Southwestern Beef and Barley Stuffed Bell Peppers
Updated Jul 14, 2021, Published Jan 17, 2016
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Southwestern Beef and Barley Stuffed Bell Peppers are a spicy twist on traditional stuffed bell peppers you and your family will love! Packed with hearty ground beef and nutritious barley, these peppers are seasoned with a zesty blend of Southwestern spices that add just the right amount of kick.
The inspiration behind this dish:
I’ve been posting a lot of veggie-centric recipes lately and I love to eat that way. I don’t think I’ve met a vegetable yet that I don’t like!
However, sometimes a person just needs something hearty and beefy for comfort–like these Southwestern Beef and Barley Stuffed Bell Peppers. Comfort food complete with a blanket of cheese!
I crave stuffed bell peppers and have to make them at least once or twice during the fall and winter. However, I like to change them up as I did these!
Tips for making Southwestern Beef and Barley Stuffed Peppers:
- Although stuffed peppers take a little time to prep, this can all be done ahead of time and baked prior to serving.
- When cooked through, stuffed bell peppers reheat and freeze beautifully!
- Make sure your ground beef is super fresh and don’t go longer than a day without baking the assembled peppers. Raw ground beef becomes hazardous quickly. When cooked through, stuffed bell peppers reheat and freeze beautifully, too!
- I used barley instead of rice (which is traditional in stuffed peppers) because beef and barley pair so well together. I especially love barley for the wonderful toothsome texture when it’s cooked properly.
- Bell peppers contain a fair amount of water which can make the filling soupy so you need to extract some of that water. I’m not a fan of cutting into a stuffed pepper and having a bunch of the juice run out. Microwaving works, however, I prefer to roast them briefly before filling–10 minutes or so. Let the peppers cool and simply pour the liquid that accumulated in the bottom out.
- Make these gluten-free by substituting rice or quinoa for the barley and healthier by using super-lean ground beef, ground turkey or ground chicken. Use half the cheese or 2% cheese to lighten them some more.
Whether these serve six or eight will depend upon appetite. I’m good with one pepper, but my hubby can easily eat two. Because stuffed bell peppers are so hearty, you don’t need much more on the side. A salad is perfect!
Let’s eat!
More stuffed pepper recipes you’ll love:
- Italian Stuffed Peppers
- Southwestern Chicken, Rice and Black Bean Stuffed Peppers
- Chorizo Brown Rice Stuffed Poblano Peppers
- Quinoa Corn and Black Bean Stuffed Poblano Peppers
- Chicken, Brown Rice and Cheese-Stuffed Poblanos
- Stuffed Mini Peppers
Southwestern Beef and Barley Stuffed Bell Peppers
Ingredients
- 4 large green bell peppers, halved top to bottom and hollowed out
- 2 tablespoons olive oil or canola oil plus more to oil the pan, or canola oil plus more to oil the pan
- 1/2 cup pearl barley
- Salt
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander
- 2 teaspoons Mexican oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional
- 1 can (15-ounce) tomato sauce
- 1 can (14.5-ounce) beef broth
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 1/4 pound ground chuck, or other form of ground such as sirloin
- 1 large egg
- 2 cups shredded Cheddar or Mexican blend cheese
- Sour cream, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Place peppers in an oiled baking dish and bake for 15 minutes.
- Let peppers cool and pour out any water that accumulated in the bottom of the pepper.
- Meanwhile, bring a small pot of water to a boil. Add salt to taste and add barley. Cook until al dente (tender but with some bite).
- Drain, rinse with cold water, drain again and set aside.
- Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a skillet or saute pan.
- Add the onion and cook 7-8 minutes or until softened.
- Add garlic, chili powder, cumin, coriander, oregano and cayenne pepper. Stir, then add tomato sauce and beef broth.
- Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes or until thickened slightly. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.
- Transfer 1 cup of the sauce to a large bowl and let cool. Add the barley, beef, egg, 1 cup cheese and mix well.
- Fill peppers with equal amounts of the filling. Pour remaining sauce over the peppers, cover with foil and bake 40-45 minutes or until cooked through to 165 degrees in the center.
- Top with cheese, return to the oven and bake another 10 minutes or until cheese has melted.
Notes
- Can also use ground chicken or turkey.
- Can also use farro in place of barley.
- For a gluten-free alternative to barley, use white rice.
- Bell peppers, in general, contain a lot of water. Parbaking the green peppers allows some of the water to be extracted.
- Assemble and refrigerate up to 1 day ahead. Ensure your ground beef is super fresh, and don’t go longer than a day without baking the assembled peppers. Raw ground beef becomes hazardous quickly.
- Increase baking time if cold from the refrigerator.
- After baking, cool thoroughly and freeze in smaller portions.
- Thaw in the refrigerator and reheat in the oven at 350 degrees.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this? Leave a comment below!
I have a family member who can’t eat sweet peppers, so since we like spicy, I thought maybe I could use large poblano peppers, instead. Do you think I could still bake them in the oven like the green peppers, or should I broil them a bit to blister the outside skin? Appreciate your thoughts, as I would like to try this, as it sounds delish!!
Hi, Beverly, Great to hear from you and thanks for your question. I think Poblanos always benefit from a bit of charring; it really brings out the smoky flavor. Because the walls of Poblanos are fairly thin, they soften up quickly. Because you’d be using Poblanos, it might be better to cook the beef filling so then all you have to do is heat through. Here’s a recipe as an example: Chorizo Stuffed Peppers Thanks again and hope you enjoy!
Hi Carol, We had these for dinner tonight. Delicious! Added a salad with the last of our heirloom tomatoes and cucumbers. Perfect😄
Hi, Margo! Thanks so much and so glad you enjoyed! That salad with the peppers sounds perfect! Yum!
These were delicious! I loved the idea of baking the peppers in an oiled baking dish for 15 minutes vrs boiling them. I used red, yellow and orange peppers instead of green… I didn’t have coriander, but other than that I followed the recipe just as you had it! I definitely will make these again – Yum!
Thanks so much, Jill. So happy you enjoyed! Yes, boiling peppers for stuffed peppers just seems “wrong.” Thanks again!
Made these tonight and it was delicious. Barley is a better pairing than rice and as carbs go, barley is a beneficial one. Hubby wants me to use this filling in the summer to stuff yellow squash, too. Thank you Carol for sharing this.
Hi, Teresa, Thanks so much for your comment and glad you enjoyed! I know what you mean about the barley; I love the toothsome texture. Rice tends to get lost a little bit. Thanks again and please stay in touch!
Thanks, Lisa!