Mini peppers stuffed with cheesy ground beef and warm marinara sauce on top makes these Keto Cheeseburger Stuffed Mini Peppers almost better than a real hamburger. Keto, low-carb, and gluten-free!
I was asked by Carusele to participate in the #LaurasLean campaign, sponsored by Laura’s Lean. Although I have been compensated, all opinions are my own
These Keto Cheeseburger Stuffed Mini Peppers are a low-carb dinner or appetizer filled with juicy and lean ground beef, mushrooms, onion, and bound together with an egg white. Topped with melted cheese and marinara sauce, the peppers are so delectable and so much lighter than a regular hamburger.
This light meal prep or family dinner option is made extra delicious using Laura’s Lean Ground Beef. Unlike most other “natural” beef, Laura’s Lean is always sourced from suppliers that never use added hormones or antibiotics and are always vegetarian fed. I always feel good about serving it to both my family and guests!
Using mini peppers in this recipe means everything is ready in record time! They’re also bite-sized, meaning you can serve the keto stuffed peppers as an appetizer, snack, or for a tasty main with Creamy Cauliflower Mash and Baked Asparagus on the side.
Ingredients you’ll need
- Mini peppers – Making this recipe with cute and colorful sweet mini peppers means you can serve it as an appetizer or for a keto and low-carb party snack.
- Laura’s Lean Ground Beef – Using Laura’s 92% lean beef will cut down on the grease and make this dish much lighter. I recommend buying in bulk so you always have beef ready to use in your freezer.
- Mushrooms – Cooked mushrooms double down on the meaty flavor in this recipe.
- Worcestershire sauce – For a little bit of umami flavor that helps elevate the flavors from the meat and cooked veggies. Your Worcestershire sauce is not gluten-free if it contains malt vinegar. In this case, replace it with tamari.
- Onion – This will be grated and blended right into the hamburger filling.
- Egg white – To help bind everything together in the filling.
- Mozzarella – Shredded mozzarella is added right before the stuffed peppers are done baked to give them a creamy and stretchy melted cheese topping.
- Marinara sauce and parsley – For a savory finish!
How to make mini stuffed peppers with ground beef
- Cook the veggies: In a pan, cook the mushrooms with butter. Add in the garlic and cook until soft and fragrant.
- Make the beef filling: Combine the beef, cooked mushrooms, salt, grated onion, Worcestershire Sauce, and egg white in a large bowl.
- Stuff the peppers and bake: Cut each mini pepper in half lengthwise, remove the seeds, and place each one in a baking dish. Spoon some of the beef mixture into each pepper before baking for 15 minutes.
- Add the cheese, then serve: Top each pepper with cheese before adding them back in the oven for another few minutes. Add the parsley and warm marinara sauce on top when they’re done!
Tips and substitutions
- Want to add rice? You can add pre-cooked rice or cauliflower rice to the beef filling.
- If you’re craving a little spice, mix some chopped jalapenos into the filling.
- No need to parboil the peppers! Their small size helps the peppers cook and tenderize in record time and without cooking them beforehand.
- Make sure to use sugar-free marinara sauce. This way it will be keto-friendly.
- The egg white is optional. Feel free to leave it out if you want.
Can I make these ahead of time?
Every element of this dish can be made ahead of time for meal prep. Make the ground beef filling and store it in an airtight container in the fridge for 1 or 2 days. You can also slice, prepare, and store the peppers in the fridge until you’re ready to put the dish together.
Not quite ready to cook the stuffed peppers yet? The mini peppers can easily be stuffed and then left covered in the fridge. Just throw them in the oven right before dinner time!
More keto and low-carb recipes
Put all of these dishes to create the keto and low-carb meal of your dreams:
- Baked Parmesan Crusted Salmon
- Caprese Chicken Bake
- Purple Cauliflower Mash
- Instant Pot Cheeseburger Soup
Did you try this recipe? Don’t forget to tag me on Instagram @lenaskitchenblog + use the #lenaskitchenblog hashtag. I love browsing through the photos of your recreations!
Keto Cheeseburger Stuffed Mini Peppers
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef, Laura’s Lean 92% lean
- 14 mini peppers, halved and deseeded
- 4 oz mushrooms, stems removed and finely chopped
- 2 tbsp butter, unsalted
- 1 ½ tsp salt
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 small onion, grated, with the juice
- 1 egg white, large
- 1 ½ cup shredded mozzarella
- 1 cup marinara sauce
- 2 tbsp parsley, finely chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Spray a baking sheet with olive oil spray.
- In a pan on medium-high heat, melt the butter and add the finely chopped mushrooms. Cook for 5 minutes, moving the mushrooms around a few times. Add garlic and cook for an additional 1 minute.
- In a large bowl, combine the beef, cooked mushrooms and garlic, salt, grated onion, Worcestershire Sauce, and egg white. Mix to combine.
- Cut each pepper in half lengthwise and remove the seeds. Place them in the baking dish. Spoon some of the ground beef mixture into each pepper.
- Bake for 15 minutes or until the peppers have softened and the beef is cooked through.
- Top the peppers with cheese. Place them back in the oven and bake for additional 3-4 minutes. Top with chopped parsley and marinara sauce or serve more on the side for dipping.
Notes
Lana
Phenomenal appetizer! We had them with bacon bits on top and drizzled with BBQ sauce- so good. Picky-husband approved. Thank you Lena!