Philly Cheese Steak Stuffed Peppers are a great alternative to their bread-y, traditional counterpart. Whip up a batch when the craving hits and you need to watch your carbs!
Still looking for a classic recipe? Check out my Easy Philly Cheesesteak! I mean…sometimes you just have to have bread, right?
These Philly Cheesesteak Stuffed Peppers are so perfect for you Keto-dieters out there. They are also a fun meal to make if you are gluten-free. What’s even better? They are great for meal-prepping. You can make all the ingredients ahead of time and quickly pop one in the oven on a busy weeknight.
So what inspired this dish? There’s a food truck here in Seattle that has the most killer Philly Cheesesteak Sliders. I would get them for lunch on days I really wanted to treat myself.
However, at the end of the day it’s the filling that really kept me coming back for more. As a result, I decided to experiment with a low-carb version and found that green peppers really elevated the richness of the beef. This recipe is truly a win-win for your taste buds and waistline!
We are huge fans of stuffed bell peppers and very often try to swap them in where we can and replace tortillas or bread. One of our most popular recipes last year was the Mexican Stuffed Bell Peppers. If you haven’t tried these bad boys, you must check them out.
How to Make Philly Cheesesteak Stuffed Peppers
- Gather your ingredients.
- Sautee mushrooms. Add diced onions and cook through. Remove and set aside.
- In the same skillet, cook sliced beef. Return the mushrooms and onions. Season to taste.
- Slice and clean peppers. Line the pepper with a slice of cheese. Top with filling and cover with another slice of cheese.
- Bake at 400℉ for 25 minutes.
Best Cut of Beef to Use for Philly Cheesesteak Stuffed Peppers
Ribeye is always amazing. It’s perfectly marbled and packs a ton of beef-y flavor. Amongst Philly cheesesteak enthusiasts, ribeye is considered the most authentic cut to use for this beloved street food. However, it is quite expensive a cut. If you are trying to be a bit more thrifty, opt for skirt steak. It’s easier on the wallet and perfect for pan-frying. You could also use top sirloin.
How to Cut Beef for Philly Cheesesteak Stuffed Peppers
Slice beef against the grain with a gentle sawing motion. The “grain” refers to the direction the muscle fibers are growing. You are going to want to cut across the grain, versus parallel to it. This helps maintain uniformity and prevents you from compromising the shape of the strips.
You also want to slice your beef as thinly as possible. This will set the stage for even cooking! Plus, thinner steak strips make for better pepper stuffing. The goal is to have a nice, even bite!
FAQ
Should peppers be cooked before stuffing?
This is totally a preference. I don’t pre-boil my peppers because I like a bit of bite, but if you like yours on the softer size place them in boiling water for 3-5 minutes.
What temperature do you cook stuffed peppers?
I find that 400°F is the perfect temperature for cooking stuffed peppers. If you reduce the temperature too much, they will take forever to soften.
Can I use ground beef instead?
Of course! Just make sure you do no less than 85 percent lean beef and drain the pan well after browning and before stuffing. You don’t want your peppers to fill up with a ton of grease.
Other Low-Carb Recipes to Try
- 30-Minute Low-Carb Chicken– More low-carb recipes to go around! This chicken is clutch during a busy weeknight.
- Low-Carb Lasagna Stuffed Peppers – Traditional lasagna is probably the furthest dish from being low-carb. This version hits the spot with zero guilt!
- Easy Chicken Fajitas Recipe – Make the fajitas and skip the tortillas. I like to throw the fajita mixture on chopped romaine lettuce with salsa for dressing.
- Philly Cheesesteak Casserole – All the amazing flavors of the classic cheesesteak flavors, minus the extra carbs!
Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 green bell peppers
- 1 lb mushrooms
- 1 onion
- 1 lb beef sliced into thin strips
- 12 slices Provolone cheese
- oil for cooking
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Prepare your ingredients.
- Preheat a deep skillet with oil. Add mushrooms and cook until they're slightly browned. Add diced onions and cook until golden brown. Remove the veggies from the skillet and set aside.
- In a same skillet, brown the sliced beef. Add the veggie mixture back into the pan and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Slice bell peppers near the top and clean out the inside. Line one slice of cheese on the inside of each pepper, top them off with the beef mixture, and cover with another slice of cheese.
- Bake stuffed peppers at 400℉ for 25 minutes.
The BEST meat to use is skirt steak!!! Cut into real thin strips. Just saying coming from Philly. I suggest you add a note about blanching the peppers, they can’t cook fully or with just a touch of crispness. People who are learning to cook most likely will not know this! Side notes would be great.
Hi Chérie, Thanks for the feedback and suggestions! We appreciate it!
You commented, Hi Val,
For information on the type of beef, please refer to the Best Cut of Beef to Use for Philly Cheesesteak Stuffed Peppers section. Where in the world is this section??? Can you not just tell us what cut of meat is the best? Your pic looks like a New York Strip Steak. Why does this haft to be so difficult? Imagine a bunch of 75 yr olds on here wondering where in the world is the best to use for Philly Cheesesteak Stuffed Peppers section was? Shame on you!
Hi Scott, we're not trying to offend, we want our readers to know that we answer these questions within the blog post itself, that way they don't have to wait for a response to a question that has been answered. 🙂 We try to make it as informative as possible for everyone! Happy to answer directly as well of course: we recommend using ribeye, top sirloin or skirt steak. Enjoy!
I have these in oven right now and I can already tell they are going to be amazing. Should I have them covered with foil while cooking?
Hey Theresa, we don't cover them, I like the golden crispy tops and slightly crunchy peppers. But if you prefer a softer pepper, you can wrap them and boil for a min at the end. Hope you enjoy it!
You mention slicing the peppers near the top, but your picture shows the peppers sliced long way. I don't suppose it really matters but the text should match the images. I have some of these cooking right now and I suspect they will be divine.
Hi there! I see where its confusing, I mention slicing near the top as a starting point. So you are correct, the bell peppers are to be sliced in half (long way). Thank you for pointing this out.
We love this recipe I only add two extra ingredients...I put a little Worcestershire sauce and some white American cheese in the meat mixture...then assemble according to this recipe YUMMMM
Oh yum!! Worcestershire and extra cheese is always a good call! Thanks for sharing, Carri. 🙂
Have made this recipe several times already. Absolutely yummy!! And low carb makes it a favorite in my house.
Sue, this is amazing! You made my day! 🙂 Thanks for sharing.
What could I replace the mushrooms with?
Hi Susan- You can add more meat or onion instead if you'd like!
How would you cut down the sodium for people on a very low sodium diet?
Hey Judie, Sodium in this recipe comes from salt. I would reduce the amount of salt. Hope you love it!
What kind of beef are you using? Looks delicious!
Hi Val,
For information on the type of beef, please refer to the Best Cut of Beef to Use for Philly Cheesesteak Stuffed Peppers section.
Can these be frozen?
Hi Sharon, I wouldn't recommend that because frozen bell peppers tend to be watery.
My only suggestion. Is to pre-cook your peppers for like 10 or 15 minutes. With this cook time my peppers where still kinda hard. But other than that it was delicious.
Thanks for that tip, it's definitely a preference thing. Hope you still enjoyed it.
This was delicious! Next time I would roast the peppers for 20 - 30 mins before stuffing. They were a little to crisp for my taste. Otherwise 👍👍👍👍
Thank you for that tip! I'm so glad you enjoyed the recipe!
What would you recommend to serve on the side of this?
I would serve it with a salad or even pickled veggies. See our sides & salad section. Enjoy
I am so confused. You say 3 bell peppers, but there are four in the picture provided. Also you say 12 slices of provolone, but you only use 2 per pepper and with 3 peppers that makes 6. Should I have gotten 6 peppers instead of 3? I started cooking and I can already tell all this mixture is not going to fit in the 3 peppers. Please read back back over your directions and fix them. Good recipe though.
Hey Rebecca, use 3 whole bell peppers. Split them in half. See the rest of the instructions in step 4. Each half of bell pepper would need two pieces of cheese. I hope this helps and so happy you enjoyed the recipe.
You are so kind. Can't wait to try these.
Let me know how it goes!
It was really good . But I did boil the peppers 🫑 for 10 minutes and cheddar would’ve been way better and also I. Oils to put the slice of cheese on top til 5 remaining minutes it over cooked the cheese for me. But def a recipe I’ll make more often
Thank you for the tips, Angela! I'm so glad you enjoyed the recipe and that you will be making it again!
What kind of meat did you use and did? And, you just cut it into bite-size pieces?
I used deli roast beef and added it to the mushroom mixture- it worked great!
I did to it works great I have fixed 3 times like that cheaper then roast beef love it terry
Terry,
I am so glad Chris' variation worked so well for you. Thank you for taking the time to comment this will be super helpful for others to read 😊
Hey Deb, see section "Best Cut of Beef to Use for Philly Cheesesteak Stuffed Peppers", we shared all the tips.
This recipe is great. Very tasty. It is one of my favorites.
Thank you, Kathy! I'm so glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Do you have to par-bake the peppers? Or will they cook down nice and soft within the 25 minutes in the oven?
Hi Kelsey, that depends on what you enjoy. I don't pre-boil my peppers because I like the difference in texture and a bit of crunch, but if you like yours on the softer size place them in boiling water for 3-5 minutes. I hope that helps 😊
Love, love, love this! Such an easy way to get a delicious and satisfying dinner on the table. So easy to change it up or customize it to your liking.
Right?! I love how customizable it is, perfect for picky eaters.
These look so delicious and tasty! My husband is going to love this recipe! I can't wait to give this a try!
I hope you love the recipe, Beth!
This is really good!! Everyone at my house loved it!
I'm so glad it was a hit, thank you for your feedback 🙂
Do you think this meal would be just as delicious with red and orange peppers instead of green? Trying to use up my veggies and that's what I have!
This sounds delicious and am excited to try it, just hope the flavor doesn't change too much with the different peppers.
Hi Kelsey, if I had red and orange peppers on hand, in would definitely use them up. I think the flavor would still be great. Enjoy!
Have made it twice now. Superb. Used cheddar and gruyere as cant get your cheese in uk. (Not in rural Devon at least)One question. How big are your bell peppers!!. I made the dish for 4 halves but masses of filling over. Meant I had it 2 nights running. No problem but maybe reduce the quantity a bit? Sx
Hey Stuart, they are medium size bell peppers. I do have a video for this recipe on our Youtube channel, that might be useful. Enjoy
Could you use chicken? My wife cannot eat red meat. This looks so delish. Thank You Bob
Hi Bob, yes for sure. You may need to just cooking time. The chicken cooks quicker but for sure.
Hi there. Is there a way to make them less watery? I maybe missed a step there. Otherwise they were sooo good!!
Hmm, mine were not watery. Was the beef fresh or frozen?
Mine were watery too... I was trying to figure out why my mushrooms and onions weren’t browning... I did rinse the mushrooms and didn’t let them dry for very long, but it didn’t add more water. I felt my frying pan was REALLY full but otherwise could not figure out why...
Hey Stephanie, We don't recommend rinsing mushrooms. They absorb water like a sponge. I would suggest using a paper towel to wipe them down.
Naralya i absolutely love your recipes they are exciting and smart Thankyou very much
Hey Maxine, thank you so much! What a sweet comment. You made my day!
Could I substitute the Provolone for Pepper Jack cheese?
Hey Kiki, yes for sure. It would just change the taste of the cheese. Enjoy!
Wow love this, its super awesome 🙂
Hey, thank you dear! Glad you love it.
I just made this recipe and it was really delicious. Would you happen to know the serving size? Is it one half or a whole bell pepper (2 halfs)?
Hye Erika, thank you for sharing your feedback. I am so happy you loved it. Serving size is for 1/2 a bell pepper.
Thanks Natalya
Is there anything you would recommend as a substitute for the mushrooms (I am allergic)? Thank you!
Maybe try lentils. They have an earthy flavor.
Melissa, you can just skip on them altogether. They just add a lot of flavor to the dish.