Close your eyes, take a bite, and lean into the sensations. Roasted stuffed bell peppers are a truly delicious dish, one that brings together a complex array of flavors and textures. They’re easy to love and surprisingly simple to make. They’re even filling enough that you could eat one as a meal all on its own – but where’s the fun in that?
The only way to make stuffed peppers better is to choose an exceptional side or two to serve with them. Now… deciding what to serve with stuffed peppers can be a little tricky, as the peppers are complex and filling. The easy answer to that is to look for relatively simple stuffed pepper sides, such as a fresh salad, steamed veggies, or roasted mushrooms.
However, as you’ll see from this list, simple sides aren’t the only way to go. You can easily make simpler stuffed peppers and use them alongside mains like pork chops or chicken breast.
Which sides are best? The answer ultimately depends on your flavor preferences and how you’re building your stuffed peppers. Don’t worry though, there aren’t any wrong answers. Your peppers will be delicious regardless of the sides you put with them.
What To Serve With Stuffed Peppers (12 Sides To Try)
A Simple Salad
Let’s begin with the most obvious side – a simple salad. Salads work well with most mains, as they’re refreshing and offer a nice texture contrast.
Even more crucially, salads can be very light. That’s excellent alongside a sophisticated main like stuffed peppers. After all, you may already have meat, veggies, and perhaps even rice inside the peppers – you don’t need to add a whole lot else.
This means that you’ll generally want a simple salad, as stuffed peppers already have plenty going on. If your peppers are smaller or use a simple filling, you might want a more complex salad, perhaps even a chicken Caesar salad or similar. Thankfully, there are many types of salads out there.
Rainbow Carrot Quinoa Salad
This Rainbow Carrot Quinoa Salad shows just how stunning salads can be. It’s made using freshly cooked quinoa, shaved rainbow carrots, pistachios, parsley, dill, feta, and a delicious dressing.
The quinoa is served shortly after cooking, so this ends up being a warm salad rather than a cold one. That’s perfect for the cool autumn and winter months.
The recipe looks best if you use colored heirloom carrots, including purple carrots and white carrots. Still, those carrots aren’t essential. They have the same flavor as regular orange carrots anyway, so you can just use whichever ones you have in the fridge.
Mashed Potatoes
Mashed potatoes might just be the perfect side. They have a fantastic creamy texture and a mild flavor that complements most mains (including meat-based main dishes and vegetarian ones).
When it comes to stuffed peppers, the texture contrast really sells the pairing. The mildness helps as well. After all, your stuffed peppers should have plenty of flavor already – you don’t need a flavor-packed side.
To really sell this pairing, try serving your stuffed peppers directly on a bed of mashed potatoes.
Mashed potatoes and stuffed peppers work even better if you avoid using rice in your stuffed peppers. That way, you’re not overdoing it with the carbs.
Rustic Garlic Parmesan Mashed Potatoes
If regular mashed potatoes seem a little boring, why not try these Rustic Garlic Parmesan Mashed Potatoes instead? The flavor profile is obvious from the name alone – we’re talking about mashed potatoes with plenty of garlic and parmesan.
There’s also the rustic part to consider. The term refers to how the potatoes are mashed with their skins still on. Doing so adds a little color and flavor to the dish. Plus, you don’t need to peel the potatoes, making this a very easy side to prepare.
Garlic Bread
Garlic bread is a classic side, one that’s packed with flavor (and a fair amount of butter!). The combination of garlic, butter, and bread is stunning on its own and even better when paired with a side like stuffed peppers.
The traditional garlic bread recipe can also be tweaked to make it healthier. For example, you might ditch the white bread and use a whole grain loaf of bread instead.
A few recipes even skip the garlic butter itself. They use garlic within the bread itself, which gives you some of the same flavor notes with much less fat.
Buttery Homemade Garlic Knots
These Buttery Homemade Garlic Knots are seriously stunning. They have all the beautiful softness of homemade rolls and have been slathered with a butter garlic sauce to boost their flavor considerably.
The rolls do require a bit of effort, as each roll is made from a strip of dough that has been tied into a knot. But, don’t worry, the rolls aren’t difficult at all. It should only take you a couple of tries to get used to the approach, then you’re away.
Making knots with the dough even has practical benefits. Doing so creates creases in the rolls that the butter can seep into. Delicious, right?
Cornbread
Sometimes you’re looking for something light and straightforward to accompany your stuffed peppers. Cornbread is perfect for this, especially as the softness works well with the varied texture of your pepper and its fillings.
Some recipes even use crumbled cornbread instead of rice in the stuffed peppers, which tweaks the flavor and texture of the finished dish. This is perfect if you’re getting bored of conventional stuffed peppers.
Or, if you’re serving cornbread on the side, you could make more exciting versions of cornbread. For example, some recipes use jalapenos for a spicy kick, while others rely on vegetables. You could even used chopped bell peppers in your cornbread to create a nice parallel or experiment with keto cornbread recipes.
Cheddar Jalapeno Cornbread Muffins
Instead of making a large skillet of cornbread, why not try these Cheddar Jalapeno Cornbread Muffins instead? They’re perfectly sized to act as a side to your peppers, plus they have extra flavor from the cheese and jalapenos.
Notably, this isn’t a complicated recipe. It relies on familiar cornbread ingredients, including yellow cornmeal, self-rising flour, baking powder, and buttermilk. If you’ve made cornbread before, most of the ingredients and steps will be immediately familiar.
Steamed Veggies
If your stuffed peppers rely heavily on meat and rice as fillings, then you might want some extra vegetables as a side dish. Steamed vegetables are a great option, as they retain most of their natural flavor and nutrients, and are easy to prepare.
You can also season the vegetables to make them more exciting. Fresh herbs, salt, pepper, and olive oil are common choices here. For a more complex flavor profile, try pesto, herbed butter, or sauce over the vegetables.
The next question is: Which vegetables do you steam? You could choose a selection, including the classics like carrots, broccoli, and cauliflower. Or, you might just select a single favorite, like green beans or asparagus.
Stovetop Steamed Vegetable Medley
This Stovetop Steamed Vegetable Medley relies on carrots, asparagus, green beans, broccoli, and cauliflower. Parsley, butter, and white pepper are then used for flavor.
It’s a great recipe for beginners, as the timing instructions show you exactly when to add each vegetable to the steamer. This is crucial, as vegetables have different cooking times. Putting them all in at the same time simply won’t work.
You could easily add more types of vegetables or remove a few. The general approach will be the same no matter way – just make sure you get the cooking times right.
Roasted Root Vegetables
If steaming vegetables isn’t your thing, what about roasting them instead? This is perfect for root vegetables (including some of the more obscure root vegetables).
Roasting vegetables is powerful for another reason too – it’s a very hands off approach. You simply get everything prepped and let the oven do its thing. Well, okay, you’ll need to flip the veggies once, but that’s it.
Roast veggies also have a completely different texture and flavor to your stuffed bell peppers. This makes them excellent as a contrasting side. Besides, you’re already using the oven to make your stuffed peppers, so why not make another dish at the same time?
Honey Roasted Vegetables
These Honey Roasted Vegetables add another element to the equation – honey. The honey provides extra flavor and a slight sweetness, making the vegetables even tastier than normal.
The vegetables of choice are beets, parsnips, carrots, Brussels sprouts, and red onions. Using beets is especially fun, as they end up slightly staining your other vegetables (if that doesn’t appeal to you, try making the same dish using golden beets instead). Of course, you could easily make this using different root vegetables.
Roasted Mushrooms
We can’t ignore mushrooms, can we? They have a delicious earthy flavor and a unique texture that makes them stand out.
Roasting mushrooms is an excellent approach. This helps to concentrate their flavor and highlight some of their natural sweetness. You don’t need many ingredients either, just the mushrooms, some type of fat, and perhaps herbs and spices for seasoning.
So then, which type of mushroom do you want to use? White mushrooms are a popular starting point, as they have a mild flavor. Or, perhaps you want something more intense, like portobello mushrooms or shiitake mushrooms.
Garlic Butter Roasted Mushrooms
These Garlic Butter Roasted Mushrooms use garlic, thyme, and plenty of butter to provide an amazing flavor profile. The ingredients list is short, so you’ll probably already have all you need on hand.
You’re not limited to the pictured mushrooms when making this recipe. The same ingredients and flavor profile could be used for other mushrooms as well.
Lemon Potatoes
Lemon potatoes are easily overlooked, yet they’re a delicious and easy-to-prepare side dish. The dish hails from Greek cuisine and is often made from wedges of potatoes seasoned with herbs, olive oil, and lemon juice.
Yet, there’s more to this dish than just adding lemon juice. It also relies on an interesting cooking method, where the potatoes are first simmered in a flavorful broth and are then roasted.
This two-step cooking approach infuses the potatoes with a rich lemony flavor, then crisps them up. The potatoes end up deliciously tender on the inside and crisp on the outside. What could be better than that?
Slow Roasted Greek Lemon Potatoes
These Slow Roasted Greek Lemon Potatoes show just how delicious lemon potatoes can be. The recipe relies on the potatoes themselves, plus chicken broth, olive oil, lemon juice, and various seasoning ingredients. The seasoning ingredients are all important, as these make the potatoes so rich and flavorful.
You’ll need to allow ample time for this recipe, as the potatoes are cooked for an hour and a half in a 350°F oven. Still… this is a very hands-off recipe. You don’t even need to stir the potatoes.
Chicken Breast
Thus far, we’ve been focusing on vegetables and carb-based sides, as stuffed peppers often contain a decent amount of protein. But, what if you’re making vegetarian stuffed peppers? Or, if you’re very hungry? Those situations call for some extra protein alongside your peppers.
Chicken breast is the perfect choice, as it’s basically a blank canvas. There are endless ways to season, coat, and serve chicken, giving you plenty of different meals (such as this Cajun-Spiced Chicken Breast).
If regular chicken breast seems too boring, why not try a more creative version? Some recipes even involve stuffing the chicken breast with other ingredients, like chicken kiev, where the chicken is stuffed with garlic butter, coated with breadcrumbs, and fried.
Chicken Cordon Bleu
This Chicken Cordon Bleu recipe is one of the best versions of chicken breast. It’s stuffed with rich black forest ham and gruyere Swiss cheese, then covered with panko breadcrumbs and parmesan, and finished with a creamy Dijon sauce.
Despite the amazing golden color of the breadcrumbs, this isn’t a deep fried recipe. The chicken is baked instead, making this a fairly healthy low-mess dish.
Pair this chicken cordon bleu with a vegetable-heavy stuffed pepper and perhaps some mashed potatoes, and you have yourself a full meal.
Grated Carrot Salad
If you want something vibrant, try serving a grated carrot salad alongside your stuffed peppers. This creates an excellent flavor contrast, especially if you’re serving stuffed green peppers rather than red ones.
The carrot tends to dominate this type of salad, so you get to enjoy its natural sweetness and flavor nuances. You can add extra ingredients, like chopped nuts, raisins, or fresh herbs to create a more complex and varied dish.
Some carrot salads also rely on a dressing, like a simple vinaigrette. This dressing complements the carrots without overpowering them.
Healthy Carrot Raisin Salad
This Healthy Carrot Raisin Salad is everything you could wish for. It uses carrots, raisins, nuts, and seeds to give you a fantastic texture, plus a collection of spices, lemon juice, orange juice, maple syrup, and other ingredients to create a complex flavor.
The collection of ingredients gives you an engaging salad that’s very easy to enjoy. Plus, you’re getting a decent hit of vegetables. That’s perfect if your bell peppers are mostly filled with meat and cheese.
Crusty Homemade Bread
What could be simpler than a loaf of freshly baked bread? You have a fluffy light interior, a crispy exterior, and just the right amount of flavor.
Plus, if you’re making the bread yourself, you have full control over how you make it. Perhaps you move away from regular all-purpose flour and experiment with other options, like rye flour, whole wheat flour, or even gluten-free flour.
Or, perhaps you use some interesting mix-ins instead, like parmesan cheese, sunflower seeds, dried herbs, or even chopped apples. And those are just a few options. There are countless other ways to make your bread exciting.
Crusty Italian Parmesan Bread
Don’t be fooled by the simplicity of this Crusty Italian Parmesan Bread. Simple or not, the bread offers a stunning flavor.
It’s also an easy recipe to tweak, as most of the savory notes come from the garlic, onion powder, basil, and parsley on top of the bread. You could skip these to create a more versatile loaf of bread.
The one catch is that the recipe relies on a cast iron Dutch oven. It simply won’t turn out the same if you try to cook it any other way. But, Dutch ovens are often pretty inexpensive, so it could be worth getting one for yourself.
Sautéed Spinach
Finally, we have sautéed spinach. This is perfect if you want just a single vegetable without complex flavors.
Making sautéed spinach is as simple as heating oil in a skillet and adding your spinach into the pan. Then, you just cook the spinach for a couple of minutes until it has wilted. You’ll normally start with a large amount of spinach, as it cooks down dramatically.
You can also add herbs, spices, or other ingredients to make the side more flavorful. The same techniques work for other dark leafy greens as well.
Sautéed Spinach With Garlic And Lemon
This Sautéed Spinach with Garlic and Lemon uses garlic, lemon juice, and crushed red pepper to make the spinach even more flavorful. The process starts with cooking your garlic in olive oil in a deep skillet, then adding the spinach.
The red pepper flakes are added at the end and give the side an exciting kick. These are fantastic, although you could easily skip them if you’re not a fan of spice.
Pairing Stuffed Bell Peppers With Sides
The sides we’ve highlighted are all stunning options. However, the best choice will depend on exactly how you’ve made your peppers, so let’s look at some of the options.
Meat-Based Stuffed Peppers
Stuffed peppers often combine ground beef, rice, tomatoes, and onions. This version is filling and almost a complete meal on its own. To accompany it, you’ll need a light side, such as a salad or sautéed spinach.
You could also drop the rice out of the recipe and then serve a carb-based side like garlic bread or mashed potatoes. Still, whatever you do, you’re not likely to need more protein.
Peppers With Rice And Vegetables
Some vegetarian recipes drop out the ground beef and just use a combination of rice, vegetables, and herbs. Such stuffed peppers are much lower in protein, so you’ll need some protein alongside them, like chicken breast or perhaps a smothered pork chop.
The same approach applies for any other low protein stuffed peppers, like those that use a combo of rice and cheese.
Smaller Stuffed Peppers
The term stuffed peppers normally refers to stuffed bell peppers, particularly stuffed green peppers. Delicious as these are, they’re not your only choice.
Sometimes, you’ll be making smaller stuffed peppers, including stuffed jalapeño peppers or stuffed sweet banana peppers. Here, you’ll want a fairly large side or perhaps two sides to give you a full meal. A source of protein, like chicken or pork, plus some greens would be an excellent approach. You might even include some garlic bread as well.
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