Slow-Cooker Stuffed Pepper Soup

If you want to spice up your weeknight dinner routine, this Slow-Cooker Stuffed Pepper Soup is the perfect addition. It captures all the delicious flavors of classic stuffed pepper recipes in a warm and hearty bowl. Combining lean ground beef, fresh green peppers and ready-to-serve brown rice, this soup is a convenient and satisfying way to enjoy the taste of stuffed peppers without the fuss. Simmered in a rich tomato broth with aromatic herbs, it’s an ideal choice for a hearty lunch or a comforting weekend meal. Let the slow cooker do the work and savor the delightful blend of textures and flavors that make this feel-good soup recipe a new family favorite.

Ingredients for Slow-Cooker Stuffed Pepper Soup

• Ground beef: Extra-lean ground beef (95% lean) provides a hearty, protein-packed base for the soup while keeping it lower in fat and calories. However, you can use any fat content you prefer.
• Onion: Yellow onions have a mild, slightly sweet flavor that complements the ground beef. 
• Green peppers: While you can make stuffed peppers with green, red, orange or yellow bell peppers, we think green is the best choice here because they’re not as sweet.
• Brown rice: This recipe uses ready-to-serve brown rice, which has nearly six times the fiber of white rice. If you don’t have brown rice, try using other types of rice such as wild rice, basmati or jasmine for this recipe. 
• Brown sugar: A small amount of brown sugar adds a bit of sweetness to balance out the other ingredients.
• Seasonings: Salt, dried basil and dried oregano bring a perfect balance of aromatics.
• Tomato sauce: This concentrated tomato product adds acidity and robust flavor. If you don’t have any on hand, try one of these tomato paste substitutes.
• Diced tomatoes: Don’t drain the canned diced tomatoes; the extra liquid adds to the broth in this soup.  
• Beef broth: Use store-bought or homemade beef broth.

Directions    

Step 1: Cook the ground beef

In a large skillet, cook and crumble the beef with the onion over medium heat until the meat is no longer pink, five to seven minutes; transfer to a 6-quart slow cooker. 

Editor’s Tip: To ensure you get the best meat texture, learn how to cook ground beef the right way.

Step 2: Add other ingredients to the slow cooker

Stir in the green peppers, brown rice, brown sugar, salt, dried basil, dried oregano, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes and beef broth. Cook, covered, on low until the flavors are blended, five to six hours.

Editor’s Tip: If you know that you’ll have leftovers, consider topping each bowl with a scoop of cooked rice before serving instead of adding all the rice into the soup at the end. When leftover stuffed pepper soup with rice sits in the fridge overnight, the rice soaks up a lot of broth, leaving you more of a stew than a soup.

Recipe Variations

• Change the meats: Switch it up and instead use ground turkey, a more flavorful bulk Italian sausage or even pork sausage. 
• Try different tomatoes: Another easy way to build flavor is to use other varieties of canned diced tomatoes. Try fire-roasted, chili-ready or roasted garlic diced tomatoes. 
• Swap the grain: Instead of brown rice, use long-grain white rice, quinoa, barley or orzo pasta. The rice absorbs a lot of liquid, so instead of stirring it in, you may want to spoon the rice into individual bowls and ladle the soup over the top.

How to Store Slow-Cooker Stuffed Pepper Soup

Divide leftover stuffed bell pepper soup into multiple airtight containers and let it cool before popping on the lids and storing it in the fridge. Divvying up the leftovers into multiple containers helps the soup cool down faster and also makes it easier to reheat individual servings in the microwave later. Leftovers will last for three to four days.

Can you freeze slow-cooker stuffed pepper soup?

Cooled soup can be frozen in freezer containers for three to four months. To use, partially thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Heat through in a saucepan, stirring occasionally; add a little broth or water if necessary.

Slow-Cooker Stuffed Pepper Soup Tips   

How else can you cook slow-cooker stuffed pepper soup?

Stuffed pepper soup can also be made from start to finish on the stovetop. Start by cooking the beef and onion in a large saucepan. After you drain off the grease, stir in the remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil then cover and simmer until the flavors are blended, for about 25 to 30 minutes. If you’re looking for something even faster, check out our soup recipes made in 30 minutes or less.

Do you have to peel the peppers when making slow-cooker stuffed pepper soup?

No, the skin of bell peppers is thin and easily digestible. Peeling them is very rarely required, no matter the bell pepper recipe. Even in pureed soups such as our red pepper soup, the peppers are chopped and cooked without peeling.

Should you use dark or light brown sugar?

Dark brown and light brown sugars are largely interchangeable in recipes. The difference is that dark brown sugar contains more molasses, so it has a bolder flavor. The choice is entirely up to you.

What do you serve with slow-cooker stuffed pepper soup?

With ground beef, peppers and rice, this stuffed green pepper soup doesn’t need a ton of support to make a complete meal, but great accompaniments would have some zing to offset the natural sweetness of the peppers. Try some sour cream and cheddar biscuits or jalapeno buttermilk cornbread. If you want something more substantial, pair the soup with a grilled cheese sandwich made with garlic fontina bread.