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Simple Uses for Bell Peppers

 

When you have a large crop of bell peppers from the garden or farmstand, you don't have time to casually include them in complicated recipes or to frantically figure out how to use them up before they go bad without getting sick of them.  You want to make the most of your harvest and to actually enjoy it.


Here at Plant to Plate, we like to keep things simple!  Here are some of my favorite ways to use or preserve bell peppers:


  • Pair them with cheddar, feta, mozzarella, or most other cheeses.

  • Slice them and dip them in buffalo or sriracha sauces.

  • Add them to buffalo chicken dip or buffalo cauliflower dip.

  • Add them to casseroles and other bakes.

  • Add them to egg dishes like omelets and quiches.

  • Combine them with chicken and pineapple.  This combination works well whether the ingredients are sautéed, baked, or in a salad together.

  • Combine them with beef and onions.  This combination is great on its own, or it can be added to a variety of baked and cooked dishes.


  • Make a simple macaroni salad with bell peppers, celery, macaroni noodles, and an herbal vinegar of your choice.



  • Add them to other salads.

  • Make a simple soup with bell peppers, carrots, and orach or another leafy green.

  • Add them to other soups.

  • Grill, sauté, or stirfry them with onions and/or garlic.

  • Add them to pasta, rice, quinoa, or other grain-based dishes and bowls.

  • Make stuffed peppers.  Stuff them with any of the following combinations and bake:
    • Quinoa, turkey, or beef topped with cheese
    • Lamb, feta, and tzatziki
    • Taco-seasoned beef or other taco-seasoned meat
    • Ground turkey and sweet potatoes
    • Spinach, garlic, and cream cheese or ricotta

  • Toss them with corn and basil for a summery side.

  • Sauté or stirfry them with carrots and pine nuts.

  • Slice them and spread a mixture of cream cheese and chives on the slices.  This combination is delicious on its own, and you can also add other things you have on hand like basil, minced garlic, chopped nuts, oranges, and so on.

  • Make kabobs with them alongside grilled chicken, onion, and/or pineapple pieces.

  • Pickle them.  Bell peppers can be preserved using both traditional and quick-pickling methods.  They can be pickled alone or with basil, oregano, or other herbs.

  • Can them.  Pressure-canning is typically used for bell peppers.

  • Freeze them.  Dicing them first will make them easier to use when thawed, but they can also be frozen at any point after having the pith, stem, and seeds removed.



Further Reading

Growing bell peppers?  Check out these quick facts like their best growing conditions, companion plants, and expected yields.


Bell peppers are also featured in these articles:


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