This Costco Prepared Food Is Packed With Protein

There are so many things to love about Costco — and the wide variety of prepared foods to choose from is one of them. There are so many options available that you might not even know about all of them, such as the underrated prepared foods you should be buying, like the fried chicken and waffles or the rotisserie chicken enchilada bake.

When buying prepared foods, one thing you'll want to keep in mind is the nutritional content. If it's on the unhealthy side, there's nothing wrong with enjoying it from time to time, but it's just good to keep in mind. And on the other hand, if one of the prepared foods is healthy, you'll definitely want to know that too, so that you can buy it as often as you'd like to help meet your nutritional goals. As we write about in our guide to the healthiest and unhealthiest prepared foods at Costco, the stuffed bell peppers are one of the best healthy options.

The Kirkland Signature stuffed bell peppers are filled with ground beef and rice in a tomato sauce, as well as a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese on top — in other words, it's as delicious as it is healthy. Each container comes with six halved stuffed bell peppers, with each half-stuffed pepper being a serving. This meal is quite healthy overall, but it's worth pointing out the protein content, specifically. Each stuffed pepper half contains a whopping 20 grams of protein.

To put the protein amount into perspective, it's recommended that you consume .36 grams of protein per pound of your body weight each day — so, for example, a 160-pound person should consume about 58 grams of protein per day. With that in mind, eating just one of these stuffed bell peppers — which, remember, is only half of a pepper — will help you make a significant dent in your protein goals. And, if you're feeling extra hungry, you may even have two peppers, which would put you at 40 grams.

Not only are these stuffed bell peppers protein-rich, but Costco shoppers rave about how good they are. One Reddit user wrote, "I love these. Definitely a must try." Another Redditor noted that these peppers are "one of the few items I make sure to buy every time I visit." Some Redditors also described quick ways to make these peppers even better, such as adding extra shredded cheese or roasted garlic. One person noted that they like adding vodka sauce.

You can even use these modifications to add a little bit of extra protein to the meal. For example, if you're adding extra shredded cheese, choose a cheese that contains a good amount of protein — Swiss, cheddar, and mozzarella are all good options. Or, if you're adding vodka sauce (or any other sauce), you can add a bit of extra protein by integrating cottage cheese, which is super protein-rich — just read our guide on the best way to add cottage cheese to any sauce for easy instructions.