Ground Beef Stuffed Poblano Peppers
These Ground Beef Stuffed Poblano Peppers are a flavour packed meal that the whole family will love! The poblano peppers are stuffed with a delicious mix of ground beef, cauliflower rice, jalapenos, garlic and lots of spices and then roasted until tender and drizzled in a refreshing cilantro sauce. This Mexican inspired beef stuffed poblano pepper recipe is Whole30, Paleo, Dairy Free, Grain Free, Gluten Free, Keto and Specific Carbohydrate Diet Legal.
WHY YOU ARE GOING TO LOVE THESE BEEF STUFFED POBLANO PEPPERS
- These Beef Stuffed Poblanos are absolutely bursting with flavour. From the warming blend of spices to the ground beef, garlic, jalapeno and poblanos, there is no shortage of taste in every bite.
- They are a great make ahead dish that reheats well, so whether you make them as meal prep for the week ahead, or leave them in the fridge for your busy family to eat for a quick dinner on the go, they will taste just as good on day 3 as when they were first made.
- Even though this poblano pepper recipe is Whole30, Paleo, Grain Free and Dairy Free no one would ever know. They are a really filling dish.
- These Mexican stuffed peppers are super adaptable and you can add in or substitute different ingredients depending on what you have at hand (more details below!).
CAN I USE A DIFFERENT TYPE OF MEAT?
If you need a substitution for beef in these stuffed poblano peppers then ground chicken, ground pork or ground turkey can be used in its place.
ARE POBLANO PEPPERS SPICY?
Poblano Peppers have a mild to medium level of spice (by comparison on the Scoville heat scale, jalapenos rank two to eight times spicier). The seeds and white membrane in the center of the peppers are the spiciest part of the pepper, so be sure to remove them if you would prefer these to be mild. If you are making these for kids, I would suggest using poblano peppers for the adults and bell peppers for the kids (and spice adverse eaters).
WHAT’S IN THE FILLING OF THESE STUFFED POBLANO PEPPERS?
The filling is absolutely flavour packed. Here is what you need to make it:
- Poblano Peppers: Look for poblano peppers that are large in size and fuller in width, this will make them much easier to stuff then a flatter shaped pepper.
- Ground Beef: I prefer ground beef that is 15% fat and 85% lean. I find that anything with less fat can often become quite dry when cooked.
- Cauliflower Rice: either fresh or frozen works!
- Tomato Paste
- Beef Broth: Use good quality beef broth
- Onion: I used finely diced yellow onion, but you can use alternatively use shallots
- Jalapenos: Chopped jalapeno adds a nice bit of spice to the filling. Be sure to remove the seeds if you don’t like spice, or leave them in for extra heat. You can alternatively use jarred jalapenos if you are unable to find fresh.
- Spices: a mix of cumin, paprika, chili powder and oregano.
WHAT’S IN THE GREEN SAUCE?
The green sauce is a 4 ingredient refreshing sauce that is delicious drizzled over top of the Beef Stuffed Poblano Peppers right before serving. It is made by combining in a blender mayonnaise, lime juice, scallions and cilantro and blending until smooth. Be sure to taste the sauce after blending and adjust the flavour by adding more cilantro, scallions or lime juice as needed. Although these Beef Stuffed Poblanos are delicious on their own, I highly recommend making the sauce to drizzle overtop because it adds a really nice fresh flavour. The green sauce can be made up to 3 days in advance and stored in the fridge in an airtight container.
ARE THESE MEXICAN STUFFED PEPPERS WHOLE30?
They are with one simple modification! Black beans are not Whole30 approved and should be left out of the recipe if you are doing a Whole30 (or following the Paleo Diet).
IS THIS STUFFED POBLANO PEPPER RECIPE SPECIFIC CARBOHYDRATE DIET LEGAL?
These beef stuffed poblano peppers are Specific Carbohydrate Diet Legal if you use dried black beans which have been soaked in water overnight rather than canned black beans. Alternatively if you are short on time you can simply skip adding the beans.
CAN I MODIFY THIS RECIPE IF I AM NOT ON A SPECIFIC DIET?
If you are not on a Grain, Gluten or Dairy Free diet there are a few different ways you can modify this recipe. Feel free to add approx 1/3 cup grated cheddar into the meat mixture right before stuffing it into the poblanos, or alternatively you can just sprinkle some on top of the peppers before cooking. You could also add 1/3 cup corn kernels (either frozen or canned) into the beef mixture when you add the black beans. Another easy swap is to replace the cauliflower rice with 2/3 cup of either long grain white rice, brown rice or quinoa that has already been cooked.
CAN I MAKE THESE BEEF STUFFED POBLANO PEPPERS IN ADVANCE?
You can! The meat mixture can be cooked and stuffed into the poblano peppers up to 2 days in advance. I recommend storing the stuffed poblanos on a baking dish covered with plastic wrap in the fridge. The stuffed poblano peppers can be brought out of the fridge right before baking.
DO THESE STUFFED POBLANOS FREEZE WELL?
They do! These beef stuffed poblano peppers can be frozen either before or after baking. I recommend storing them in the freezer in a baking dish covered with tin foil for up to 3 months. If the stuffed peppers are frozen prior to cooking they may release excess water as they thaw which can be drained out of the dish. You can place the frozen peppers in the fridge to thaw before heating or alternatively transfer them directly from the freezer to the oven and leave to bake at 375° Fahrenheit for approximately an hour.
WHAT ABOUT LEFTOVER STUFFED POBLANO PEPPERS?
Leftover Mexican stuffed peppers will last for up to 4 days in the fridge in an airtight container. They can be reheated in the microwave until warmed through, or in the oven at 350° Fahrenheit for about 10 minutes.
Here are a few more Mexican inspired recipes that you might enjoy…
- Spicy Shrimp Tacos
- Mexican Beef Taco Salad
- Barbacoa Beef
- Beef & Cauliflower Rice Mexican Casserole
- Mexican Chicken Burgers
- Roasted Cauliflower & Butternut Squash Tacos
If you make this Poblano Pepper recipe let me know in the comment section below, I would love to hear what you think or take a photo and tag me (@everylastbite_) on Instagram, I love seeing your photos!
Ground Beef Stuffed Poblano Peppers
Ingredients
- 6 large poblano peppers
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup diced yellow onion (approx 1 large yellow onion)
- 1 jalapeno stem and seeds removed and finely diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 lbs ground beef
- 1 tbsp cumin
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1/3 cup tomato paste
- 1 1/2 cups beef stock
- 1 1/2 cups cauliflower rice
- 1/2 cup black beans (optional, omit for paleo/whole30)
- 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
Green Sauce
- 1/3 cup mayonnaise
- 2 tbsp lime juice
- 3 scallions
- 1/3 cup cilantro
Optional Toppings
- 1/4 cup chopped tomatoes
- 2 tbsp cilantro
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350° Fahrenheit and place the poblano peppers into a baking dish big enough to fit them snugly. Bake the peppers in the oven for 15 minutes while you make the filling.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet on medium heat. Once hot add in the diced jalapeno, onion and garlic and saute for 3 minutes before adding in the ground beef and breaking the meat up with a wooden spoon. Leave the meat to cook for approximately 6 minutes until it's cooked through and no longer pink.
- Add the cumin, paprika, chili powder, oregano, garlic powder, salt, pepper and tomato paste and stir to ensure the meat is all well coated. Next add in the beef stock and cauliflower rice and leave to simmer for 5 minutes until the cauliflower begins to soften.
- Stir the black beans (if using) and cilantro into the meat mixture.
- Cut a slit lengthwise down each of the poblano peppers. Use your fingers to remove the seeds from the inside of each pepper. Spoon the filling mixture into each of the poblano peppers. Arrange the filled poblano peppers in the baking dish opening side facing up and bake in the oven for 20 minutes.
- While the peppers are cooking make the green sauce. In a blender or nutribullet combine the mayonnaise, lime juice, scallions and cilantro and blend until smooth. Set aside in the fridge until ready to serve.
- Once the peppers are done cooking serve them with the green sauce drizzled overtop and any other toppings of choice.
I think cooking time was my mistake I always left them for 45 minutes and everything was ruined. Thanks for the tip.
You can also save time by omitting the beans if you need to.