Keto Stuffed Peppers
Published February 10, 2021 • Updated July 20, 2026
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Ground beef and cream cheese stuffed peppers baked at 350 for 15 minutes. 6g net carbs, 22g protein, and everything cooks in one skillet and one baking dish.
Most stuffed pepper recipes use rice as the base filler. On keto, cream cheese does the job better. It binds the ground beef together, adds richness, and melts into the filling so every bite has that creamy texture you get from a good queso dip. The peppers themselves are just the delivery vehicle. These have turned into one of the keto ground beef recipes I reach for most, since the filling comes together in one skillet and the leftovers hold up all week.
I use green bell peppers because they have the lowest carb count (2.9g net carbs per 100g), but any color works. Red and yellow peppers are slightly sweeter and about 1g higher in net carbs per pepper half. If you like a sweeter filling, go with a mix of colors. If you want to keep carbs as low as possible, stick with green.
The Cream Cheese Filling
The filling is ground beef, softened cream cheese, and taco seasoning mixed together in one bowl. That combination gives you a filling that holds its shape inside the pepper instead of crumbling out when you cut into it. The cream cheese melts during baking and creates pockets of richness throughout the beef. I use a similar technique in my stuffed Italian sausage, where cream cheese is the backbone of the whole filling.
I brown the beef first and drain the fat before mixing. This step matters. If you skip draining, the filling gets greasy and the peppers sit in a pool of liquid at the bottom of the baking dish. A quick drain in a colander takes 30 seconds and makes a noticeable difference.
Why These Cook So Fast
Traditional stuffed peppers bake for 45 to 60 minutes because the rice needs to cook through inside the pepper. No rice means 15 minutes at 350F. The beef is already cooked, the cream cheese just needs to melt, and the pepper only needs enough time to soften slightly while staying firm enough to hold everything together. You want a pepper that gives when you bite into it but does not collapse on the plate.
If you prefer softer peppers, add 5 minutes. If you want them with some snap, pull them at 12. I land at 15 because the cheese on top is fully melted and bubbling at that point, which is my visual cue.
Making This a Full Dinner
Each pepper half has 22g of protein and 6g net carbs, so two halves per person is a complete meal. For a bigger spread, pair them with zucchini taco boats or a simple side salad. The taco seasoning in the filling makes them work well next to anything Mexican inspired, like my keto tacos or taco casserole if you want to do a taco night theme.
How to make stuffed peppers in 30 minutes
I brown the beef and mix the filling in about 10 minutes, then the peppers bake for 15. Four steps, one skillet, one baking dish. The cream cheese filling is the key to this whole recipe because it keeps everything together instead of crumbling apart when you cut in.
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Ingredients
4 bell peppers, mixed colors -
1 pound ground beef
-
1/2 teaspoon salt
-
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
-
2 tablespoons taco seasoning or chili powder
-
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
-
sour cream, optional
-
cilantro, optional
Step by Step Instructions
Step by Step Instructions
Preheat oven & cook the ground beef
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cook the ground beef in a skillet over medium heat until browned. Season with salt.
- Ground beef
- Salt
Prepare the meat mixture
In a large bowl, combine the cooked ground beef, cream cheese, taco seasoning and one diced bell pepper.
- Cream cheese
- Taco seasoning
- Bell pepper (1)
Slice the bell peppers
Slice the remaining bell peppers in half from stem to end. Add filling to each of the bell pepper halves. Place the stuffed peppers on a parchment or foil lined baking tray or dish. Sprinkle cheese over each stuffed pepper.
- Bell peppers (3)
- Cheddar cheese
Bake the stuffed peppers
Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted. Garnish with sour cream and cilantro.
- Sour cream (optional)
- Cilantro (optional)
Nutrition disclaimer
The nutrition information provided is an estimate and is for informational purposes only. I am a Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.); however, this content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult your physician or other qualified health provider before making any lifestyle changes or beginning a new nutrition program.
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Get My Macros + Recipes →Frequently Asked Questions
Can I make these in the air fryer?
I tested air fryer stuffed peppers at 370F for 10 to 12 minutes. The cheese gets crispier on top than in the oven, which I actually prefer. The filling needs to be fully cooked before stuffing (same as the oven method), so the air fryer is really just heating and melting. I fit 4 pepper halves in my basket at a time. If you crowd them, the cheese on the outer peppers melts unevenly. Two batches takes me about 25 minutes total, which is the same as the oven when you count preheating.
Can I make these in the Instant Pot?
I have done it with a 5-minute pressure cook on high with a cup of water in the bottom, then quick release. The peppers come out softer than oven-baked, closer to a slow cooker texture. I add the cheese after releasing pressure, put the lid back on for 2 minutes, and it melts from the residual heat. The filling stays intact. My preference is still the oven because I like the slight firmness and the bubbly cheese top, but the Instant Pot is faster if you are short on time.
Can I use chorizo instead of ground beef?
Reader Olivia tried this and I was not surprised it worked. Chorizo runs higher in fat than ground beef, so when the cream cheese melts into it, the filling comes out richer and almost buttery. I recommend draining the rendered fat more aggressively than you would with beef, or the peppers will sit in grease. Orange peppers pair well with chorizo because of the sweet-savory contrast. You can skip the taco seasoning entirely since chorizo already has enough spice on its own.
What is the best pepper color for keto?
I default to green because they are lowest in carbs at 2.9g net per 100g. Red, yellow, and orange run about 3.9g net per 100g, so roughly 1g more per pepper half. That difference has never thrown off my daily macros, so I grab whatever looks freshest at the store. Green peppers taste slightly more bitter and hold their structure better during baking. Red peppers are sweeter and have 11 times more beta-carotene. I usually mix two greens and two reds in a batch for variety.
Should bell peppers be precooked before stuffing?
Not for my recipe. The peppers bake for 15 minutes at 350F, which softens them enough to bite through easily while keeping enough structure to hold the filling. If you prefer very soft peppers (closer to slow-cooked texture), you can blanch them in boiling water for 2 to 3 minutes before stuffing. Drain them upside down on a paper towel so water does not pool inside. I skip this step because the slight firmness gives each pepper half more stability on the plate.
How far ahead can I meal prep stuffed peppers?
I prep mine on Sunday and bake them throughout the week. Assembled raw (without cheese on top), they keep in the fridge for 3 days before the peppers start getting soft. When I am ready to eat, I just unwrap, add cheese, and bake at 350F for 15 minutes. They taste noticeably better baked fresh from raw than reheated from a fully cooked state. If I need them to last longer than 3 days, I freeze them individually wrapped. My batch usually makes 6 halves, which covers 3 dinners for me.
Are stuffed peppers good for diabetics?
I am not a doctor, but I can tell you the macros. Each pepper half has 6g net carbs, 22g protein, and 34g fat. There is no rice, no breadcrumbs, and no added sugar. The carbs come almost entirely from the bell pepper itself. Several readers have told me they make these as part of a blood sugar management plan, and the high protein with low carb ratio is what draws them in. I would check with your doctor on portion sizing, but the ingredient list is straightforward.
What if my stuffed peppers are still cold inside after 15 minutes?
I have had this happen when my peppers were extra thick or straight from the fridge. If the filling is not hitting 160F internally after 15 minutes, keep baking in 5-minute increments. I have gone up to 25 minutes for larger peppers without any issues. The key is making sure the beef is fully browned and hot before you stuff the peppers. If you mix the cream cheese into hot beef, the filling starts warm and 15 minutes is enough. If the beef cooled down before assembly, you will need more oven time.
Can I add cauliflower rice to the filling?
Yes, and it is my favorite way to stretch a batch. I stir in about half a cup of cooked, well-drained cauliflower rice per pound of beef. The key is drying it out first, either squeezed in a towel or cooked in a dry skillet for a few minutes, because wet cauliflower rice loosens the cream cheese and you lose that firm, sliceable filling. Done right, the volume goes up, the macros barely move, and nobody at my table can tell it is in there. I would not go past a cup or the filling starts to taste like the cauliflower instead of the beef.
Can I make these in the slow cooker?
I have, and it works well for a hands-off dinner. I brown the beef and mix the filling the same way, stuff the raw peppers, then stand them up in the slow cooker with a splash of broth in the bottom to keep things from drying out. Low for 4 to 5 hours gets the peppers tender. I add the cheese in the last 20 minutes with the lid on so it melts without going rubbery. The peppers come out softer than the oven version, closer to how my mom used to make them, so go this route if you like a fully soft pepper.
How do I reheat leftover stuffed peppers?
I keep cooked leftovers in the fridge for up to 4 days and reheat them two ways. For one or two halves I microwave at 50 percent power for about 2 minutes, which warms the filling through without rubbering the cheese. For a bigger batch I cover them with foil and reheat at 325F for 12 to 15 minutes, then pull the foil for the last few minutes to crisp the cheese back up. The foil is what keeps the filling from drying out. I do not reheat from frozen cooked because the texture suffers, so I freeze them raw instead.
Pretty happy with this overall. The cream cheese and taco seasoning filling works better than it sounds, but if you want the cheddar to actually get some color and crisp up around the edges you need to throw it under the broiler for a couple minutes at the end. Mine came out melted but totally flat, no browning, which felt like something was off. Remembered that the second time and it made a real difference. Made it a few weeknight dinners in a row after that and held up fine each time.
The filling came out with the same dense, creamy texture, honestly surprised me. I freeze them flat on a sheet pan before bagging. Six ready at all times now.
Somewhere around batch four I started pressing a thin layer of shredded cheddar into each pepper half before the filling goes in. Fuses into a crispy base that holds up better. Adds two minutes but it's worth it.
Made a double batch Sunday and honestly the cream cheese thing works better than I thought it would. At room temp it just folds right into the beef, no clumps, nothing weird. Main thing I'd flag is the taco seasoning. Two tablespoons of a commercial blend is a lot, especially a salty one. I cut it back to about a tablespoon and a half and threw in some extra cumin, and you could actually taste the beef and cream cheese after that. The 15 minutes at 350 is right for peppers that still have a little bite, which is how I like them. If you're scaling up, watch the seasoning first.
Commercial taco blends vary so much on salt. I use two tablespoons with some brands. Certain ones wreck everything. Good catch, Camila.
Reheats better than expected on day three.
Day three is about my limit before the pepper starts going soft, but the filling holds up better than I expected too. Cream cheese doesn't break down on reheat the way I thought it would.
Four colors. Presentation did half the work at dinner.
Never made stuffed peppers before but this seemed doable for a Tuesday. The cream cheese in the filling made it taste way richer than I expected for under an hour of work. Peppers were perfectly soft at 15 minutes. Definitely making this again.
The cream cheese in the filling is honestly why I kept testing it. Try red or yellow peppers if you want something sweeter.
Made this probably six times now, and last week I tried adding a spoonful of green salsa to the meat mixture before filling the peppers. It loosened up the cream cheese just enough that the filling stayed creamy all the way through instead of getting dense in the center. Won't make it without that anymore.
The salsa loosening up the cream cheese makes sense. It can get dense in the center if it wasn't fully softened before mixing. Stealing this.
My 9-year-old has been on a no-vegetables kick for about three months now, so I wasn't expecting much when I put these on the table Tuesday night. She picked up a half, looked at it sideways, and then ate the whole thing without saying a word. That's not something that happens in this house. The cream cheese blended into the ground beef is what pulls it together, there's this richness to the filling that makes you forget it's sitting inside a pepper. I added an extra half tablespoon of taco seasoning based on what I've seen people suggest and it was the right call. Making a full batch again this weekend.
A 9-year-old eating it without a word is the actual benchmark. And yeah, extra taco seasoning is the right call - the recipe amount is mild, most people end up adding more.
Made these last week and ended up with a ton of liquid pooled in the pan by the time the 15 minutes were up. Peppers got really soft, though the filling tasted great. Should I pre-bake the shells first, or is something else causing it?
That's the peppers releasing water at 350, nothing really stops it. I drain the beef really well before mixing in the cream cheese. Cuts down the liquid from the meat side. Pre-baking the shells would just make them even softer.
My mom made stuffed peppers every Sunday growing up. Haven't had them since going keto. Made this last week and the smell out of the oven just took me back. The cream cheese filling is nothing like hers, but it's the closest I've felt to that Sunday dinner in a long time.
The smell when that cream cheese melts into the beef is a lot. Glad it brought something back.
Stuffed peppers were mentally crossed off my list when I went keto. Always figured the rice was doing something structural. It's not. Cream cheese holds everything together better than the original, and 350 for 15 minutes is exactly right for keeping some bite in the peppers. Took me a minute to recalibrate what I was even eating.
The rice was just taking up space. Cream cheese holds it and adds actual flavor to every bite.
My son scraped out the cream cheese filling and ate it plain with a spoon. Says everything.
Ha. The cream cheese with taco seasoning is really good on its own. Mine doesn't always make it to the peppers.
Subbed half the ground beef for chorizo and the filling came out so much better for it. The cream cheese still holds it all together, but the chorizo fat melts into it differently and gives it this depth the taco seasoning alone can't reach. Solid base recipe either way. I'd bump it to 20 minutes if your peppers run thick.
Chorizo does something to the cream cheese filling that beef just doesn't. The fat renders out differently and the whole thing gets richer. I'd drain off a little of that rendered fat before mixing though, or it can pool at the bottom.
I almost talked myself out of making these because stuffed peppers seemed like a lot of steps for a weeknight, but once I got the beef going in the skillet I realized this was pretty manageable. Pulled them at 15 minutes and the cheese was this golden bubbly layer on top and I genuinely felt proud of myself. The cream cheese mixed into the filling was the part I wasn't sure about (it sounded weird to me) but it makes everything so much creamier than I expected, nothing like what I was picturing. Already planning to make them again Sunday.
The cream cheese is the one that surprises everyone, including me when I first added it. Sunday double batch is worth it. They hold in the fridge 3 days easy.