Cheesy Chicken Stuffed Peppers (Printable)

Tender bell peppers stuffed with chicken, rice, and cheddar, baked to golden perfection for a comforting main dish.

# What You’ll Need:

→ Vegetables

01 - 4 large bell peppers (any color), tops removed and seeds discarded
02 - 1 small onion, finely chopped
03 - 2 cloves garlic, minced

→ Protein

04 - 2 cups cooked shredded chicken (rotisserie or leftover)

→ Grains

05 - 1 cup cooked rice (white or brown)

→ Dairy

06 - 1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
07 - 1/4 cup cream cheese, softened

→ Pantry & Spices

08 - 1 can (14 oz) diced tomatoes, drained
09 - 1 teaspoon dried Italian herbs (or oregano and basil mix)
10 - 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
11 - 1/2 teaspoon salt
12 - 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
13 - 2 tablespoons olive oil

# Directions:

01 - Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly grease a baking dish large enough to hold bell peppers upright.
02 - Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Cook chopped onion for 2 to 3 minutes until softened. Add minced garlic and sauté for 30 seconds.
03 - In a large bowl, mix cooked shredded chicken, cooked rice, sautéed onion and garlic, drained diced tomatoes, 1 cup shredded cheddar, softened cream cheese, dried Italian herbs, smoked paprika, salt, and black pepper until uniformly blended.
04 - Fill each hollowed bell pepper evenly with the prepared mixture and place upright in the baking dish.
05 - Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup cheddar cheese on top of each stuffed pepper. Pour 2 to 3 tablespoons of water into the bottom of the baking dish to create steam during baking.
06 - Cover the dish loosely with aluminum foil and bake for 25 minutes.
07 - Remove foil and bake for an additional 10 minutes, or until cheese is golden brown and bubbly and peppers are tender.
08 - Allow peppers to cool slightly before serving for optimal flavor and texture.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • It's a complete meal in one pepper—no side dishes required, though a salad never hurts.
  • Rotisserie chicken does the heavy lifting, so you're looking at real hands-on time of maybe twenty minutes.
  • The filling reheats beautifully, making it perfect for meal prep or feeding a crowd on a lazy weekend.
  • There's just enough cheese to feel indulgent without derailing your week.
02 -
  • Don't skip draining the canned tomatoes—I learned this the hard way when my filling became a watery mess. A simple colander catches all that liquid in seconds.
  • Softening the cream cheese ahead of time makes mixing effortless. Cold cream cheese creates lumps that never quite incorporate smoothly.
  • Covering the peppers for the first half of baking is essential—it steams them tender. Removing the foil at the end lets the cheese brown, which is where the magic happens.
03 -
  • Buy peppers that are slightly underripe if you're making these in advance—they firm up as they sit and won't collapse when you fill and bake them.
  • Room-temperature filling goes into room-temperature peppers more smoothly than cold filling from the fridge—it reduces the baking time slightly and distributes more evenly.
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