Turkey Quinoa Stuffed Bell Pepper

It’s fun when your meal comes with its own edible bowl! Such is the case with these stuffed bell peppers. They are brimming with yummy good-for-you goodness including ground lean turkey, mushrooms, broccoli, onion, garlic and some quinoa, all packed nicely into bell pepper bowls.

Peppers do a great job at maintaining their shape during the baking process so these will stay bright and beautiful all the way onto your plate. This recipe is also super versatile (see ideas below), easy to make, and you can make it ahead of time, all of which makes it ideal if you’re having company over.

Servings: 4 | Difficulty: Easy | Prep time: 15 min | Cook time: 30 min

Calories: 325 | Protein: 22g | Fat: 12g | Carbs: 31g | Fiber: 7g

Ingredients:

1. 4 large bell peppers

2. 15 oz 93% lean ground turkey

3. 1 cup onion (finely diced)

4. 1.5 cup mushrooms (small diced)

5. 2 cups broccoli (small bites)

6. 1 clove garlic (minced or pressed)

7. 1 cup cooked quinoa

8. 1/2 cup chicken or veggie stock (no salt)

9. 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

10. 1 tbsp fresh rosemary

11. 1 tbsp dried oregano

12. 2 tbsp fresh parsley

13. 2 tbsp nutritional yeast (optional)

14. 1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)

15. 1/2 tsp pepper

Preparation

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (if making ahead, hold off on this step until 50 -60 minutes before you want to eat). Dice up the onion, mushrooms, and broccoli. Mince the garlic.

Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add the ground turkey and break it up into small chunks. Add salt if using. Let cook a few minutes, then add the onion. Stir and cook a few more minutes, then add mushrooms and garlic. Continue to stir until turkey begins to brown. Add the stock and scrape any tasty bits that have stuck to the bottom of the pan. About 8 minutes total.

Add the fresh herbs and broccoli and nutritional yeast. Let them cook until broccoli is just beginning to soften, stirring occasionally. Turn off stove and let rest.

Cut the tops off the bell peppers by running a knife gently in along the top in a circle. Pull out the stem and seeds. Scrape out any additional seeds.

Lightly oil the bottom of a baking dish. Idealy choose a size dish that allows the peppers to nestle in tightly so they are unable to tip over. If you only have a larger dish, you can either slice off a tiny bit off the bottom of the pepper, leaving the shell with no holes, so that the pepper sits flat. Or you can place oven-proof “bumper guards” in between, like tin foil to keep them upright.

Spoon 1/4 of the mixture into each pepper, pressing down on the mixture to pack it in tightly. If you have any extra filling you can gently pile it on top of the peppers, or save it to eat the next day – in a taco, with eggs, or on a salad etc.

Place stuffed peppers in the baking dish and then pop into the oven for 35 – 40 minutes, until pepper is just tender. Remove from oven, let cool, and then serve.

If you’re making this a day ahead, do everything except bake them. Place them in the fridge over night. When you’re ready to eat, you can set them on the counter for 30 minute, then bake for 35-40, or put them in the oven straight from the fridge and let them bake for 50 – 60 minutes.

Substitution Ideas

1. Make it Meatless

2. Swap the turkey for kidney, pinto, or black beans

3. Use a plant-based ground like Beyond Beef Ground Meat

4. Swap out the Veggies

5. zucchini, tomatoes, artichoke hearts, eggplant, bell pepper, cauliflower, sweet potato, potato are all great choices

6. Flavor Alternatives

7. Italian: oregano, parsley, basil, sundried tomato, olives, artichoke hearts – keep the turkey, mushroom, onion, garlic, quinoa, stock

8. Mexican: cilantro, oregano, chili powder, cumin, cayenne, tomatoes, diced bell peppers, zest and juice of lime – keep the turkey, mushroom, onion, garlic quinoa, stock

9. Curried: curry powder, cumin, turmeric, cilantro, Thai chili, cauliflower, peas, 1/2 cup canned coconut, zest and juice of lime – keep the turkey, mushrooms, onion, and garlic

Stuffed turkey quinoa bell pepper is ready to eat!

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