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Whole30 Un-Stuffed Bell Pepper Soup – all the flavors of a stuffed bell pepper in a hearty, comforting, and easy soup!
Similar to a classic stuffed pepper recipe, this soup is packed with all of the familiar flavors like ground beef and tomatoes, but instead of rice, I have subbed in cauliflower rice to keep this dish Whole30 compatible. Since cauliflower rice cooks so quickly, simply ladle the hot soup over a little bit of cauliflower rice in a bowl then dinner is ready to serve.
I really enjoy the hearty Italian flavors in this dish, and the addition of the Italian sausage in the soup really elevates the flavor profile. The comforting flavors in this soup blend together so well. The peppers and tomatoes offer a subtle sweet flavor, while the beef and sausage pack in that big hearty flavor that is reminiscent of a traditional stuffed pepper.
This dish is perfect for meal prep as the flavors build day after day, making it even better for leftovers! Also if you have someone in your house that doesn’t find soup to be a filling meal, I can assure you this one will fill them up. My husband, who (wrongly) claims that soup is not a full meal, didn’t complain a bit when gobbling up a bowl of this soup. Not to mention, my kiddos loved it, also. I would personally love to add hot Italian sausage to my soup, but in order to keep the dish family-friendly I used mild Italian sausage. If you are doing a Whole30 and looking for a meal to feed the whole family, this one will definitely do the trick!
If you are looking for more hearty, healthy soups, here are a few of our favorites:
Whole30 Chicken Enchilada Soup
Whole30 Creamy Chicken and Potato Chowder
Whole30 Un-Stuffed Bell Pepper Soup
Ingredients
- 1 cup small-diced yellow onion
- 2 green bell peppers core removed and diced medium
- 1 red bell pepper core removed and diced medium
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 pound bulk mild Italian sausage
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- One 15-ounce can fire roasted diced tomatoes
- One 15-ounce can tomato sauce
- 4 cups low-sodium beef broth
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- ¼ cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley plus more for garnish
- 2 cups riced cauliflower optional for serving (freshly riced, not frozen)
Instructions
- In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion, bell peppers, and garlic and cook, stirring, until tender, about 5 minutes.
- Add the beef and the Italian sausage and cook, breaking up the meat with the edge of a wooden spoon, until cooked through or no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Drain off excess fat.
- Add the tomato paste, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes and stir until well combined. Pour in the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, beef broth, oregano, basil, and parsley. Bring soup to a rapid simmer.
- Reduce the heat to a light simmer, cover and let cook to allow the flavors to mend, 15 to 20 minutes.
- To serve, add about ¼ cup of raw, riced cauliflower to the bottom of a serving bowl (if using). Ladle the hot soup over the riced cauliflower. Garnish with more parsley or basil, if desired.
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Delicious!! Definitely a keeper. So easy to make. We used frozen cauliflower rice because that is what I had. Even my husband who typically doesn’t care for cauliflower rice, said he thought it was great.
yay!!! So glad you both loved it!
Hi can this be frozen???
absolutely!
Can I add black beans? I prefer to not use any rice is that ok as well?
These flavors are more Italian-inspired, so I wouldn’t add black beans here. Garbanzo beans could be a nice legume addition! or white kidney beans!