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Stuffed Poblano Peppers are loaded with southwest seasoned ground beef, rice, veggies, and cheese for a satisfying dinner with just a little bit of a kick! Everybody raves about this twist on classic stuffed peppers!
Stuffed peppers are one of our favorite weeknight meals! They are lower in carbs and a great way to get kids to eat more vegetables. Some of our other favorite versions are Turkey Stuffed Peppers, Mexican Quinoa Stuffed Peppers and Chicken Enchilada Stuffed Peppers!
Easy Stuffed Poblano Peppers
We love these stuffed poblano peppers because the fun presentation always means perfect portion sizes and empty plates. Serve them up with a pitcher of creamy, ice cold horchata for a laid-back meal that is great for relaxed entertaining since all of it can easily be made in advance.
The southwest flavors of the smoky, mildly spicy poblanos and pepper jack cheese go really well with the hearty filling of ground beef, rice, and spices. Ground turkey, chicken, or pork can also be used in place of the ground beef. You can even make a vegetarian version of this dish! Simply use a can of drained and rinsed pinto beans or cooked quinoa in place of the ground beef!
Are Poblano Peppers Spicy?
Poblano peppers are actually quite mild, with much less heat than jalapenos. Compared to red and green bell peppers, which aren’t spicy at all, poblano peppers have more of a kick, but it’s nothing in the realm of “mouth-on-fire” kind of spicy. Even our picky eaters can handle the level of heat in these stuffed poblano peppers.
How to Make Stuffed Peppers:
It’s a cinch to throw these stuffed peppers together, especially if you already have some leftover rice on hand. Roasting the peppers before filling them is important because they won’t have enough time to soften otherwise. While poblano peppers can be eaten without roasting, we think these are much better when the peppers are roasted first while the filling is being made.
- Roast the peppers: Slice the peppers in half down the middle and remove seeds and membrane. Rub the peppers with a little olive oil, then bake for 12 minutes in a 350 degree F oven to soften.
- Brown the meat: While the peppers cook, heat a little olive oil n a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions and garlic, sauteing until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the ground beef and spices, cooking and stirring until the meat is browned and cooked through.
- Make the filling: Add cooked rice, fire roasted tomatoes, beans, corn, and half of the cheese. Stir to combine.
- Stuff peppers: Divide the filling between the roasted poblano peppers, mounding in the center, then sprinkling with the remaining cheese.
- Bake: Heat the stuffed poblano peppers for 10 minutes until heated through and the cheese is melted on top. Sprinkle with a little chopped fresh cilantro and serve with crema or sour cream drizzled over the top.
Can Stuffed Poblano Peppers Be Made Ahead?
Sure! You can assemble the stuffed poblano peppers up to 1 day in advance. Store them in the fridge, then bake when you are ready. Or if you have already baked them, store the leftovers in the fridge for up to 3 days. They reheat really well in the microwave for a minute or two, or in the oven at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.
You can even make these stuffed peppers are a freezer meal. Once completely frozen, the peppers can be wrapped in two layers or plastic wrap and stored in a large zip tight bag or container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Bake from frozen by adding 10 additional minutes or so to the bake time, or thaw first in the fridge overnight. You may want to cover them with foil though so the cheese doesn’t burn on top before the filling in the middle is hot all the way through.
More Great Dinner Recipes:
- One Pan Southwest Blackened Cajun Chicken with Rice
- Sizzling Steak Fajita Roll Ups
- Salsa Verde Beef and Mushroom Enchiladas
- Mexican Shrimp Skillet
- Skinny Chicken Enchiladas
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Stuffed Poblano Peppers
Ingredients
- 4-6 poblano peppers
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup cooked rice
- 1 cup black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 cup frozen corn
- 1 (15-ounce) can fire roasted tomatoes
- 1 1/2 cups grated Mexican cheese blend
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Slice the poblano peppers in half and remove the seeds and membrane. Rub with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Arrange on a baking sheet and roast for 10-12 minutes until softened.
- While the peppers are baking, heat the remaining olive oil in a large skillet and saute the onion and garlic until soft, about 5 minutes.
- Add the ground beef and spices, cooking and breaking up with a spoon until the meat is cooked through and browned.
- Add the cooked rice, fire-roasted tomatoes, beans, corn, and half of the cheese. Stir well, then divide evenly between the roasted poblano pepper halves. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese.
- Bake for 10 minutes until heated all the way through and the cheese is melted on top. Sprinkle with chopped cilantro and serve.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Love this recipe as written except I used Anaheim peppers from my garden. Also made extra and froze in packs of 4 w/out the cheese. You can bake from frozen by adding cheese and cover with foil. Bake longer until heated through. Fantastic!
I love that you provided the complete nutritional values for this recipe. It is essential to those who have health issues to monitor values when choosing a recipe to follow and so few cooking websites provide that. Healthy individuals may not find it necessary to have that information to make an informed decision but I do. Having said that, I find the sodium content in this recipe to be too high for me. My physicians guideline is to keep daily intake lower than the RDA of 2,000 mg/day and not to “sodium bomb” by ingesting all my daily intake at one time, but to spread it out throughout the day. So I am trying to see what I can alter. Perhaps by eliminating salt and cut down the cheese in my portion. Can you make any other helpful suggestions? Thank you!
These were so tasty! Instead of tomatoes I sauteed some red bell pepper- what I had on hand!
Absolutely loved the stuffed Pablanos. Didn’t change anything, just tweaked it for our taste. This will be a regular menu item at our house.
Are the tomatoes drained?
No, they aren’t.
Made this tonight with Anaheim peppers. Delicious. Omitted the corn and rice, but did include 2 tbs of pinto beans for my husband and me. We’re cutting carbs. It is a great spice mix. Thank you.
When do we put in the fire roasted tomatoes? It was in the ingredients list but not in the directions. We went ahead and added it to the ground meat.
You can add it in either with the meat or with the rice!
Noted same omissions (garlic and tomatoes) as Gina and did the same. Wouldn’t bother to comment but I have to reiterate the spice combination is fantastic. Substituted one cup of quinoa (dry measure) cooked in chicken broth and added a few pinches of kosher salt to the hamburger mixture. Haven’t had stuffed peppers in forever and never liked them, but we grew poblanos in the garden this year and they did surprisingly well, so needed a recipe. Wasn’t sure how kids would react and they loved it. This is going in my binder and will become a regular.
Just made these Stuffed Poblano Peppers and they are delicious! Will make them again and again! Two things I had to guess on: The instructions state to saute’ the onion and garlic but no fresh garlic is listed in the list of ingredients. I used 1 clove of garlic with the onions and kept the garlic powder as well. The second thing is a can of fire-roasted tomatoes is listed in the ingredients but not mentioned in the instructions. I added the drained tomatoes along with the rice, beans, corn and half the cheese. Seasoning is perfect!
Made this for dinner tonight. I will make again. Immediate hit with the family. Flavors just explode in your mouth. I browned the beef first in small batches to create a fond. I quartered the spices. Three used with the beef and one for the onions. Sweated the onions to deglaze the pan. Added garlic at the end to keep it from burning. I didn’t have any corn on hand but didn’t miss it.
Good recipe very tasty. After I made it I had a can of fire roasted tomatoes left over. I now know they need to be added with the rice and beans, etc.
Yummy!! recipe
Stuffed poblanos look good. What sauce are you serving up on the side with it?
Is it just a ranch dressing, or is it another recipe of yours?