Published: April 18, 2024 · Updated: September 01, 2026
Ground Beef Stuffed Peppers with Garlic Butter Breadcrumbs
By Heartstone Farm Kitchen
Stuffed Peppers are a nostalgic recipe many of us grew up with. It was an easy way for mom to create a healthy meal and stretch the family budget by mixing rice in with ground meat and vegetables, which would make enough to serve the whole family. Lucky for all of us, it also happens to be super delicious, especially when you include Heartstone Farm's Ground Beef which has a deeper, more complex flavor than grocery store meat, and it's much healthier for you. Growing up we only had one kind of bell pepper - green. But today they're all the colors of the rainbow and make for a festive presentation at the table.
This recipe is a jumping off point. Feel free to get creative and use your favorite spices and vegetables - corn and mushrooms are great additions. You can also top the stuffing with cheese instead of breadcrumbs (cheddar and Parmesan work well), but personally we love the crunch and garlicky flavor of the rustic breadcrumbs.
You can also switch up the ground beef. Try all-natural Mild or Sweet Italian Turkey sausage. Or if you really want to amp up the nutritional value of your Stuffed Peppers, try our Ancestral Blend Ground Beef - a blend of 5% heart and 5% liver mixed with our top-selling ground beef. So many ways to customize this recipe to your liking. Enjoy!
Ground Beef Stuffed Peppers with Garlic Butter Breadcrumbs
6-8
15 minutes
35 minutes
American
beef
Want to make smaller, appetizer-size stuffed peppers? Poblanos or cubanelles are great options. Split them in half horizontally and layer the ground beef mixture over them. The cook time will be shorter (about 15-20 minutes).
Ingredients
- 1 lb Heartstone Farms Ground Beef
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 6 large bell peppers - top, seeds and veins removed
- 1 red bell pepper, roasted, skin removed and chopped into small pieces (you can also buy jarred roasted red peppers in the grocery store)
- 2 cups crushed red tomatoes
- 1 cup cooked rice
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
- 1 stick (8 tbsp) salted butter, melted
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp dried oregano
- ground pepper to taste
For Garlic Butter Breadcrumbs
- 2 cups of bread from a day-old loaf of Italian or French bread, sliced and cubed
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled and grated
Directions
Make the Garlic Butter Breadcrumbs
Preheat oven to 375°F
Toast bread cubes in the oven until crunchy (about 5-10 minutes depending on how fresh your bread is). Or toast up store bought panko breadcrumbs (3-5 minutes)
Place crusty bread cubes in a food processor and blitz into smaller pieces. You can also chop the bread finely with a knife or put it in a bag and smack it with a rolling pin
Put a small saucepan over low heat, melt butter, then stir in the grated garlic
Toss breadcrumbs and the melted garlic butter together in a bowl and set aside
Make the Ground Beef Filling
Place a large skillet over medium heat and add olive oil
Add onions to the pan and sauté until they are opaque
Add garlic and sauté for a minute
Add ground beef and cook meat through, breaking down the meat into small pieces with a wooden spoon as it cooks
Sprinkle in salt and oregano
Pour in crushed tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes, until liquid is reduced
Mix in your cooked rice
Taste and adjust seasoning to your taste if necessary
Remove pan from the heat and stuff peppers with the ground beef mixture
Place stuffed peppers in a casserole dish with a half inch of water in the dish (this will steam the peppers and help everything cook through evenly)
Cover the pan with a sheet of parchment paper then cover the parchment with a sheet of tin foil, securing it around the edges to keep steam from escaping. Foil should not have direct contact with the peppers as aluminum can leach into the food
Bake covered for 30-35 minutes. If you can insert a knife easily into the peppers, they are ready
Uncover the pan, sprinkle the garlic butter breadcrumbs on top of each pepper, and crisp up under the broiler for a couple minutes (keep an eye on them so the breadcrumbs don’t burn)
Serve as is or with a nice, simple salad on the side
