These Chicken Parmesan Stuffed Peppers combine two comfort food favorites into one easy, delicious and satisfying dinner that the whole family will love!
Bell pepper halves are filled with a mixture of chicken, marinara sauce, mozzarella and parmesan cheeses, then they’re baked and topped with more mozzarella and buttery, crunchy panko breadcrumbs. Yum!
So, our little greenhouse garden is absolutely overflowing with bell peppers right now. And they are the most beautiful, perfect and tasty peppers that we’ve ever grown (props to David and his green thumb)!
I’ll be chopping and slicing most of them to put in the freezer to use in future meals – I won’t have to buy peppers for at least 6 months – but we’ve also been enjoying them raw and cooked in lots of different dishes.
We love making my Saucy Stuffed Bell Peppers, which are a more traditional version stuffed with ground beef, tomatoes and rice.
But we also like to change things up a bit, and so I’ve been trying to come up with some new stuffed pepper recipes, and these chicken parm stuffed bell peppers are our favorite one so far!
And I really think you’ll love them too because…well, pretty much everyone loves chicken parm, right?
Plus, they’re super simple to put together, and the oven does the rest of the work for you. It’s another winner chicken dinner!
Ingredients You Need:
Note: Ingredient amounts are in the recipe card below.
- Bell peppers (any color; I used green)
- Olive oil
- Chicken tenderloins (or boneless skinless chicken breasts)
- Garlic powder
- Salt
- Black pepper
- Marinara or spaghetti sauce (your favorite jarred or homemade sauce)
- Mozzarella cheese
- Parmesan cheese
- Water
- Seasoned panko breadcrumbs
- Butter
- Extra marinara or spaghetti sauce (for serving; optional but recommended)
- Fresh basil (for garnish; optional but recommended)
For a delicious simple homemade sauce, try my Quick and Easy Homemade Spaghetti Sauce. It’s ready in less than 30 minutes!
Note: The video above is just a brief overview of the steps. Scroll down to the recipe card for the full recipe with detailed instructions.
Recipe Tips & Tidbits:
- I definitely don’t skimp on the filling in this recipe, so try to get larger peppers.
- Of course, if all you have or can get are peppers that are on the smaller side, you might need one or two more to make up the difference (and a larger baking dish as well).
- It’s not necessary to boil or steam the peppers before stuffing and baking. As written, this recipe should give you tender-crisp peppers that aren’t super soft or mushy.
- If you want your peppers a lot softer, you can bake them longer (although you do risk the chicken drying out), or you can boil or steam the peppers for 2 to 3 minutes before filling to soften them up a bit.
- This recipe is also a great way to use up leftover roasted or rotisserie chicken (you could even use cooked breaded chicken fingers, tenders or nuggets).
- You’ll need 2 cups of diced, shredded or chopped cooked chicken.
- Omit the oil and skip the step of sautéing the chicken.
- Just mix together the chicken, sauce, cheeses, garlic powder, salt, and pepper, then stuff the peppers and bake.
- If you like a little spice, add some crushed red pepper flakes to the filling mixture.
- Want to make a larger batch? Double the recipe and use a 9x13x2-inch baking dish (cooking time should stay about the same or just a little longer).
Make-Ahead, Storing, and Freezing:
Make-Ahead:
- Prepare the recipe up to the point of stuffing the peppers with the chicken mixture.
- Allow them to cool, then cover and place in the refrigerator.
- Before cooking, remove the baking dish from the fridge and let it sit at room temperature for 30 minutes to take the chill off.
- Cover the dish with foil; bake and continue with the recipe as directed (baking time will probably be longer since the ingredients are colder).
Storing:
- Store any leftovers in the refrigerator, covered or in an airtight container, for up to 3 to 4 days (if you made them ahead, be sure to take that time into consideration).
- Before reheating, remove from the refrigerator and let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes to take the chill off.
- Reheat, covered with foil, in a 325°F oven until heated through, about 30 minutes.
Freezing:
Although you could freeze these, I don’t recommend it; they’re best when made fresh. Peppers can get overly soft and watery after being frozen, and the cheese in the filling and on top can change in texture (plus, the breadcrumbs will get soggy).
I love and highly recommend serving these with a little extra sauce and a sprinkle of chopped fresh basil. It takes them over the top and makes for a really nice presentation.
One stuffed pepper half is plenty for one serving if you’ve got side dishes such as salad, bread, etc. They’re more filling than you think!
See those dinner rolls? They’re my 90-Minute Dinner Rolls, and they go great with these peppers (as does my Homemade Garlic Bread).
I hope you try this Chicken Parmesan Stuffed Peppers recipe and love it as much as I do. Thanks for visiting today!
More Recipes With Bell Peppers You Might Like…
- Saucy Stuffed Bell Peppers
- Sausage and Peppers Pasta
- Chinese Pepper Steak Stir-Fry
- Country Captain Chicken
- Homemade Cheesesteaks with Mushrooms, Onions and Peppers
If you make this recipe, I’d love to know how it went! Please leave a star rating and comment below. Thanks!
Chicken Parmesan Stuffed Peppers
Ingredients
- 2 large bell peppers, any color (I used green)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 pound chicken tenderloins, cut into bite-sized pieces about ½ to ¾ inches big (or boneless skinless chicken breasts)
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- salt, to taste (I use about ½ teaspoon kosher salt)
- black pepper, to taste (I use about ¼ teaspoon)
- 1 cup marinara or spaghetti sauce, jarred or homemade
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
- ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
- ½ cup water
- ¼ cup seasoned panko breadcrumbs
- 1 tablespoon melted butter
- extra marinara sauce, heated, for serving (optional but recommended)
- chopped fresh basil, for garnish (optional but recommended)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Cut the peppers in half from top to bottom; remove the seeds, stems and membranes.
- Place the pepper halves, cut side up, in an 8x8x2-inch baking dish; set aside.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat (I use an 11 or 12-inch skillet).
- Add the chicken and season with the garlic powder, salt and pepper; sauté, stirring frequently, just until the chicken is cooked through and no longer pink, about 4 to 5 minutes.When seasoning the chicken, keep in mind that the parmesan cheese and sauce will also contain salt. I go lighter on the salt at this point and adjust it later if needed.
- Remove the skillet from the heat and add the 1 cup of the marinara sauce, 1½ cups of the mozzarella cheese, and the parmesan cheese; gently stir until well-combined.
- Divide the chicken mixture evenly among the pepper halves.The amount of filling is generous, and the peppers will be over-stuffed!
- Add the water to the baking dish (pour it down between the peppers and not over them).
- Cover the baking dish tightly with aluminum foil.
- Bake for 35 to 45 minutes or until the peppers are done to your liking.In this amount of time, you should get a tender-crisp pepper that is not super soft or mushy. To test for doneness, carefully insert a knife in the side of the pepper and see how easily it goes in.The peppers will release some water as they cook, so you will end up with more liquid in the baking dish than what you started with.
- While the peppers are baking, mix together the panko breadcrumbs and melted butter in a small bowl until well-combined.
- Remove the peppers from the oven and turn on the broiler (move the oven rack up if needed).
- Top each pepper with ¼ of the remaining mozzarella cheese (about 2 tablespoons each) and then ¼ of the panko mixture (about 1 tablespoon each).
- Broil just until the cheese is melted and the breadcrumbs are lightly golden brown, about 1 to 2 minutes (keep a close eye on them so they don't burn).
- Remove from the oven and let rest for 5 to 10 minutes before serving. Use a slotted spoon or spatula to remove the peppers from the cooking liquid.
- If desired, spoon some extra sauce on each plate, top with one of the stuffed pepper halves, and sprinkle with chopped fresh basil (highly recommended!).
Notes
- I usually use one 24-ounce jar of sauce when making these (1 cup goes in with the chicken to make the filling, and then I heat up the rest and use it for serving).
- This recipe is also a great way to use up leftover roasted or rotisserie chicken (you could even use cooked breaded chicken fingers, tenders or nuggets).
- You’ll need 2 cups of diced, shredded or chopped cooked chicken.
- Omit the oil and skip the step of sautéing the chicken.
- Just mix together the chicken, sauce, cheeses, garlic powder, salt, and pepper, then stuff the peppers and bake.
- Want to make a larger batch? Double the recipe and use a 9x13x2-inch baking dish (cooking time should stay about the same or just a little longer).
- Store any leftovers in the refrigerator, covered or in an airtight container, for up to 3 to 4 days. Reheat, covered with foil, in a 325°F oven until heated through, about 30 minutes.
- Estimated calories include extra sauce and basil.
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