Pizza Stuffed Peppers

Actual pizza might be somewhat off the table while I’m on a low-carb diet, but that doesn’t mean I can’t indulge in my pizza cravings from time to time.

When I want to put a bit of effort into my pizza fix, I make something like my Keto Pierogi Pizza, or my Keto Smoked Salmon Pizza.

All the satisfaction of pizza night, just in a low-carb way!

When I want to enjoy pizza flavors the easy way, my Mushroom Pizzas Recipe is my go to keto pizza. Most of the goodness of pizza, just sacrificing the bread part for a much quicker & easier meal prep.

This stuffed pepper recipe is more in line with those mushroom pizzas - a delicious dinner with all the flavours of a supreme pizza, just without the effort of making pizza dough.

Aside from the time and effort, pizza peppers are also a great way to enjoy low carb pizza without the heaviness of a fathead dough.

Don’t get me wrong, I love a good, doughy keto pizza... but they do tend to sit heavy, and sometimes I just want a lighter meal.

In terms of nutritional information low-carb recipe works out to just under 12 net carbs per serving (2 pepper halves), assuming you use a no-sugar added tomato sauce, like Rao’s.

Most of those carbs come from fresh vegetables - peppers, onions, mushrooms. I don’t know about you, but I tend to weigh those carbs a little differently.

Maybe I’m getting jaded after years of counting them, but I have a hard time thinking of bell peppers as being anything but GREAT for a healthy lifestyle, you know?

Anyway, let’s look at what you’ll need for this recipe!

Ingredients

This pizza stuffed peppers recipe uses really common ingredients - basically just a bunch of our favorite pizza toppings, and some seasonings.

As always, I have some ingredient notes for you.

Meats

This recipe uses 2 different meats - lean ground beef for the bulk of the protein content, and pepperoni slices for the PIZZA aspect.

As far as the ground meat goes, feel free to swap it out for another kind of meat if you prefer - ground turkey or ground chicken, even veggie grounds if you’re into that kind of thing.

The seasoning I use flavours it to be like Italian sausage - hot Italian sausage, if you add red pepper flakes!

Anyway, in terms of the pepperoni, you can use regular or turkey pepperoni

Marinara Sauce

To keep it keto, we use marinara sauce with no added sugar, as our pizza sauce. Rao’s marinara is a great option!

You can use plain tomato sauce if you’d like - but I definitely recommend using the optional red pepper flakes and fennel seeds to give it more flavour.

Green Peppers

We use green bell peppers when we make these pizza stuffed peppers, as we tend to like green peppers on our pizzas.

Really, you can use any of the variety of colors bell peppers come in - just aim for large peppers that seem like they’ve got a wide open cavity. (Big ones with deep lobes / grooves can be annoying to stuff!)

Cheese

You can use fresh mozzarella if you like, we tend to use pre shredded pizza mozzarella cheese.

If you have Parmesan cheese on hand, feel free to swap it for some of the shredded mozzarella, or just add some on top of the peppers before baking.

Everything Else

Rounding out this recipe, you’ll need:

Olive Oil
Garlic Powder
Italian Seasoning
Crushed Chilies, Optional
Fennel Seeds, Optional
Mushrooms (We use Crimini)
Sliced Black Olives
Onion
Ground Black Pepper
Salt

... I just really don’t have anything to add, as far as these last few simple ingredients go!

How to Make Pizza Stuffed Peppers

The full recipe is in the printable recipe card at the end of this post. Here is a pictorial walk through, with detailed instructions.

Note: I like to get all of the ingredients prepped before I start cooking. It comes together quickly!

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F, line a large baking sheet with parchment paper, or spray with cooking spray.

Cut each pepper in half, from top to bottom. Carefully remove the seeds and pith, place peppers cut side up on the prepared baking dish, set aside.

Pour olive oil into a large skillet. Add the ground meat and seasonings, use a wooden spoon to break up the meat and combine it with the spices.

Cook the beef mixture over medium-high until it’s mostly browned, but not quite cooked through.

Add the chopped mushrooms and onion, continue cooking until mushrooms and onions are tender and the released liquid has mostly cooked off.

Stir in ¾ cup of the pepperoni, the black olive slices, and the marinara sauce. Continue cooking for another 2 minutes, to heat through.

Season with salt and pepper, to taste, then stir in about half of the cheese.

Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until the peppers are starting to look tender, and cheese is melted and golden brown.

Cool peppers for a few minutes before serving.

Leftovers

Once cooled to room temperature, Pizza Stuffed Peppers can be transferred to an airtight container (or onto a plate, and covered with plastic wrap), and kept in the fridge for up to 3 days.

More Keto Main Dish Recipes

Looking for more low carb main dishes to feed your whole family with? I've got some delicious recipes for you!

Bacon Cheeseburger Soup
Cabbage Rolls
Chicken Cordon Bleu
Chicken Parmesan
Coconut Shrimp
Creamy Mustard Chicken
Everything Bagel Chicken
Fajita Chicken Skewers
Fried Chicken
Italian Wedding Soup
Lasagna
Loaded Pierogi Soup
Pierogi Pizza
Portobello Mushroom Pizzas
Shepherd's Pie
Stromboli Meatloaf
Swedish Meatballs
Tuna Poke Bowl