Stuffed poblano peppers are a fantastic, mildly spicy, Mexican-inspired entree that is easy to make and will blow you away with flavor. They NEED to be added to your arsenal of culinary tricks. Why? They’re moderately healthy, easy to make, and REALLY delicious.
My stuffed poblano peppers are filled with ground beef, sautéed corn and black beans, red onions, tomatoes, fresh cilantro, and fresh lime juice, then topped with a blend of melted cheese. They’re full of protein, cheesy, and filling.
What Are Poblano Peppers and How to Pick Them Out
Poblano peppers are usually mildly spicy peppers. I think they’re more flavorful and less watery than a typical bell pepper. Poblano peppers tend to vary in heat. Some have virtually no spice, while others can have a noticeable zip. As Patty loves to say, pepper Russian roulette. Either way, the spiciness tends to level out a bit through baking.
Poblano peppers are green and typically resemble a giant jalapeño. Fatter/more circular peppers with fewer creases and bends are best for stuffing. Thin or narrow peppers with a crease through the center will be more of a hassle to fill.
How to Cut Poblano Peppers
I’ve seen a few different approaches to this, but I like to use both halves of the poblano for stuffed peppers. Depending on which direction you slice the pepper, you’ll either get fatter, more shallow bowls, or deeper, more narrow bowls.
I think the shallow and fatter method is best. It allows for a nice rounded meaty filling that’s easy to pack. Find the natural seam that runs down either side of the pepper and slice opposite this seam. Do not slice with the seam. 5 peppers render 10 perfect stuffed pepper halves.
How to Make Stuffed Peppers
This recipe is so easy because we will cook all the pepper filling on the stove in a pan (corn, beans, tomatoes, onion, beef, herbs and spices), fill the peppers, and bake topped with melted cheese until tender. They’re simple and sure to please the pepper lovers in your life. If you’re looking for more mild peppers, you can make my turkey stuffed bell peppers here.
Serve with guac or sour cream and a nice spicy margarita.
You’ll Also Love
- Ground turkey stuffed peppers
- Skillet fajitas
- Carne asada street tacos
- Skillet chicken enchiladas
- Ultimate guacamole
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My stuffed poblano peppers are filled with ground beef, sautéed corn and black beans, red onions, tomatoes, cilantro, fresh lime juice, and finished with a blend of melted cheese.
Ingredients
- 5 poblano peppers, sliced in half against the seem, seeds and stem removed*
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 cup, sweet whole kernal corn (15 ounce can or fresh is fine)
- 1 cup reduced sodium black beans (15 ounce can)
- 1 cup Mexican blend cheese
- 1 medium tomato, diced
- 1/2 medium red onion, diced
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped, plus more for garnish
- 1 lime, juice squeezed
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
- Optional sour cream or salsa for serving
Simple taco seasoning*
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 °F.
- Combine taco seasoning in a prep bowl and stir. Set aside.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large pan on medium heat. Place 1 cup each of corn and black beans in a colander and rinse until water runs clear. Transfer to warm pan with red onion, cilantro, and fresh lime juice. Season with salt and pepper and sauté until corn just starts to brown, about 3-4 minutes.
- Add tomatoes and cook for 1 minute. Transfer all contents to a bowl and set aside.
- Add an additional tablespoon of oil to the same pan and add ground beef, season with salt and pepper. Cook until browned and fully cooked though, about 5-7 minutes.
- Add a splash of water and taco seasoning mix. Stir until beef and seasoning is fully incorporated. Return corn and black bean mix to the pan and stir into the beef.
- Fill peppers with a slightly packed mound of beef filling. You should have enough to give each pepper 2-3 heaping spoonfulls of beef. It helps to fill the peppers individually while holding over the pan and lightly, but firmly packing each pepper with beef mix.
- Transfer peppers to a greased baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven, sprinkle each pepper with 1-2 tablespoons of cheese, and bake for an additional 5 minutes or until cheese is fully melted. Top with fresh cilantro and serve with optional sour cream or salsa.
Notes
Poblano peppers are green and typically resemble a giant jalapeño. Fatter/more circular peppers with fewer creases and bends are best for stuffing. Thin or narrow peppers with a crease through the center will be more of a hassle to fill.
If you don’t want to make your own taco seasoning, you can use 2 tablespoons premade dry taco seasoning mix or spice.
Keywords: Stuffed poblano peppers
