Italian Sausage Stuffed Peppers with Pesto Recipe
Hands down, these are the best sausage stuffed peppers of your life. Tender and sweet bell peppers stuffed with a rich filling made with browned spicy Italian sausage, rice, two kinds of cheese, and pesto. Serve on a pool of marinara sauce. Buon appetito!
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Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 271kcal
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion small dice
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- kosher salt, to taste
- ground black pepper, to taste
- 3 links spicy Italian sausage (about 1/2 pound)
- 1 28-ounce can fire roasted crushed tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh oregano
- 2 teaspoons chopped thyme
- 1 cup dry long-grain white rice
- 1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella, divided
- 1 cup shredded parmesan, plus more for serving
- 1/2 cup pesto sauce
- 4 medium bell peppers, red, orange, or yellow
- fresh basil leaves, for garnish
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 350°F. Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add 1 diced onion and 2 minced garlic cloves, then season with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened.
- Remove 3 spicy Italian sausage links (about 1/2 pound) from their casings and add them to the onions. Cook until browned, breaking the sausage into small pieces with the back of a spoon. Season again with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
- Add 1 (28-ounce) can fire-roasted crushed tomatoes, 2 tablespoons finely chopped oregano, 2 teaspoons chopped thyme, and 1 cup dry long-grain white rice (like Jasmine or Basmati). Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring frequently to keep the rice from sticking, until a spoon leaves a mark on the bottom of the pan and the mixture doesn't immediately fall back in on itself. Remove from the heat.
- Stir 1 cup of the shredded mozzarella and 1 cup shredded Parmesan into the sausage and rice mixture, then stir in 1/2 cup pesto sauce. Taste—the rice will still be a little crunchy—and add more salt or pepper if needed. Set the filling aside while you prepare the peppers.
- Slice 4 medium red, orange, or yellow bell peppers in half vertically, keeping the stems intact. Remove the seeds and white ribs with a paring knife, tap out any remaining seeds, and arrange the pepper halves snugly in a 9 x 13-inch baking dish.
- Divide the sausage filling among the pepper halves, pressing it down gently to fill all the nooks and crannies. You may have a little filling left depending on the size of the peppers, but you should use almost all of it.
- Pour about 2 cups water, or enough to reach about 1/4 inch up the sides of the peppers, into the bottom of the baking dish.
- Bake uncovered for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven, sprinkle the peppers with the remaining 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella, and return to the oven for another 30–45 minutes, or until the rice and peppers are tender and the cheese is golden brown.
- Transfer the peppers to a serving dish, drizzle with additional olive oil if desired, and garnish with fresh basil leaves and additional Parmesan. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Make-ahead instructions: These are a great dinner party dish because you can prepare them through step 6 (but not bake) up to a day in advance. They take about an hour to bake so you can put them in the oven a little bit before guest arrive.
- Vegetarian variation: Remove the sausage to make a vegetarian variation of the peppers.
- How to serve: For a beautiful presentation, spoon a pool of marinara sauce on each plate and place the pepper on top. Drizzle the top of the pepper with olive oil and sprinkle with extra parmesan shavings and fresh basil leaves.
- Storage instructions: Leftovers can be kept in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Reheat until warmed through in the microwave or in a 350°F oven. Peppers can also be frozen in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating.