Stuffed Pepper Soup

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Quick Summary

Stuffed Pepper Soup- this hearty soup tastes just like stuffed peppers. It is made with basic ingredients like ground beef, rice, and of course bell peppers! You are going to love this one pot meal.

Stuffed Pepper Soup in pot.

Soup season is my favorite season. You can’t be a one pot meal! Creamy chicken noodle, black bean, white bean, and potato leek are a few favorites. This Stuffed Pepper Soup recipe is also a winner!

If you are a fan of the traditional stuffed bell peppers, you are going to LOVE this soup. It has all of the same flavors, but is super easy to make! Instead of stuffing individual bell peppers, you put all of the ingredients in one pot and make a comforting soup!

This is a great soup for the end of summer when your garden is bursting with peppers or anytime during the chilly fall and winter months when you are craving a big bowl of soup!

peppers and onion on cutting board with knife to make stuffed pepper soup.

Soup Ingredients

If you’ve made stuffed peppers, the ingredients will look familiar! The soup has all of the classic flavors!

  • Ground beefyou can use ground turkey or ground chicken.
  • Olive oil– for sautéing the onion and peppers!
  • Onion– use a yellow or white onion!
  • Bell peppers– I use green and red, but you can use yellow or orange if you want.
  • Garlic– garlic is a must!
  • Tomatoes– I use canned fire roasted tomatoes, they add the best flavor!
  • Tomato sauce– to enhance the tomato flavor.
  • Beef broth– a must for soup!
  • Herbs– dried basil, oregano, and thyme! You should have all of these in your spice cabinet.
  • Crushed red pepper flakes– for a little heat!
  • Rice– you can use white or brown rice. Cook it before stirring it into the soup.
  • Cheese– add a little shredded cheddar or mozzarella cheese to your bowl of soup to get the full stuffed pepper experience. You can’t go wrong with cheese!

How to Make Stuffed Pepper Soup

Let’s get this soup started!

  • First, cook the ground beef in a large pot. Drain off the excess grease and transfer to a plate that has been lined with a paper towel. Set aside.
peppers and onion in pot to make stuffed pepper soup.
  • Place the pot back on the stove and heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions, and peppers and sauté until soft. Add the garlic and sauté for about 30 seconds.
stuffed pepper soup ingredients in white pot.
  • Stir in the fire roasted tomatoes, tomato sauce, beef broth, herbs, and red pepper flakes.
stuffed pepper soup in white pot with wooden spoon.
  • Add the cooked beef to the pot and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Reduce the heat to low and let simmer, stirring occasionally.
  • If you are going to enjoy the soup right away, stir in the cooked rice. If you plan on freezing the soup or eating leftovers for a few days, you can ladle the soup into bowls and add rice to each bowl. This will prevent the rice from getting mushy.
  • Top each bowl with shredded cheese and enjoy warm!
Stuffed Pepper Soup in bowls with shredded cheese and parsley.

What to Serve with Stuffed Pepper Soup

Stuffed pepper soup is a very satisfying and filling soup, so it can easily be a meal on its own, but if you want to add a few side dishes, here are a few ideas.

How to Store

Store cooled soup in an airtight container for up to 4 days.

If you waited to add the rice, store the rice in a separate container. If you are storing leftover soup with the rice already stirred in, the soup will thicken the longer it sits. If it soaks up all of the liquid, you can add more beef broth when reheating.

You can reheat the soup on the stovetop or in the microwave.

Can You Freeze Stuffed Pepper Soup?

If you are going to freeze the soup, I recommend leaving the rice out because the rice will get mushy after thawing and reheating.

To freeze, store the cooled soup, without the rice, in a freezer container for up to 3 months. Thaw, reheat, and stir in warm rice.

Stuffed pepper soup recipe with shredded cheese and bread in bowl with spoon.

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Stuffed Pepper Soup

This hearty soup tastes just like stuffed peppers. It's made with basic ingredients like ground beef, rice, and of course bell peppers! You are going to love this one pot meal.
4.60 from 159 votes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 lb lean ground beef (can use ground turkey or ground chicken)
  • Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 yellow onion, chopped
  • 1 red bell pepper, seeded, stemmed, and chopped
  • 1 green bell pepper, seeded, stemmed, and chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 (14.5 oz) cans fire roasted tomatoes
  • 15 oz tomato sauce
  • 2 cups beef broth
  • 1 teaspoon dried basil
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
  • 2 cups cooked brown or white rice
  • Shredded cheddar or mozzarella cheese, for serving
  • Chopped Italian parsley, for garnish, optional

Instructions
 

  • Heat a large pot over medium heat. Add the ground beef and season with salt and pepper. Break the beef up with a wooden spoon while cooking. Cook the ground beef, until browned and no longer pink.
  • Drain the excess grease off the beef and transfer to a plate that has been lined with a paper towel. Set aside.
  • Place the pot back on the stove and heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions, and peppers and sauté until soft, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for 30 seconds.
  • Stir in the fire roasted tomatoes, tomato sauce, beef broth, basil, oregano, thyme, and red pepper flakes. Add the cooked beef to the pot and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes.
  • Stir in the cooked rice. Ladle the soup into bowls and top with shredded cheese and garnish with parsley. Serve warm.

Notes

The soup will keep in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. It will thicken up as the rice absorbs the liquid. When you reheat, you can add more beef broth.

Nutrition

Calories: 241kcal, Carbohydrates: 24g, Protein: 20g, Fat: 7g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 4g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 47mg, Sodium: 723mg, Potassium: 709mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 5g, Vitamin A: 1010IU, Vitamin C: 48mg, Calcium: 47mg, Iron: 4mg
Keywords peppers, soup recipe

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Maria

I'm Maria and my husband is Josh. We share a love of cooking, baking, and entertaining. We enjoy creating recipes that are simple, fresh, and family friendly. We love sitting around the table with good food, good conversation, and good friends and family! Our kitchen is always open!
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Comments

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  1. 5 stars
    This recipe is a total winner! It is easy to make and uses primarily pantry staples. The only change I made to the recipe is to add one additional pepper and to use 1/8 tsp. cayenne instead of red pepper flakes. I also did not add the rice directly into the soup. Instead to keep the rice from becoming soggy in the soup, we served it on the side. I also do this with soups that have pasta in them. The flavor is warm and complex and we loved it. Thank you for a great recipe that I will prepare frequently.

  2. Made this soup today and it was fabulous. I always have leftover, so I left the rice out and put it in the bowl when I served it. That way the rice wont soak up all the liquid in the leftovers..

  3. 5 stars
    We loved this soup. There are just two of us, so I limited some ingredients and added some spice to suit our taste. I used 1 lb ground beef, 4 large chopped mushrooms, 1/2 onion, 1/2 each red, yellow and orange pepper and a green one. I used 1 can Rotel tomatoes, 1 can tomato sauce, 1 cup water with a scoop of beef “better than bullion”. I added 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, 3 garlic cloves, salt and pepper and a tablespoon of sugar. Served it over cooked brown rice. Yummmm.

  4. Delicious. Made it vegan by swapping chickpeas for the ground meat and vegetable stock. Did not have basil so subbed parsley. Used tomato + water instead of tomato sauce. Combined with brown basmati rice.

    1. I know you are vegetarian and our whole family is as well. What would you suggest for the best results without the meat? I was thinking maybe finely chopped mushrooms or red lentils? I’m not a fan of the “impossible” type products that are trying to masquerade as meat!

  5. 5 stars
    My husband and I love this soup! I normally use ground turkey in place of ground beef, which I did with this recipe also. I used brown rice and it did not become mushy at all. It was delicious from start to finish!

  6. 5 stars
    This was wonderful! Great healthy recipe that we’ll be adding to rotation. We don’t eat much beef, so I used ground turkey as well as brown rice. We tried it with and without cheese and actually preferred without.
    Thank you Maria! You have the best soup recipes!!!

  7. 5 stars
    Super delicious, and everyone finished their meal this evening. It is my six year old’s opinion that we should try adding mushrooms the next time we make this…perhaps he is on to something 😉

  8. 5 stars
    This recipe turned out great! Very hearty and comforting. I followed the recipe exactly, and everything was very easy and clear.

  9. 5 stars
    HI Sara, I made this today for dinner tonight. I use recipes for guidance when cooking. I usually change or add things to recipes. I Cooked the onions with minced garlic first in olive oil. Added the ground beef until brown. I used 90% lean 10% fat. hardly no grease left after cooking the beef. I added Mrs. Dash Garlic and Herb seasoning, pink salt and black pepper. Then I added three peppers. one red, one yellow and one green. I added fire roasted red peppers without the liquid. I probably could have added the liquid. then I added a can of diced tomatoes with basil, garlic and oregano, with liquid. cooked it a bit. Next I added 2 cups of Zoup bone broth. cooked some more, a few more minutes. Then the secret ingredient – a few drops of hot sauce chile habanero by El Yacateco. I usually don’t measure ingredients, eye it up and taste. I plan on making a side of rice and a side of quinoa to add to my bowl first then add the soup. Very taste. Thanks for your recipe.

  10. 4 stars
    The soup is very good. I used ground chicken and poured over cauliflower rice. I wish you would put the quantity per serving in your recipes. You have the calorie count so I assume you are measuring. It would be very helpful. Since it’s just the two of us, I will freeze it minus the rice.

  11. Can’t wait to try this !
    One question though… the tomato sauce..and special brand or just canned?

  12. 5 stars
    Very good, I did add a little sugar to cut the acid in the tomatoes, but next time I have to double it!!! Served it with a salad and warm crusty Italian bread, wonderful!!!

  13. 5 stars
    I’ve made this several times. It’s a winner. Thank you for sharing the recipe. For a little bit more kick, I add a jalepeno and do a 50/50 mix of ground beef and spicy sausage. I also add fresh herbs from my garden. It’s a bit too much rice so prepare it separately, then add it one spoonful at a time so you can see the ratio of soup to rice is to your liking. I also had to add more beef broth because it cooked down.

  14. We made this. Looks amazing! Not as red and tomatoes as your pic but we’ll see!

  15. 5 stars
    This soup is easy to make and delicious! We absolutely loved it and will be making it often. Thank you for yet another great recipe.

  16. 5 stars
    The family loved this! I cook the rice sepaarate and let each person take what they wish and top it with the soup. Soooo good.

  17. 5 stars
    I enjoyed the soup. The only substitution I made was to use Uncle Ben’s precooked Spanish Rice. Very easy and quite satisfying.

  18. 5 stars
    Awesome soup!! So hearty and warming for cold, dark nights! And very healthy too!! A winner! I’m gonna try parmesan for topping instead of mozzarella. Thanks Maria!!

  19. Fantastic recipe. Whole family loved it. My grandson who is not a fan of many tomato based soups had 2 bowls and told me to make this again.
    One question- can this be frozen.

    1. Awesome! Yes, it can be frozen but the rice might get a little mushy. You can freeze without the rice and stir it in after you thaw and reheat.

  20. 5 stars
    Very good recipe. I cook a couple times a week for a senior shut in. She likes a soup night and made this for her, as she loves stuffed bell peppers (who doesn’t? Lol.). I made a double batch+ so I added 2 cups of chicken broth, and a tablespoon of low sodium beef base (out of beef stock). I used half again as much garlic and added 1 1/2 tsp of Worcestershire per recipe (1 tbl for me as I was making a double). I used jasmine rice, as I love its flavor and cook it with half water and half low sodium, organic chicken stock. This turned out fabulously and I have a ton for the freezer for later. Thank you for sharing this recipe!

    1. Oh, and seeing the mushroom comments I added 1/4 cup of wild mushroom powder for a double batch. I collect wild mushrooms, and dry some to make a mushroom powder for soups and sauces. Really added another layer of yummy. Cooking is so fun, as you can add one’s own little personal touches to recipes.

  21. I would add uncooked rice along with the tomatoes etc and cook. Will taste delicious and won’t be mushy, even if you freeze the soup and reheat. Guaranteed.

  22. Hi Maria, I’m not a fan of rice in soups do you think I could substitute a small SATA noodle such as ditalini?

  23. 5 stars
    I made this soup because I was looking for a way to use several peppers from our garden that were a little past their prime. I added more peppers than the recipe called for because – like I said- a bountiful pepper harvest this year. This deceptively simple recipe made an absolutely delicious soup. My husband said it was one of the best soups I’ve made – and I make a lot of soups. I highly recommend trying this recipe. You will not be disappointed.

  24. 5 stars
    You have one of my favorite sites. I don’t know which I like better your cookie recipes or your soups. However, I do know that this stuffed pepper soup is one of my all time favorite soups. I generally make it as is, but sometimes have slightly different tomatoes depending on what’s in the pantry. Thanks so much for all of the great recipes!

  25. 5 stars
    Awesome recipe as is! It has definitely made its way into the “ favorites “ list of the entire families. Making it again this week for a family member that has company coming to visit. Of course I will make a double batch so I can have some too! Thanks for all of your great recipes. Haven made a bad one yet. Happy New Year!