Shane’s beloved pepper poppers from Stardew Valley! Make your own pepper poppers at home with this easy recipe for baked mini bell peppers stuffed with cheese, breadcrumbs and spices. Baked to cheesy perfection in just 20 minutes, this recipe is the perfect vegetable side dish or vegetarian dinner feature.
Pepper poppers! These grilled peppers stuffed with cheese and breadcrumbs were super delicious and I was completely shocked at how fast we ate them. Literally seconds – they were just gone!
I made these with sweet mini bell peppers since that’s what’s readily available in my area, but you could also use the more traditional jalapeño peppers for this recipe too.
I completely understand why Shane from Stardew Valley loves these so much – they are really good, plus they would pair very well with a pint of beer (or any cold summer beverage for that matter). It would be too easy to make these as a pre-dinner appetizer, for a happy hour get-together, or to enjoy while watching your favourite sports team. They’re similar in function to a plate of nachos.
These would also be perfect as a stand alone vegetarian dinner for two, or they could be served a delicious veggie side dish alongside other dinner features.
In any case, they are pretty easy to make and don’t take too long either – 40 minutes from start to finish. It takes about 20 minutes to cut all the peppers in half and stuffing cheese and breadcrumbs into them, then 20 minutes to bake them in the oven at 375˚F / 190˚C / Gas Mark 5.
A few dishes I would consider pairing pepper poppers with (say, for a patio dinner with friends or family) include my survival burgers with roasted eggplant and carrot black bean patties, homemade potato salad with pickled red onions, crispy roasted potato fries, or my creamy coleslaw with maple and Dijon mustard.
Pepper Poppers in Stardew Valley
Pepper poppers in Stardew Valley are described as “spicy breaded peppers filled with cheese”. You can make pepper poppers using a cookout kit or in the farmhouse kitchen by simply combining a spicy pepper and some cheese.
Of course, we all know who LOVES pepper poppers… Shane! He will send you the recipe in the mail once you have 3 hearts of friendship with him. As far as Shane is concerned, pepper poppers are the way to his heart in general. So, if you’re wanting to woo Shane, just shower him with lots and lots of pepper poppers.
Stardew Valley Pepper Poppers: Spicy Pepper + Cheese
You can also sometimes find pepper poppers for sale on Saturdays from Krobus’s shop, or at the Stardrop Saloon. Apparently you can also get some pepper poppers by trading a trading an almanac in at the bookseller.
Everybody knows Shane loves pepper poppers, but did you know that Maru does too? She just loves them! Most of the villagers like pepper poppers in general, escept, of course – Willy, Leo, and Krobus. This supports my theory that Krobus just keeps all the food he gets gifted that he hates and then re-sells it…
If you’re a big sports fan, you can also combine some pepper poppers with some cloth on Emily sewing machine to make a jersey for the Zuzu City Tunnelers: the Tunnelers Jersey!
Cheesy Baked Pepper Poppers
This easy recipe for baked cheese stuffed peppers are ready from start to finish in 40 minutes.
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
- 1 lb mini sweet bell peppers (or jalapeño peppers)
- 6 oz / 1 ½ cups cheese (grated cheddar or mozzarella, or use a soft goat cheese or cream cheese)
- ⅓ cup panko breadcrumbs
- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1 tbsp oil or melted butter
- 1 tbsp tomato paste (or chili sauce / tomato sauce)
- 1 tbsp garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp lime juice
- 1 tsp lime zest
- 1 tsp dried parsley
- ½ tsp ground paprika
- ½ tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp red pepper flakes
- ¼ tsp ground black pepper
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ cup fresh herbs, chopped (cilantro or parsley)
Tools
- knife
- cutting board
- cheese grater
- medium-size mixing bowl
- measuring cups
- measuring spoons
- mixing spoon
- baking sheet or roasting pan
- baking parchment or foil (optional)
- oven mitts
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375˚F / 190˚C / Gas Mark 5.
- Line a baking tray or roasting pan with baking parchment or foil. Set aside.
- Wash all the peppers, remove the tops, and slice them in half lengthwise. Set aside.
- Prepare the cheese. If using a harder cheese, grate the cheese, then set aside. No grating is necessary for a softer cheese, but try to use soft cheeses at room temperature.
- Mince the garlic, and zest and juice the lime.
- Make the breadcrumb mixture: To a mixing bowl, add the minced garlic, lime zest, lime juice, breadcrumbs, flour, oil or butter, tomato paste, herbs and spices. Mix well.
- Add the cheese to the breadcrumb mixture and combine until thoroughly mixed. If using a softer cheese this will turn into a paste (that is fine).
- One by one, fill the sliced peppers with a spoonful of the cheesy breadcrumb mixture. Lay the filled peppers face-up on your prepared baking tray.
- Baked the peppers at 375˚F for 20 minutes, until the cheese is melted and slightly browned.
- Remove the peppers from the oven and serve them right away with chopped fresh herbs. Enjoy!
Popper Picks: Swapping Peppers & Cheeses
Here are just a few different variations you could do with this recipe:
Trying using different kinds of cheeses. I’ve tried these with mozzarella, cheddar and goat cheese so far. I’m sure gorgonzola would be also amazing with these (then drizzled with balsamic reduction at the end). Just pick your favourite type of cheese, it will likely work for this recipe!
Try making this recipe with jalapeño peppers instead of sweet mini bell peppers. Traditionally, I think this recipe is made with jalapeños.
Use a different vegetable entirely! Don’t like peppers, or maybe you have an allergy? Try taking the cheesy breadcrumb filling for this recipe and stuffing a different vegetable. Try this recipe using mushrooms or zucchini halves.
Roasted spaghetti squash would also be fantastic (I would pre-roast the squash for 30-40 minutes before adding the cheese).
Did you make these pepper poppers? Let me know!
Simmering Starfruit 
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