Boiling a bell pepper before baking is a technique you can use when making stuffed peppers. Some recipes call for blanching your peppers before baking. Blanching is a process by which you boil a vegetable to partially cook it, and then plunge it into ice water to stop the cooking process. Other recipes just require boiling the peppers without blanching. It's unnecessary to blanch the peppers if you aren't going to freeze them first, but are just going to proceed with stuffing and baking them. Boiling the peppers softens them for eating and shortens the baking time. Boiling your peppers before baking is fast and easy.

Bring water to a boil in a large pot.

Wash the peppers thoroughly. The hot water will help sanitize the peppers but since you’ll be eating them, it is best to be thorough.

Cut the top off the peppers. Scoop out the seeds and stem, discarding them.

Place the peppers in the boiling water bath and start the timer.

Boil the peppers for 2 to 5 minutes. Two to 3 minutes is best, but if you prefer very soft peppers or wish to significantly reduce the baking time, leave the peppers in the boiling bath for the full 5 minutes. If you intend to freeze your peppers, after boiling, plunge them into ice water and let them remain in the ice water for as long as you boiled them.

Remove the peppers from the water bath and proceed with recipe. Use caution if you are removing them from the hot water because the peppers, too, will be hot, but you can continue with your recipe without waiting for the peppers to cool.