Healthy Unstuffed Peppers are a hearty, easy meal everyone will love! Low carb, gluten free and perfect for a quick weeknight dinner!
This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Click here to read my policy and more about affiliate links. This post was originally shared in February of 2018.
If you’re looking for something easy to make for dinner tonight – you’re going to LOVE these Healthy Unstuffed Peppers. We love them because they’re delicious – but they also only take about 30 minutes from start to finish to make!
These Healthy Unstuffed Pepper bowls are basically the lazy version of my Whole30 Stuffed Peppers. Both are great, but when you want to do a little less work – this is the option for you!
These Whole30 Unstuffed Pepper Bowls are such a simple dinner to make.
If you want another “easier” stuffed pepper recipe, try our Stuffed Pepper Soup, Deconstructed Pepper Skillet, or Stuffed Pepper Casserole!
What makes these Whole30 Unstuffed Pepper Bowls so awesome?
- Whole30/Paleo/Gluten Free– There are no grains or dairy in this recipe!
- Low Carb– If you’re keto or low carb, these bowls are for you! The cauliflower rice is a great lower carb substitute from the rice that is normally in stuffed peppers! (Although feel free to add in rice if you’re not low carb!)
- High Protein – Lots of ground turkey = high protein, making this the perfect dinner to help keep you feeling full!
- Veggie Loaded – I used cauliflower rice as the base of these unstuffed pepper bowls, and lots of tomato sauce which amps up the veggie content!
We have an awesome Whole30 Stuffed Peppers Recipe that we love (and many others love too!)
Those are great if you have a bite of extra time to stuff the peppers and set up your crockpot/instant pot (or pop them in the oven!) But when you don’t want to deal with that – these Whole30 Unstuffed Pepper Bowls are the way to go.
Ingredients for Unstuffed Pepper Bowls
To make unstuffed pepper bowls you’ll need:
- ground turkey (or beef)
- tomato sauce – I use my Healthy Tomato Sauce but you could use jarred sauce
- olive oil
- peppers
- some spices
- cauliflower rice
I prefer to use fresh herbs in this recipe, but I’ve included substitutions for dried herbs in the green box below.
How to make Unstuffed Peppers:
Making these unstuffed peppers is so simple.
- Brown your meat.
- Once it’s completely cooked, add in your peppers, spices, and sauce. Stir to combine and let simmer for 5-10 minutes.
- While your meat/sauce mixture cooks, in a separate pan -put together your cauliflower rice mixture. It only takes about 2-3 minutes to cook!
Substitutions for these Whole30 Unstuffed Pepper Bowls:
Cheese– If you’re not doing a Whole30 – a sprinkle of parmesan cheese or a dollop of ricotta is delicious on these bowls! You can also stir in shredded mozzarella right before serving to make it nice and melty!
Herbs – If you don’t have fresh herbs you can substitute dried herbs. For 1 tablespoon fresh herbs, use 1 teaspoon dried herbs
Garlic– If you prefer to use fresh garlic, sub 1/2 teaspoon with 1/2 tablespoon minced garlic (about 2 cloves). A cup or so of chopped fresh onion would also be a nice addition to this – but it’s not necessary
Rice– If you’re not doing a Whole30 you can sub cauliflower rice with regular rice, or any other grain like quinoa or farro.
Storing unstuffed pepper bowls:
These bowls will last for 4-5 days in your refrigerator.
Freezing: You can freeze these bowls, but be warned that the cauliflower rice may get a little watery.
If you want to freeze, I would recommend only making the meat portion of the dish and freezing that, then cooking the cauliflower rice when it’s time to eat.
Reheating: If you decide to freeze, store it in airtight containers and allow it to cool completely before freezing. When ready to eat, defrost the night before in your refrigerator or just pop in a microwave/pan and heat! If stored properly it should stay good for 4-6 months.
If you love ground turkey, check out these Healthy Ground Turkey Recipes!
Other delicious Whole30 Dinner Recipes:
Healthy Unstuffed Peppers
Ingredients
For the Meat/Veggies:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 2 cups red bell peppers chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh basil chopped
- 2 cups tomato sauce
For the Rice:
- 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 lb cauliflower rice (about 3-4 cups)
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh basil chopped
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- In a pan, heat olive oil. Add ground turkey to the pan + sauté for 10-15 minutes until browned. While turkey is cooking, chop veggies.
- Add spices, chopped peppers and sauce. Sauté on low heat for an additional 5-10 minutes, stirring every few minutes.
- While turkey and sauce mixture are cooking, in a separate pan – heat olive oil for the cauliflower rice.
- Heat olive oil in the pan. Add cauliflower rice + herbs, and sauté for 2-3 minutes.
- Assemble bowls with cauliflower rice + turkey/veggie mixture. Serve + enjoy!
Alyssa says
Just made this for some meal prep for the week and it is so good! I made due with what I had on hand, and used ground beef, half an onion, and added 12oz cauliflower rice directly to the mix to bulk it up. Came out a little bit soupier because of the frozen cauli rice, but still delicious! Will be eating it as-is or over some white rice this week for lunches 🙌🏻
Elizabeth Marino says
Glad you liked it! Next time if you’re going to use cauliflower rice I’d reduce the amount of broth you’re using, and stir it in at the very end 🙂
Denise says
We had this for dinner tonight. It was delicious 😋
We will be making this again!! Thank you
Heather B says
I’ve made this recipe so many times as meal prep for lunch. It amazing!
The Clean Eating Couple says
Love hearing that, Heather! Thank you!!
Heather B says
Love this recipe! It’s simple and quick to make for lunch meal prep. I usually have it over brown rice since I’m not a fan of cauliflower. Still super tasty!
The Clean Eating Couple says
So glad you like it, Heather! It’s great over brown rice – that’s what we prefer too 🙂
Cami says
I loooove this recipe!!! So much easier than stuffing and cooking bell peppers lol
The Clean Eating Couple says
So glad you like it,Cami! It’s one of my favs too!
DONNA says
I follow WW and just made this for dinner. Its amazing! Quick and easy meal for a busy work day! This can also be used for meal prep. I used 93% lean grass fed beef and omitted the oil. Delicious 👍😍
The Clean Eating Couple says
Thank you so much, Donna! I’m so glad you liked it!
Kelly says
Overall I thought this recipe was good. I thought it maybe needed a little extra salt and I also would’ve preferred more garlic (but I like garlic). I used brown rice instead of cauliflower rice because I just can’t do much cauliflower rice (even though its the thing right now). And I asked anyone if they wanted cheese to add to the top when done because I like my stuffed peppers with melted and broiled cheese on top – so I was in that group (which helped for my little bit of *extra salt*). My kids weren’t too keen on it, but we are in fussy phases of eating right now so you can’t go by what they eat these days! 🙂
The Clean Eating Couple says
Hi Kelly – Thanks for letting us know. We intentionally kept this recipe low in salt, because depending on the brands of tomatoes/sauce you use – they may have more sodium. It’s easy enough to sprinkle a pinch on top if you need it 🙂 We actually prefer this over regular rice and with cheese… I’m not a huge fan of cauliflower rice but for people who are paleo/Whole30 it’s a good option! Thanks for trying!
Maura says
Great Recipe!! So easy and delicious, perfect for my first time doing whole30 and will definitely make it again and again!
The Clean Eating Couple says
Thanks so much,Maura! Glad you liked it!
Nicole says
Doing Whole30 for the first time, and this was the first meal I made. So good and flavorful – followed the recipe as is, but added cayenne.
The Clean Eating Couple says
So glad you liked it, Nicole! Love the addition of cayenne! Hot pepper flakes would also be a great addition 🙂
Monty says
Really loved it! However, I am dying to know…why didn’t you include bell peppers in the original recipe?
The Clean Eating Couple says
Glad you liked it! No real reason for not including them. You could definitely chop them up and include if you’d like!
Dave says
I modified the recipe by adding a little extra tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and 2 Bell peppers diced up. Instead of serving over the cauliflower rice I added it directly to the pot. This made a delicious stuffed pepper soup!
The Clean Eating Couple says
I love that idea, Dave!! I can’t wait to try it. Sounds delicious + I’m so glad you liked it 🙂
Sammie Doyle says
Love this recipe, it is quick and easy to make and the whole family loved it including my 19 month old son who ate his own along with half of mine. This will for sure be a staple in our household.
The Clean Eating Couple says
Thank you so much, Sammie!! I’m so glad you AND your little guy loved it 🙂
Diane Selzam says
I love stuffed peppers and this recipe doesn’t disappoint….try it!
The Clean Eating Couple says
Thanks so much, Diane! I grew up eating stuffed peppers and wanted to make sure these were just as delicious – I’m glad you enjoy them too!