Lightened Up Stuffed Pepper Soup (Paleo/Whole 30 Options)

Lightened Up Stuffed Pepper Soup has all the flavor of your favorite stuffed peppers suspended in a flavorful broth. Cauliflower Rice adds nutrition and keeps things on the lighter side.

This stuffed pepper soup is the fourth in a series of recipes I created for Moyer Beef. Moyer can be found in many Tops Friendly Markets across the Northeast. 

I love stuffed peppers. I’ve shared some creative stuffed pepper recipes here over the years, from pizza stuffed peppers to jambalaya stuffed peppers to taco stuffed peppers but lately I’ve really been liking traditional Italian stuffed peppers. ground beef, sauce, rice…you know the ones. They’re super simple and comforting. The only thing I don’t love about them is how dense they are. They fill me up so fast, and stuffed peppers don’t really lend themselves to being served in half portions.

Earlier this winter, I had the idea to lighten up my favorite classic stuffed peppers by turning them into a brothy stuffed pepper soup. That way, you could serve up as much (or as little) as you’d like. A quick Google search shows me that I’m far from the first person to come up with this idea, but I’m pretty sure my recipe is the best. Seriously, it’s ridiculously good and I can’t get enough of it – especially in this frigid weather. It’s perfect for a snow day, a sick day, or lunch at your desk.

So, what makes my stuffed pepper soup soup good?

I start with quality ingredients, like Moyer ground chuck. Moyer beef is sourced from small family farms in New York and Pennsylvania and it’s all graded USDA Prime or Choice. As opposed to more generic  “ground beef” you know exactly what you’re getting with their ground chuck – a ground version of the same chuck that I use in my slow cooker red wine beef.

I brown the beef in a tiny bit of oil to give it loads of flavor, then remove it from the pot leaving just a little bit of grease behind to cook the onions, peppers, and garlic in. A good splash a white wine adds a nice touch of acidity and helps brighten up the flavor of the soup while tomato pastes deepens the flavor of the soup.

Next, I add chicken stock and fire roasted tomatoes. Using fire roasted tomatoes instead of regular tomatoes adds another layer of flavor and mimics the roasted flavor that stuffed peppers get in the oven. All of the flavors meld together beautifully while the soup comes to a boil. Once the soup is boiling, I add some white rice – just a little bit because I love the flavor that it contributes. The rice cooks while the soup simmers, then I add cauliflower rice and parsley at the end. This is actually a great recipe to try if you’re new to cauliflower rice – in the end, it’s almost indistinguishable from the regular rice.

To make this stuffed pepper soup recipe Whole 30 compliant – or just to lighten it up even more – omit the white wine, leave out the white rice, and use two cups of cauliflower rice instead of one.

If you don’t care about that, a little shredded mozzarella on top is fantastic. Either way, you can’t go wrong.

If you choose to make this soup with white rice, it will thicken as it sits and the next day it might resemble chili. That’s okay! You can eat it that way, or just add a little water to thin it out before you reheat it.

Stuffed Pepper Soup (Paleo/Whole 30 Options)

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Prep Time 5 minutes Cook Time 25 minutes Total Time 0:30

Serves 6

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 pounds ground chuck
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 2 bell peppers (any color)
• 1/4 cup white wine (optional)
• 2 teaspoons tomato paste
• 6 cups chicken stock or bone broth
• 1 can (14 ounces) fire roasted diced tomatoes, drained
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 1 large pinch crushed red pepper
• 1/4 cup white rice
• 1 cup cauliflower rice
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Directions

Heat the olive oil in a large pot set over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and cook, breaking up with a spoon until browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer the meat to a plate, leaving about 2 tablespoons of juices in the pot.

Add the onion, garlic, and bell peppers to the pot and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the wine, if using, and cook until mostly evaporated.

Stir in the crushed red pepper and tomato paste and cook 1-2 minutes. Add the chicken stock and tomatoes; return the beef to the pot and bring the soup to a boil. Add the rice and simmer 10-15 minutes, or until cooked through. Stir in the cauliflower rice and parsley and cook until warmed through. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Recipe Notes

For a whole 30 version, omit the wine and white rice; stir in 2 cups of cauliflower rice at the end. For a paleo option, skip the wine and/or rice if you don't eat those.

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I am not a certified nutritionist.  Nutrition information calculated using myfitnesspal is provided as a courtesy, but will vary depending on the specific brands of ingredients you use. Information provided on this site is not a substitute for professional advice by certified health professionals; please consult with your doctor regarding specific health needs.