Air Fryer Stuffed Peppers make a wonderful, hearty, and healthy meal for a busy weeknight!
These easy stuffed peppers are cooked in the air fryer, stuffed with classic meat, rice, and tomato filling, and ready in under a half hour.
Recipe Overview
Sneak in some extra veggies with this healthy stuffed pepper recipe! Aside from the bell peppers, we’re also adding fresh spinach to the filling!
You’ll love how quick and easy this air fryer dinner recipe is, and with just a handful of simple ingredients, you’ll be amazed at how delicious it is too.
Be sure to try more of our easy air fryer dinners, like Air Fryer Hamburgers and Air Fryer Tacos. All of our air fryer recipes are sure to be a hit with your family.
Ingredients
- Bell Peppers – Choose sweet bell peppers in whatever color you enjoy. Red peppers will be the sweetest, while green peppers have a bit of bitterness to them. Orange and yellow bell peppers are overall mild.
- Ground Beef – I prefer to use lean ground beef in this recipe, but you could also use ground turkey, bulk Italian sausage, or vegan meat crumbles.
- Vegetables – For flavor, color, and nutrition, we’ll add onion, fresh garlic, and spinach leaves to the stuffed pepper filling.
- Rice – Cooked rice adds substance to the stuffed peppers– you can use white rice, brown rice, or cauliflower rice. This dish is perfect for using up leftover rice too!
- Canned Tomatoes – I love using fire-roasted diced tomatoes in this recipe!
- Seasonings – These Italian-style air fryer peppers are seasoned with salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, and a little bit of red pepper flakes.
- Cheese – Use any type of easily melted cheese to go on top of the peppers. Mozzarella, cheddar, Colby, or Monterey Jack are all great options.
Steps to make
- Prepare the bell peppers by removing the stems and seeds from them. Place them in the air fryer basket, cut side up, and cook at 350ºF/175ºC for 5 minutes to soften the peppers.
- In a large skillet over medium heat, cook the ground beef, stirring occasionally, until it is no longer pink. Drain the grease if needed. Then, add the diced onion to the beef and cook for 3-4 minutes or until the onion has softened. Add the garlic and cook for an additional minute.
- Now, add the cooked rice, spinach, diced tomatoes, salt, pepper, red pepper, and Italian seasoning.
- Stir to combine, letting the spinach wilt slightly.
- Divide the filling between the peppers.
- Top each with a handful of shredded cheese.
- Cook in the air fryer, now set to 400ºF/200ºC, for an additional 5 minutes, or until the peppers are crisp-tender and the cheese is melted and gooey.
- Serve immediately, garnished with fresh parsley or green onion if desired.
Tips and Tricks 🪄
- Pick out the best peppers: The best bell peppers for stuffed peppers are ones that are large, sturdy, and will stand up on their own. Any color will work, or mix up the colors for a fun presentation.
- You also want to choose peppers that are roughly the same size so that they will cook at the same rate.
- Pre-cook the peppers: The key to making stuffed peppers that are tender is to cook the peppers without the filling first. Then fill them with the hot, cooked meat and rice filling and cook again just to meld the flavors. If you like your peppers extra soft, add 2-3 additional minutes to the first cooking time.
- Fill them upright, or slice each pepper in half lengthwise if you think they will fit better in your air fryer.
- Meal Prep: You can prep the filling ahead of time! Keep it stored in the fridge or freezer, then make this meal with fresh bell peppers and cheese when you’re ready.
What To Serve With Air Fryer Stuffed Peppers
Pair these Air Fryer Stuffed Peppers with a healthy green salad, Air Fryer Garlic Bread, or your favorite steamed veggies.
For dessert, try some Cranberry Lemon Bars, or Edible Brownie Batter!
If you’re looking to cook with your oven today, I found this recipe for Stuffed Pepper Casserole that looks yummy!
FAQs
You can use any type of rice or grain in this recipe, as long as it’s cooked before adding it to the filling. Try quinoa, brown rice, cauliflower rice, or barley.
Sure! Replace the ground beef with a vegan meat substitute such as Beyond Meat, or use kidney beans instead.
Keep your leftovers in the fridge in a sealed container for 3-4 days. To reheat, simply place them back in the air fryer for a few minutes, just until heated through.
Some classic stuffed pepper recipes call for boiling the peppers first to soften them up. That’s not necessary here because we’re using the air fryer to do the same thing!
Once you’ve finished making your stuffed peppers in the air fryer, allow them to cool completely, then freeze them in an airtight container. Reheat one or two in the air fryer at 350°C for 10-12 minutes or until heated through
More Easy Air Fryer Meals
Skip the drive through, and learn how to make your own homemade Air Fryer Chicken Sandwiches, with a tangy sauce and all the right toppings.
Our Air Fryer Chicken Legs recipe takes an inexpensive protein and turns it into a flavorful and delicious meal.
If you like seafood, you have to try our Air Fryer Crab Cakes! They come out crispy on the outside and amazing every single time.
Pressed for time? Grab dinner out of the freezer! Air Fryer Frozen Chicken Nuggets, Air Fryer Frozen Fish Fillets, and Air Fryer Corn Dogs are all the perfect simple way to start a meal.
Air Fryer Stuffed Peppers
Equipment
- Skillet
Ingredients
- 4 large bell peppers
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- ½ cup diced onion
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 cups packed fresh spinach
- 1 cup cooked rice
- 1 can (15 oz) fire roasted diced tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon dried italian seasoning
- 1 cup shredded cheese any kind you like
Instructions
- Remove the stems and seeds from each bell pepper and place them in the air fryer basket, cut side up. Cook at 350ºF/175ºC for 5 minutes to soften the peppers.
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the ground beef and cook it, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until most of the pink is gone. Drain the grease, if needed.
- Add the onion to the beef and cook for another 3-4 minutes, or until the onion has softened and the beef is fully browned.
- Add the garlic and cook for an additional minute.
- Next add the spinach, rice, diced tomatoes, salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes, and Italian seasoning. Stir to combine.
- Divide the filling between the peppers and top each pepper with ¼ cup of shredded cheese.
- Cook the peppers at 400ºF/200ºC for an additional 5 minutes, or until the peppers are crisp tender and the cheese is melted and gooey.
- Garnish with chopped parsley or green onion and enjoy immediately.
Notes
- Pick out the best peppers: The best bell peppers for stuffed peppers are ones that are large, sturdy, and will stand up on their own. Any color will work, or mix up the colors for a fun presentation.
- You also want to choose peppers that are roughly the same size so that they will cook at the same rate.
- Pre-cook the peppers: The key to making stuffed peppers that are tender is to cook the peppers without the filling first. Then fill them with the hot, cooked meat and rice filling and cook again just to meld the flavors. If you like your peppers extra soft, add 2-3 additional minutes to the first cooking time.
- Fill them upright, or slice each pepper in half lengthwise if you think they will fit better in your air fryer.
- Meal Prep: You can prep the filling ahead of time! Keep in stored in the fridge or freezer, then make this meal with fresh bell peppers and cheese when you’re ready.
