan of cooked Whole30 stuffed peppers garnished with fresh parsley.

    Whole30 Stuffed Peppers

    Packed with flavour and easy to make these Whole30 stuffed peppers make the perfect healthy meal that the whole family will love.
    5 from 4 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Main Course
    Cuisine: American, Mexican
    Diet: Diabetic, Gluten Free, Low Lactose
    Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 40 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 45 minutes minutes
    Servings: 8
    Calories: 266kcal
    Author: Dr. Erin Carter

    Equipment

    • Skillet or pan
    • Casserole dish

    Ingredients

    • 8 bell peppers
    • 3 tablespoon coconut oil
    • 1 small onion, diced
    • 2 lbs lean ground beef
    • 2 cans chopped tomatoes (total of 796 mL)
    • 1 package frozen cauliflower rice (340 grams)
    • 2 tablespoon dried oregano
    • 2 teaspoon ground cumin
    • 1 teaspoon sea salt plus a little more for seasoning the peppers
    • 1 teaspoon ground black pepper plus a little more for seasoning the peppers

    Instructions

    • Preheat your oven to 400F. Cut the tops off of the peppers and scoop out the seeds and membranes. Place the peppers cut side down in a baking dish with 1/2 inch of water. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes.
    • While the peppers are baking, place a large pan on the stove on medium heat. Add the coconut oil and allow it to melt. Once melted add the chopped onion and cook until translucent.
    • Add the ground beef to the pan and cook until browned.
    • Add the remaining ingredients and cook together for 5-10 minutes, stirring regularly to break apart the cauliflower rice until it is mixed in.
    • Once the peppers have finished baking, remove the peppers and dump out any remaining water in the pan and the peppers. Fill each pepper with the filling and place them back into the casserole dish (cut side up). Cover the dish with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake uncovered for another 10-15 minutes.
    • Serve and enjoy!

    Notes

    1. Nutritional values are an estimate and will vary depending on the exact ingredients used.
    2. Store leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 266kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 27g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 70mg | Sodium: 519mg | Potassium: 885mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 3875IU | Vitamin C: 163mg | Calcium: 79mg | Iron: 5mg
    Tried this Recipe? Pin it for Later!Mention @pureandsimpleno or tag #pureandsimpleno!

    DISCLAIMERS: The statements made on this website have not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration or Health Canada. The information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent disease. You assume full responsibility for how you use this information. Always consult with your physician or other health professionals before making any diet or lifestyle changes. This post may contain affiliate links whereby if you purchase these products I receive a small percentage of the sale price. This allows me to keep the blog running and I thank you for allowing me to do that!

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    Hi everyone!

    My name is Dr. Erin Carter and I am so thrilled you are here. I am a physician with specialties in both internal medicine and rheumatology, and I believe that food and healthy living are forms of medicine. In my spare time I share health information and delicious, healthy recipes here on Pure and Simple Nourishment.

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