Every stuffed pepper recipe on the internet makes you par-boil the peppers, pre-cook the filling, then bake the whole thing for another hour. That's three steps for a dish that should be one. Here's the actually-useful version: raw peppers, raw rice, everything goes in one dish and the oven does the work. An hour in, dinner's done. The rice cooks in the pepper's own juice, which is the point.
What You Need
- 4 bell peppers, tops cut off and seeded
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 cup long-grain rice, uncooked
- 1 (14oz) can crushed tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon italian seasoning
How to Make It
- 1
Heat oven to 375°F. Stand peppers upright in a baking dish just big enough to hold them — you want them snug so they don't tip over.
- 2
In a bowl, mix raw ground beef, raw rice, half the crushed tomatoes, italian seasoning, a big pinch of salt, and black pepper. Mix just until combined. Stuff each pepper to the top.
- 3
Pour remaining crushed tomatoes plus 1/2 cup water around the peppers in the dish. Season the sauce with salt. Cover tightly with foil.
- 4
Bake 60 minutes, then uncover and bake 10 more. The rice should be tender and the peppers should slump slightly. Spoon pan sauce over each to serve.
