Hearty and so flavorful, this Cozy Stuffed Pepper Soup is easy to make, too!
Don’t you love it when you can turn a favorite meal into a soup? I do! Like so many people, I often crave a cozy, comforting, filling bowl of tasty soup, but at the same, I might be craving a particular dish. When that dish, in this case, stuffed peppers, can so easily be transformed into a soup, it’s a win-win! I am so over-the-moon happy with this recipe for Cozy Stuffed Pepper Soup because it has all the flavors and textures of the original dish and a deep, savory broth to slurp up, too.
Yes, this soup brings everything we love about stuffed peppers into the bowl! All the classic ingredients — ground beef, onion, bell peppers, rice, and tomato sauce — simmer together and the soup gets a satisfying little kick from some crushed red pepper flakes! A lot of the time, I have all of the ingredients on hand to make stuffed peppers but not enough bell peppers to stuff for the whole family; now with Stuffed Pepper Soup, I can get the same great taste without having to go to the store for more peppers! Plus, it’s a one-pot meal (so there’s less to clean up), and it doesn’t take long to make, but because of the layering of all the flavors, it tastes like it’s been simmering all day.
It’s the layering that gives this soup its richness. First, we have the savory browned ground beef; then, we remove the beef and cook the veggies in the remaining fat so they will absorb all of that goodness. Then, the garlic and seasonings are layered on top. Next, the liquid layer of tomatoes, tomato sauce, and beef broth gets added, and everything melds together. Then, the cooked rice is added last so that it holds its texture and doesn’t absorb too much of the broth. Layering is a trick all chefs use to create deep, complex flavors — and you’ll taste them all in this soup.
I like to serve Cozy Stuffed Pepper Soup with the same sides that I’d serve regular stuffed peppers with: salad and bread. This Kale Caesar, with its crunchy Parmesan croutons, is a great match, as are these Garlic Rolls with their soft, buttery insides. Yum.
Delicious and Good for You, Too
Stuffed Pepper Soup is not just cozy, it’s also healthy! Let’s start with the nutritional benefits of bell peppers: they are full of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. Did you know that a small red bell pepper can provide more than 100% of your daily Vitamin C requirement? Bell peppers also contain beta-carotene, which is really important for eye health, and folate, which can help red blood cells function. But in this soup, we also get protein from the beef and antioxidants from the tomato sauce. And even the white rice, which sometimes gets a bad rap as being an “empty carb,” is usually fortified with nutrients like iron and B vitamins.
You can make Stuffed Pepper Soup even healthier by replacing the beef with less fatty meats, like ground turkey, ground chicken, or even crumbled tofu. You can also use chicken or vegetable stock instead of beef and brown rice instead of white. And this soup lends itself to other healthy add-ins, too, like fresh chopped spinach, kale, or Swiss chard.
How to Make Ahead and Store?
Cooked and cooled Cozy Stuffed Pepper Soup can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days and in the freezer for up to 3 months. You might, however, want to store it without the rice, which can absorb a lot of the broth (and also get mushy in the freezer), and just add cooked rice before serving (thaw frozen soup overnight in the fridge before reheating).
Serving Suggestions
There are other kinds of breads and salads, in addition to the ones I mentioned earlier, that go great with Cozy Stuffed Pepper Soup. I’ve served it with Challah and with Buttermilk Biscuits and it is super delicious with Spiced Tomatoes and Chickpeas on Homemade Flatbread. Now that we’ve gotten the bread options down, let’s turn to salads…a rich soup like this calls out for something light and fresh like this Mango and Arugula Salad or this Grilled Peach and Avocado Salad. If you’re more interested in vegetables than in fruit, serve Stuffed Pepper Soup with this lovely Grilled Corn Salad with Fresh Herbs.
It’s very true that soup is a natural with bread and salad, but we all love it with a good sandwich, too. Since Stuffed Pepper Soup already has meat in it, you might want to serve it with Black Bean Sliders, Grilled Cheese, or even Pizza (if you fold a piece of pizza, it’s kind of like a sandwich, right?).
Stuffed Pepper Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 medium onion diced
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 1 green bell pepper diced
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 1/2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 cans diced tomatoes (14.5 ounces each), undrained
- 1 can tomato sauce (8 ounces)
- 3 cups beef broth
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 2 cups cooked white rice
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley chopped
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add ground beef and cook until browned, about 3-5 minutes, breaking it apart as it cooks; drain any excess fat.
- Add diced onion and bell peppers to the pot. Cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender, about 3-4 minutes.
- Mix in minced garlic, Italian seasoning, and red pepper flakes, cooking until fragrant, roughly 1 minute.
- Pour in the diced tomatoes with their juice, tomato sauce, and beef broth. Return the browned ground beef to the pot. Season with salt and black pepper to taste. Bring the mixture to a boil, then lower the heat and let it simmer until flavors meld, about 15-20 minutes.
- Stir in the cooked rice and chopped parsley, and continue to cook until everything is heated through, approximately 1-2 minutes.
- Ladle the soup into bowls and serve warm.
Leave a Comment