These 23 Recipes Celebrate the Versatility of Bell Peppers (2024)

Bell peppers are such a versatile ingredient. They bring color, texture, and flavor to a dish. When raw, bell peppers are crunchy and slightly bitter. Once cooked, bell peppers have a caramelized sweetness and a silky texture. Add dimension to your dish using bell peppers. Whether it’s a weeknight meal or holiday gathering, these bell pepper recipes celebrate the versatility of the colorful pepper.

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Middle Eastern-Style Stuffed Peppers

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These stuffed bell peppers aren’t just stunners on the table. They’re also packed with flavor. Colorful bell peppers are stuffed with a beef, quinoa, and feta cheese mixture and seasoned with warm spices, like cumin and cinnamon. The addition of toasted walnuts and dried cranberries brings brightness and dimension to this dish, especially once topped with chopped parsley and fresh mint.

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Double Pepper-Pepperoni Pizza Pasta

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This pepperoni pizza pasta is fully loaded with sweet and spicy pepper flavor! Between sweet bell peppers, savory pepperoni slices, and spicy pickled pepperoncini peppers, it’s safe to say this pizza pasta is not lacking in the flavor departments. Rich tomato sauce, dried herbs, and a creamy cheese combination adds dimension to this bell pepper recipe.

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Meatballs with Coconut-Curry Sauce

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This coconut-curry sauce packs a flavorful punch when poured over hearty beef meatballs, brown rice, and bell peppers. A mound of snow peas add flavor and crunch. Finish the dish with a sprinkle of crunchy peanuts, chopped cilantro, and lime juice.

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Lentil-and-Rice Stuffed Peppers

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These stuffed bell peppers are vibrant and nutritious thanks to a filling made with carrots, celery, lentils, and brown rice. The mixture is flavored with brown sugar, mustard, and parsley. As an added bonus, this recipe uses the entire pepper which encourages a reduction in food waste.

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Roasted Red Pepper Panzanella

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Panzanella is a delicious rustic salad that has the best of all food worlds: vegetables, bread, and cheese. And this is panzanella with a bell pepper twist! Sweet bell peppers, red onion, and earthy mint are tossed with croutons. The dish is then topped with creamy burrata and a simple oil and vinegar dressing. Serve this bright panzanella salad alongside your favorite meat or fish as a perfect bell pepper side dish.

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Air-Fried Meatballs and Bell Peppers

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This air-fryer dinner comes together in under 20 minutes. Ground beef is flavored with soy sauce, ginger, and crushed red pepper and formed into meatballs before being air-fried with bell peppers and onion wedges. Serve this recipe with bell peppers over rice for an easy weeknight meal.

Ratatouille

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Ratatouille is a classic French dish that's filled with tender vegetables. Here, bell peppers are cooked with eggplant, zucchini, onions, and tomatoes and garnished with fresh basil for a simple French-inspired dinner the entire family can enjoy.

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Jalapeno Popper Chicken Soup

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When a fan-favorite appetizer comes together in the form of chicken soup, it’s definitely worth trying! Bacon, bell peppers, and jalapenos are cooked until tender and combined with broth, shredded chicken, and cheese. In under 30 minutes, you’ll be enjoying a comforting bowl of this hearty soup.

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Adobe Beef Burritos

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These beef burritos are packed with flavor thanks to an adobo sauce you can make at home in your own kitchen! Adobo marinated ground beef or turkey is then scooped into flour tortillas with rice and chopped bell peppers before being served with the classic fixings.

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Grilled Flank Steak Salad

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Flank steak is the perfect match for crisp bell peppers. This salad stars juicy flank steak, grilled bell peppers, corn, and fresh leafy greens tossed with a simple homemade cilantro dressing.

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Korean-Style Chili-Garlic Chicken Stir Fry

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You don’t need to order takeout to satisfy those cravings. Whip up this chicken stir fry right at home with lean chicken breast and vegetables like bell peppers and green beans. Take it to the next level with pickled vegetables and a delicious soy-garlic sauce.

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Chicken Andouille-Stuffed Peppers with Roasted Green Beans

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These peppers are stuffed with classic Southwestern flavors and packed with protein from chicken sausage! The one-pan dinner bakes in the oven along with crisp green beans.

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Air-Fryer Roasted Vegetables

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When in doubt, call upon the air fryer! Crispy bell peppers and veggies are the perfect side dish for weeknight dinners. Diced vegetables like bell peppers, zucchini, asparagus, and cauliflower into evenly sized pieces before tossing into air fryer. In just 15 minutes you’ll have crispy, flavorful vegetables to serve alongside your preferred protein.

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Pickled Hot and Sweet Peppers

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Pickled peppers are easy to make yourself, and they’re a wonderful staple to have on hand whenever you want to add flavor, texture, and color to a dish. This mixture of hot peppers and sweet bell peppers is pickled with vinegar, salt, sugar, and garlic.

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Stacked Sweet Corn, Beef Casserole

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This layered tortilla casserole is packed with classic Mexican flavors. Tortillas are layered with a seasoned beef and chorizo mixture and delicious fixings like pinto beans, onion, bell peppers, chunky salsa, and Monterey Jack cheese. Just slice this bell pepper recipe into portions, serve with sour cream, and enjoy!

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Farm Salad with Sweet Pepper and Sage Croutons

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This salad made with bell peppers, cherry tomatoes, fresh greens, and homemade croutons shines with colors and textures. To make the croutons, baguette cubes are tossed with a sage spice blend before being baked to golden perfection. A tart apple cider vinegar vinaigrette brings brightness to the salad.

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Ginger Pork with Sweet Peppers

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Ginger, soy sauce, and sesame oil give this skillet dinner tons of flavor to savor. The addition of bell pepper strips add subtle sweetness and crispy texture. Top it off with a sprinkle of roughly chopped chunky peanuts and serve over a bed of fluffy rice.

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Stuffed Artichokes with Spicy Sausage and Sweet Red Pepper

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These hearty artichokes are stuffed with a sausage and bell pepper mixture and seasoned with lemon, parsley, and Parmesan cheese. The filling is made ahead and stuffed into artichokes before being cooked in the slow cooker for hours.

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Fast or Slow Cooked Stuffed Peppers

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Once colorful bell peppers are hollowed out, a savory crab mix made with cream cheese, Old Bay seasoning, and Dijon mustard is scooped into each. Prepare these peppers in the pressure cooker in minutes, or low and slow in the slow cooker for 2-4 hours.

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Spicy Roasted Red Pepper Artichoke Dip

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Move over spinach and artichoke dip! This creamy dip has robust peppery flavor thanks to roasted red bell peppers and harissa paste. Serve this spicy dip with your appetizer spread and be sure to break out the extra chips—you’re going to need them.

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Roasted Red Pepper Gazpacho with Pepperoni Cheese Toast

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A jar of roasted red peppers is the key to making this cold gazpacho soup. Echo the flavors of your favorite slice by serving the roasted red pepper soup with a cheesy pepperoni toast.

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Italian Fried Steak with Roasted Pepper Pesto

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This bell pepper recipe starts with a tender cube steak. Bread it with a Parmesan crust and pan-fry until golden. A bright basil and red pepper pesto makes a flavorful topping.

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Beef Fajitas

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Customize this fajita recipe with your favorite meat (we recommend beef but you could also use chicken or turkey) and strips of bell pepper and onion. You can serve these with any toppings you like including sour cream, cheese, guacamole, and fresh lime.

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