Ground turkey stuffed peppers
Sweet bell pepper halves packed with Italian-seasoned turkey, rice and marinara, baked on one sheet pan under bubbling mozzarella.
- 55 min total
- 25 min hands-on
- Follow-a-recipe easy
- Serves 4
- About $3.51 a serving
- 490 calories
- Good the next day
- Gluten-free
Dolly says: Make the full amount. It’s just as good for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
For 4 servings.
- ½ cup long-grain white rice
- 2 red bell peppers
- 2 green bell peppers
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1½ cups marinara sauce, divided
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella
- 2 tbsp grated parmesan
From your pantry
- 1 cup water
- 1 tsp salt, divided
- 1 tbsp olive oil, divided
- 1½ tsp Italian seasoning
Each serving has about 490 calories, 34 g protein, 41 g carbs and 21 g fat, and costs about $3.51 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No long-grain white rice? Jasmine rice or basmati rice works.
- No red bell peppers? Yellow bell peppers work.
- No green bell peppers? Yellow bell peppers work.
- No ground turkey? Ground chicken works.
- No yellow onions? White onions or red onions work.
- No shredded mozzarella? Provolone slices work.
- No grated parmesan? Parmesan wedge works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
the oven to 400°F. Bring the rice, water and ¼ teaspoon of the salt in a small .
Preheat. Preheating means turning the oven on before you start, so it’s fully hot when the food goes in. Food that starts in a cold oven cooks unevenly and doesn’t brown the same.
How you’ll know: The oven beeps or its light clicks off, usually 10 to 15 minutes after you turn it on.
Bring to a boil. It means heating a liquid on high until it’s fully boiling before you move on. A lid on the pot gets it there faster, which makes it a good moment to chop something.
How you’ll know: Big bubbles break all over the surface, and they keep coming when you lift the lid.
Saucepan. A saucepan is a pot with tall, straight sides and one long handle. It’s for things that need depth, like rice, sauces or a few boiled eggs.
How you’ll know: The food fills it about halfway, leaving room to bubble without spilling over.
High heat
once, cover, turn the heat to low and cook 15 minutes.
Stir. Stirring means moving food around with a spoon or spatula so it cooks evenly and doesn’t stick. Unless the recipe says constantly, every so often is plenty, and it gives food time to brown.
How you’ll know: When you drag the spoon across the bottom, nothing is sticking or scorching.
Low heatTimer: 15 min
the peppers from stem to base and pull out the seeds and ribs. Lay them cut side up on a , brush with half the oil, and 10 minutes to .
Halve. Halving means cutting something into two equal pieces. Even halves cook at the same speed, so one doesn’t dry out while the other finishes.
How you’ll know: The two pieces look like mirror images of each other.
Sheet pan. A sheet pan is a flat metal baking tray with a low rim all the way around. The rim catches juices, and the wide surface lets food spread out and brown.
How you’ll know: Everything fits in one layer with a little space between the pieces.
Roast. Roasting means cooking in a hot oven, around 400°F to 450°F, usually spread out on a sheet pan. The dry heat browns the outside and brings out sweetness, especially in vegetables.
How you’ll know: The edges are browned and a little crisp, and a fork slides easily into the thickest piece.
Softened. For vegetables it means cooked until they bend and lose their crunch; for butter, left out until it dents easily. Soft onions taste sweet, and soft butter mixes in smoothly.
How you’ll know: Onions squash easily against the pan with your spoon, and butter dents under a finger without looking greasy.
Timer: 10 min
Heat the remaining oil in a large over medium-high. Add the turkey and onion, let them sit 2 minutes, then break up the turkey and cook 6 minutes more, until no pink remains.
Skillet. A skillet is a frying pan: wide and flat with low, sloped sides. The shape lets steam escape, so food browns instead of stewing.
How you’ll know: It’s the pan you’d fry an egg in, and a 10 or 12 inch one handles most recipes.
Medium-high heatTimer: 8 min
Dolly’s tip: Ground turkey is lean and sticks more than beef. Let it sit 2 minutes before you break it up so it browns instead of steaming.Food safety: Ground turkey and ground chicken are done at 165°F, with no pink left anywhere in the pan.
Add the garlic, Italian seasoning and remaining ¾ teaspoon salt and 1 minute.
Stir. Stirring means moving food around with a spoon or spatula so it cooks evenly and doesn’t stick. Unless the recipe says constantly, every so often is plenty, and it gives food time to brown.
How you’ll know: When you drag the spoon across the bottom, nothing is sticking or scorching.
Medium heat
in the rice and 1 cup of the marinara.
Stir. Stirring means moving food around with a spoon or spatula so it cooks evenly and doesn’t stick. Unless the recipe says constantly, every so often is plenty, and it gives food time to brown.
How you’ll know: When you drag the spoon across the bottom, nothing is sticking or scorching.
Pack the filling into the pepper halves, spoon the remaining marinara over the tops, and scatter on the mozzarella and parmesan.
15 to 20 minutes, until the cheese is and a fork slides easily into the peppers.
Bake. Baking means cooking in the oven with dry heat all around the food. It cooks evenly from every side, so you can mostly leave it alone.
How you’ll know: It’s golden on top and passes the recipe’s check, like a clean toothpick or the right temperature.
Golden brown. Golden brown is the color of good toast, somewhere between yellow and light brown. It means the outside is cooked and crisp but not burnt.
How you’ll know: It looks like toast and smells toasty; dark brown with a bitter smell means it went too far.
Timer: 17 min
Dolly’s tip: To freeze, wrap the baked, cooled halves one by one. Reheat covered at 350°F until steaming hot.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
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