A delicious stuffed banana peppers recipe filled with chopped beef, melty cheese and lots of seasonings. Great for an easy dinner, side dish, or party platter.
Stuffed Banana Peppers Recipe
I get this question like this very often - "Hey, Mike! What can I make with banana peppers? My garden is exploding with them right now."
Banana peppers are hugely popular peppers. They're easy to grow and the plants are usually quite productive, producing a lot of peppers.
You can use them in all sorts of ways, from chopping and sautéing them as part of your mirepoix, to making salsas, tossing them into salads, or pickling them.
Or, you can use them up in one of my favorite ways - Stuffed Banana Peppers.
Banana peppers are excellent stuffing peppers. They're just big enough to hold whatever stuffing you're in the mood for.
The pepper walls aren't very thick, yet they offer a bit of sweet crunch when eaten raw, and soften up nicely during the cooking process.
A Bit About Banana Peppers
The sweet banana pepper is a mild, medium-sized pepper with a tangy, slightly sweet taste. They offer very little heat, if any at all, and are considered more of a sweet pepper, not hot peppers, though you can occasionally find hot banana peppers.
Compared to the mildest jalapeno pepper, it is 5 times milder. They're also known as the yellow wax pepper or banana chili.
You'll find them commonly eaten on pizza, in Greek salads, on sandwiches, or stuffed with meat and/or cheese, which is one of my favorite ways to use them.
Learn more about banana peppers here.
Let's talk about how we make stuffed banana peppers, shall we?
Stuffed Banana Peppers Recipe
First, heat an oven to 400 degrees F.
Slice your banana peppers in half lengthwise, core them and them onto a large baking sheet.
Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat and add the chopped steak - or use Italian sausage or ground meats. Season with garlic, paprika, salt and pepper.
Cook the meat through, then cool and stuff into the pepper halves.
Bake for 15 minutes.
Alternatively, you can grill the stuffed banana peppers for 15 minutes, or broil them for 6-7 minutes, until the cheeses are nice and melty.
Remove from heat and set onto serving plates.
Top with chopped green onion, spicy chili flakes and hot sauce, if desired.
BOOM! Easy recipe, right? And quite satisfying. I love a simple stuffed pepper recipe.
Recipe Tips
- The Stuffing. I used chopped flank steak for these stuffed banana peppers, though you are free to use any cut of steak that you'd like. It also works for any ground meat, like sausage, beef, pork, turkey or chicken. I've made this recipe with leftover carne asada before, and it was extremely delicious.
- The Cheese. You can also use any type of cheese that you'd like, but it is best to use a cheese that is more melty, like cheddar or pepperjack. Harder cheeses won't melt and you may not enjoy the consistency, though parmesan cheese is a nice addition. You can also swap out the meat and go with a very soft cheese, like goat cheese or cream cheese.
- The Peppers. Your banana peppers are not very thick walled and should soften up nicely during cooking. However, if you'd prefer very soft stuffed peppers, blanch the cored out peppers in hot water for a couple minutes before stuffing them. This will soften them up even more.
- Add a Sauce. Spoon on some of your favorite hot sauce or chili sauce for a nice flavor addition, or consider a spicy marinara sauce. Yum.
Storage & Leftovers
Stuffed banana peppers will last up to 5 days in the refrigerator in a sealed container. You can easily warm them in the oven to enjoy again.
Or, you can freeze them for 2-3 months in freezer containers.
That's it, my friends! I hope you enjoy the stuffed banana peppers. They're great for a simple weeknight meal, but they are also popular to serve as an appetizer. Time to get stuffing! Enjoy.
Cookbook Recommendation
If you enjoy spicy cooking, I hope you'll check out my cookbook! 75 easy recipes with big, bold flavor.
- The Spicy Food Lovers' Cookbook, by Mike Hultquist (affiliate link, my friends!)
Try Some of My Other Popular Stuffed Pepper Recipes
- Classic Stuffed Peppers (Stuffed Bell Peppers)
- Vegan Stuffed Peppers
- Cajun Cream Cheese Stuffed Anaheim Peppers
- Chicken and Cheese Stuffed Anaheim Peppers
- Easy Italian Sausage Stuffed Peppers
- Cream Cheese Stuffed Poblano Peppers
- Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers
- Cajun Chicken Stuffed Poblano Peppers
- Cajun Shrimp Stuffed Poblano Peppers
- Stuffed Poblano Peppers
- See all of my Stuffed Pepper Recipes
Got any questions? Ask away! I’m happy to help. If you enjoy this recipe, I hope you’ll leave a comment with some STARS. Also, please share it on social media. Don’t forget to tag us at #ChiliPepperMadness. I’ll be sure to share! Thanks! — Mike H.
Stuffed Banana Peppers Recipe
Ingredients
- 10 banana peppers or more as needed, depending on the size
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 8 ounces beef or steak finely chopped (*)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 4 ounces shredded gouda cheese or use your favorite melty cheese
Instructions
- Heat an oven to 400 degrees.
- Slice the banana peppers in half lengthwise and core them out. Set them onto a large baking sheet.
- Heat the oil in a medium pan and add the chopped steak. Season with garlic, paprika, salt and pepper. Cook about 5 minutes, or until the beef/steak is cooked to your liking.
- Spoon the seasoned beef mixture into the peppers, then top each with shredded cheese.
- Bake for 15 minutes. Alternatively, you can grill the stuffed banana peppers for 15 minutes, or broil them for 6-7 minutes, until the cheeses are nice and melty.
- Remove from heat and set onto serving plates.
- Top with chopped green onion, spicy chili flakes and hot sauce, if desired.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Crystal says
What is the calories for this recipe? I see that it says 104 calories, is that per half pepper?
Mike Hultquist says
Yes, that is per stuffed half pepper. Enjoy!
Amber says
Great snack! Delicious and healthy make a perfect blend. Thank you. I had no idea what to do with so many peppers. Now, let's talk about those serrano peppers. ;-}
Mike Hultquist says
Thanks, Amber! Glad to help! I do have a number of serrano pepper recipes on the site, too! See: https://www.chilipeppermadness.com/serrano-pepper-recipes/. Also, you'll find a lot more in the search. Enjoy the harvest!!
Renee says
These were delicious. I didn’t have enough banana peppers so I bought Hungarian peppers and I liked them better because of the heat. Next time I’ll add the cheese at the end because it melted too much.
Mike Hultquist says
Glad you enjoyed them, Renee!
Billy says
I wished I’d seen this before I grown them I would have looked after them better I’ll keep some seed for next year
Laura says
I made these and they were delicious! Plan to make them
Again this week. Great way to enjoy banana peppers other than tossing in a salad!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Laura! Glad you enjoyed them!
Pearl Rapley says
I haven’t cook these yet but I’m positive I will like them. I Have lots of peppers and was looking for a recipe. This is it! Thanks
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
I hope you enjoy them, Pearl.
David Earley says
I have Banana Peppers growing in my garden and I was not sure the best way to utilize them. Thank you very much for this recipe, They were delicious. I am vegetarian so I swapped out the meat for impossible meat and it was delicious!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Wonderful!
Laura says
These sound amazing. Do you think
I could freeze some?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
You surely can, Laura. Check out my post on Freezing Stuffed Peppers: https://www.chilipeppermadness.com/cooking-with-chili-peppers/freezing-stuffed-peppers/
Memory K. says
These were delicious! Thank you for the recipe.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Memory! Super happy you enjoyed it!!
Janice Kopsho says
I have fixed this twice. It is very easy and we liked it a lot. I used turkey sausage crumbles that are precooked. So quick. The only change I made was to just cut one side of the pepper and fill it. We liked it that way better than cutting it completely in half.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Janice! Glad you enjoyed it!
Karly says
This is my jam! I love any kind of stuffed peppers! Thanks for sharing.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Karly! Me too!
Matthew Scrivens says
I know you wrote a couple of articles for Chile Pepper Magazine. Do you know if they closed down the magazine?
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Matthew, yes, I wrote for them for a couple years. They definitely closed down the magazine. Bummer.