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Keto Italian Stuffed Peppers (Beef, Sausage, Cauli Rice)

Searching for an easy weeknight dinner packed with flavor that only takes minutes to throw together? Keto Italian stuffed peppers with cauliflower rice are always a winner, and genuinely easy to assemble.

Two pieces of Keto Italian Peppers on a white plate.

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Ground beef and Italian sausage make a hearty, flavorful filling, while cauliflower rice gives it real bulk. Topped with bubbly, melty cheese, it is hard to go wrong.

This is as simple as browning the filling in a saucepan, stuffing the peppers, and popping everything in the oven.

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Chef Jenn’s Take on Italian Stuffed Peppers

Stuff the pepper halves loosely, not packed in tight, that gives the cauliflower rice room to heat through evenly.

Brown the beef and sausage together, drain to about 1 tablespoon of fat, then add the onion, garlic, and celery along with the Italian seasoning, cooking until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add half the broth and simmer to reduce by half. Add the tomatoes and their juice, and simmer to thicken, about 10 minutes. Stir in the cauliflower rice, heat through, turn off the heat, and season. Add the remaining broth to the bottom of the baking dish before adding the peppers, that keeps them from drying out as they bake. Stuff them loosely, top with cheese, and bake until hot and bubbly.

Ground pork, chicken, or turkey all work in place of beef and sausage, just make sure the meat is cooked thoroughly. You can also stuff the peppers uncooked and freeze them, thawing overnight before baking as usual, or cook them fully, chill, wrap, and freeze for a fully-cooked option instead. One reader specifically appreciated the carb savings from cauliflower rice over traditional white rice.

Keto stuffed peppers on a plate.

What You’ll Love About Italian Stuffed Peppers

  • Topped with bubbly, melty cheese, hard to go wrong.
  • A hearty, flavorful filling with real bulk from cauliflower rice.
  • Genuinely easy to assemble, on the table in under an hour.

Ingredients

Stuffed Peppers labeled ingredients.
  • Ground Beef – Or ground pork, chicken, or turkey.
  • Italian Sausage – Buy it bulk so you don’t have to fuss with removing casings.
  • Bell Peppers – I like to use a variety of colors.
  • Celery – Diced and minced.
  • Onion – Diced and minced.
  • Garlic – Fresh is best!
  • Italian seasoning
  • Diced Tomatoes – Canned is fine.
  • Cauliflower rice – Fresh or frozen.
  • Mozzarella – Shredded.
  • Chicken Broth – Or use my easy Instant Pot bone broth.
  • Avocado oil – As needed.

How to Make Low Carb Stuffed Peppers

Scroll down for the full recipe card with exact measurements and printable instructions.

Add the ground beef and Italian sausage to a medium saucepan. Once the beef is browned, drain the fat. Add the onions, garlic, and celery. Cook, adding, avocado oil if needed.

Brown the beef and vegetables.

Once the vegetables have softened, add half of the broth. Simmer until the liquid is reduced by half.

Add the stock and reduce.

Add the can of tomatoes and simmer until thick, then stir in the cauliflower rice. Add the remaining broth to the bottom of a casserole dish.

Add the tomato and simmer.

Stuff the pepper halves, place them in the dish, then cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes at 400F.

Stuff, top with cheese and bake!

Remove the foil, add the cheese on top of the peppers, and cook an additional 5 minutes until hot and bubbly.

Make It A Meal

These stand on their own as a full meal, but low-carb tortilla chips or a simple green salad topped with Ranch Dressing or Green Goddess Dressing round things out nicely.

For more hearty dinners, Sauerkraut and Sausage and Tex-Mex Beef Casserole are both worth adding to the rotation.

Close-up shot of Keto Italian Peppers on a plate.

Storage

You have two options. Stuff the peppers uncooked, then freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months, thaw overnight in the fridge, and bake as usual. Or cook them fully, chill, wrap tightly, and freeze, then thaw and reheat in the oven or microwave. Eat refrigerated leftovers within 2 to 3 days.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are stuffed bell peppers keto?

This will depend on the recipe. Any version of this dish that uses white rice is going to have too many carbs for a keto diet. This version, on the other hand, uses cauliflower rice and low-carb ingredients for a totally keto-friendly meal!

Can you use other filling ingredients in the stuffed peppers?

You bet! Feel free to try different proteins like ground pork, chicken or turkey, and mix up the vegetables. Just make sure the meat is cooked thoroughly before serving.

Can stuffed peppers be made ahead of time?

Sure. You can store the peppers in an airtight container in the fridge, then reheat them in the oven when you’re ready to enjoy. I recommend eating them within 2-3 days of cooking.

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Keto Stuffed Peppers – Italian Style

Easy enough for weeknight dinners, these Italian-style Keto Stuffed Peppers are a cheesy, meaty meal that's oh-so satisfying!
Course Keto Dinner Recipes
Cuisine Italian
Keyword cauliflower rice stuffed peppers, easy keto weeknight dinner, ground beef and sausage recipe, keto Italian stuffed peppers, low-carb stuffed peppers
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Servings 4 servings
Calories 819kcal
Author Chef Jenn

Ingredients

  • 1 pound ground beef
  • 1 pound Italian sausage
  • 1 cup diced celery
  • 1/2 cup diced onion
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
  • 1 cup low sodium chicken broth divided
  • 14 ounce canned diced tomatoes
  • 1 cup cauliflower rice
  • 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper or to taste
  • 4 each bell peppers seeded and cut in half
  • 1 cup mozzarella cheese

Instructions

  • Brown the ground beef and Italian sausage in a large skillet. Drain off all but 1 tbsp of fat. Add the onions, celery and garlic to the meat along with the Italian seasoning and continue cooking until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes.
  • Add 1/2 cup of chicken broth to the meat mixture and simmer to reduce by about half.
  • Add the tomatoes and juice from the can, and mix well. Simmer to thicken, about 10 minutes.
  • Stir in the cauliflower rice and heat through. Turn off the heat. Season with salt and pepper.
  • Add the meat mixture to the cut pepper halves, being careful not to pack it in too tightly. Add the remaining 1/2 cup of chicken broth to the bottom of a 9×13 Pyrex (or similar) baking dish. Set the peppers filling side up, in the baking dish. Top with cheese and bake at 400F for about 35 minutes. Enjoy!

Notes

Recipe Card Tips

  • Stuff the pepper halves loosely, not packed in tight, so the filling heats through evenly.
  • Add the remaining broth to the bottom of the baking dish before adding the peppers, it keeps them from drying out.
  • Ground pork, chicken, or turkey all work in place of beef and sausage.

Nutrition

Serving: 2halves | Calories: 819kcal | Carbohydrates: 12g | Protein: 45g | Fat: 65g | Saturated Fat: 25g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 189mg | Sodium: 1855mg | Potassium: 1092mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 473IU | Vitamin C: 35mg | Calcium: 263mg | Iron: 6mg | Net Carbohydrates: 9g

A Note on Nutritional Information

Nutritional information for this recipe is provided as a courtesy and is calculated based on available online ingredient information. It is only an approximate value. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site cannot be guaranteed. Erythritol carbs (sugar substitutes) are not included in the carbohydrate counts as they have been shown not to impact blood sugar, and they have zero calories and zero carbs. Net carbs are the total carbs minus fiber.

Hungry for more?

I’m always messing around in the kitchen creating new recipes, but these are some of my favorite all-time picks that I make again and again:

Jenn

Hi, I’m Jenn!

I’m a cookbook author (Keto Soup Cookbook and Keto Diabetic Cookbook and Meal Plan) as well as a retired chef, recipe developer, and writer of this blog (that’s a lot of hats!). I embarked on a journey to create foodie-worthy Keto-friendly meals that any home cook can be proud of! No matter if you’re low-carb, no-carb, dirty, or strict Keto, there are recipes in Keto Cooking Wins for you and your family. Read more...

8 thoughts on “Keto Italian Stuffed Peppers (Beef, Sausage, Cauli Rice)”

  1. 5 stars
    This is my kind of recipe! Love the use of riced cauliflower in these. Yum yum yum!

    Reply
  2. 5 stars
    These peppers are delicious! I usually use rice in my stuffed peppers, but this was my first time using cauliflower rice. It came out great, and I love that I saved on so many carbs.

    Reply
  3. 5 stars
    Low carb, healthy, and cheesy!? These keto stuffed peppers were delicious and sooo easy to make! It was the perfect weeknight dinner.

    Reply
  4. 5 stars
    These look delicious! Stuffed peppers are one of my favorite meals, and taking out the carbs is a great idea.

    Reply
5 from 5 votes

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