Quick Answer
A full medium-sized yellow bell pepper contains approximately 40 calories. The exact calorie count can vary slightly depending on factors like the pepper’s size and where it was grown. But on average, a whole medium yellow bell pepper weighing around 150 grams contains around 40 calories.
Calories in Different Pepper Sizes
The calorie content of yellow bell peppers depends largely on their size. Here are the estimated calories for different sizes of raw, whole yellow peppers:
| Pepper Size | Weight | Calories |
|---|---|---|
| Small | 100 g | 27 |
| Medium | 150 g | 40 |
| Large | 200 g | 54 |
As you can see, the larger the pepper, the more calories it contains. A small 100 gram pepper has around 27 calories, while a large 200 gram pepper has 54 calories. The typical medium 150 gram yellow bell pepper falls in the middle with 40 calories.
Calories in Yellow Peppers vs Other Colors
Yellow, red, orange, and green bell peppers all come from the same plant – they are just harvested at different stages of ripening. Interestingly, some research shows the different colored peppers may have slightly different nutrient contents.
However, when it comes to calories, all bell pepper colors contain similar amounts. There are negligible differences in calories whether you eat a yellow, orange, red, or green bell pepper. All pepper colors clock in right around 30-40 calories for a medium whole pepper.
So the color itself does not affect the calorie amount. The biggest factor determining bell pepper calories is simply the size of the pepper itself, rather than the color.
Nutrition Facts for Yellow Peppers
Here are some of the main nutrition facts for a medium, raw yellow bell pepper weighing around 150 grams:
| Nutrient | Amount |
|---|---|
| Calories | 40 |
| Carbs | 9 g |
| Fiber | 2 g |
| Sugars | 5 g |
| Fat | 0.3 g |
| Protein | 1 g |
| Vitamin C | 190% DV |
| Vitamin A | 15% DV |
As you can see, yellow bell peppers are very low in calories and fat. The majority of their calories come from carbs.
They are also packed with beneficial nutrients like vitamin C and vitamin A. A medium yellow pepper provides 190% of the recommended daily vitamin C intake.
Calorie Density of Yellow Peppers
In addition to having relatively few calories overall, yellow bell peppers are also low in calorie density.
Calorie density measures the number of calories in a food per gram. Low calorie density foods provide fewer calories relative to their weight. Foods with high calorie density pack more calories into a smaller amount of food.
Yellow peppers have a calorie density of around 0.27 calories per gram. Foods with a calorie density under 0.5 are considered low calorie density.
The low energy density of yellow bell peppers means you can eat a large portion while still getting very few calories. This makes them a great choice if you are watching your calorie intake.
Ways Yellow Peppers May Reduce Calorie Intake
Eating more yellow bell peppers could potentially help reduce overall calorie intake in several ways:
– Low energy density – Their low calorie density means you get a larger portion for few calories. This may help increase satisfaction and reduce overeating.
– High water content – With 92% water content, yellow peppers provide hydration and volume that can fill you up.
– Nutrition – Their vitamin C, vitamin A, and other nutrients may reduce cravings and hunger.
– Low glycemic index – With a glycemic index of 10, yellow peppers are unlikely to cause energy crashes and hunger.
– Fiber – Their fiber takes longer to digest, providing satiety.
Overall, enjoying yellow bell peppers as part of meals or snacks may automatically reduce calorie intake without the need for conscious calorie restriction.
Typical Ways to Eat Yellow Peppers
Here are some of the most popular ways yellow bell peppers are commonly enjoyed:
– Raw – Sliced or chopped raw yellow peppers work great in salads, salsa, dips, stir fries, and more. Their crunchy texture and sweet flavor are perfect raw.
– Sauteed – Sauteeing brings out the natural sweetness in yellow peppers. They can be sauteed alone or along with meats and veggies.
– Roasted – Roasting yellow peppers develops a sweeter, smokier flavor. Roasted peppers can be added to pasta, pizza, wraps, and soups.
– Stuffed – Larger yellow bell peppers can have their cores removed and be stuffed with meat, grains, cheese, beans or other fillings.
– On skewers – Bell pepper wedges pair well on skewers with meat and other vegetables.
– In eggs – Eggs scrambled with sliced yellow peppers is a fast, easy, and nutritious breakfast or dinner.
No matter how you choose to enjoy them, yellow bell peppers make a tasty low calorie addition to any meal.
Tips for Preparing Yellow Peppers
Here are some tips for getting the most nutrition and flavor out of yellow peppers when preparing them:
– Store properly – Store unwashed peppers in the refrigerator up to 5-7 days. Texture deteriorates if kept at room temperature too long.
– Wash just before eating – Only wash peppers right before eating. Washing earlier causes faster deterioration.
– Leave the seeds in – The edible seeds contribute valuable nutrients, so leave them in for nutrition and flavor.
– Remove white ribs – For aesthetic reasons, you can slice off the white inner ribs before eating raw.
– Roast for flavor – Roasting yellow peppers over an open flame brings out their natural sweetness.
– Sautee or steam – Cooking methods like sauteeing and steaming soften peppers and bring out flavor too.
– Don’t overcook – Cook just until tender crisp, not mushy. Overcooked peppers lose their texture and flavor.
Preparing yellow bell peppers properly helps optimize their delicious flavor, vitamin content, and texture.
Yellow Pepper Recipes
Here are 3 healthy and delicious recipes using yellow bell peppers:
1. Grilled Yellow Pepper Hummus
Ingredients:
– 3 medium yellow bell peppers, halved and seeded
– 1 (15 oz) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
– 1/4 cup tahini
– 1/4 cup olive oil
– 3 garlic cloves
– 2 tbsp lemon juice
– 1 tsp ground cumin
– Salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
1. Grill yellow bell peppers until charred all over. Place in a bowl and cover for 5 minutes, then peel off skins.
2. In a food processor, blend together grilled yellow peppers, chickpeas, tahini, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice and cumin until smooth.
3. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
4. Serve hummus with raw veggie dippers.
2. Yellow Pepper & Chicken Stir Fry
Ingredients:
– 1 tbsp sesame oil
– 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cubed
– 2 medium yellow peppers, sliced
– 1 cup snap peas
– 1 cup broccoli florets
– 1 cup sliced mushrooms
– 2 cloves garlic, minced
– 2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
– 1 tbsp rice vinegar
– 1 tsp honey
Directions:
1. Heat sesame oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken and cook 5 minutes until no longer pink.
2. Push chicken to the side. Add yellow peppers, snap peas, broccoli and mushrooms. Cook 5 minutes.
3. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more.
4. In a small bowl, whisk together soy sauce, rice vinegar and honey.
5. Pour sauce over ingredients and toss to coat. Serve over rice.
3. Yellow Pepper & Tomato Frittata
Ingredients:
– 8 eggs
– 1/4 cup milk
– 1/2 tsp each salt and pepper
– 2 tbsp olive oil
– 1 medium yellow pepper, thinly sliced
– 2 medium tomatoes, diced
– 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
Directions:
1. In a bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, salt and pepper.
2. Heat olive oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add yellow pepper and cook 5 minutes until softened.
3. Add tomatoes and cook 1 minute more.
4. Pour in egg mixture, gently stirring to distribute veggies.
5. Cover and cook 8-10 minutes until eggs are set.
6. Remove lid and sprinkle feta cheese on top. Cook 2 more minutes.
7. Slide frittata onto a plate, slice into wedges and serve warm.
Health Benefits of Yellow Bell Peppers
In addition to being low calorie, yellow bell peppers deliver an impressive array of health benefits:
– High in antioxidant carotenoids like beta carotene, lutein and zeaxanthin. These compounds fight cellular damage and inflammation.
– Excellent source of vitamin C. One medium yellow pepper has over 3 times the daily vitamin C requirement. Vitamin C boosts immunity and helps make collagen.
– Contains vitamin B6, potassium, folate, thiamine and vitamin E. This broad spectrum of vitamins supports overall health.
– High water content keeps you hydrated. Yellow peppers are 92% water.
– May promote eye health due to the lutein and zeaxanthin antioxidants they contain. These compounds accumulate in eye tissues.
– Provide capsaicin, a compound that may reduce pain and inflammation.
– Part of the nightshade family of vegetables, which have been studied for their anti-cancer effects.
Clearly, eating yellow peppers provides so much more than just low calorie content – they are also packed with beneficial plant nutrients and antioxidants.
Getting More Yellow Bell Peppers in Your Diet
Here are simple ways to eat more yellow peppers as part of a healthy, low calorie diet:
– Breakfast – Add sliced yellow peppers to omelets, egg scrambles or breakfast tacos.
– Lunch – Fill sandwiches, wraps or flatbread with sliced yellow peppers.
– Dinner – Sautee them along with lean protein and veggies for fajitas, stir fries or pasta dishes.
– Snacks – Dip raw yellow pepper slices in hummus, salsa or greek yogurt dip.
– Salads – Use yellow pepper strips, cubes or rings to add crunch and color to salads.
– Meal prep – Roast a batch of yellow peppers to keep on hand for easy snacks and to throw into meals all week.
– Smoothies – Add some raw yellow pepper to smoothies for a nutrition boost. The mild flavor works well blended up.
With so many easy ways to enjoy their sweet crunch and bright color, you can easily eat yellow bell peppers every day as part of delicious low calorie meals and snacks.
Common Questions
Here are answers to some frequently asked questions about the calorie content in yellow bell peppers:
Why are yellow peppers lower in calories than other colors?
In fact, yellow bell peppers do not contain significantly fewer calories than peppers of other colors like red, orange or green. All fresh bell peppers fall within the same range of 25-50 calories per medium pepper regardless of their color. The color itself has little effect on calories or nutrition.
Do yellow peppers help you lose weight?
There is no evidence that yellow bell peppers specifically boost weight loss. However, they are part of an overall healthy diet filled with low calorie fruits and vegetables that can aid weight management. Their high water and fiber content provides satisfaction, and their nutrients may help curb cravings.
Are yellow or red peppers lower in calories?
It is a common myth that red peppers are lower in calories than other colors, but this is not the case. Both red and yellow peppers have very similar calorie content. A medium red bell pepper has around 40 calories, the same as a medium yellow pepper.
Why do peppers have so few calories?
Bell peppers are low in calories for several reasons. First, they are about 92% water, giving them high volume but low calorie density. Second, the small amount of carbohydrates they contain come mainly from fiber and sugars, rather than starch. The fiber provides few digestible calories. Lastly, they contain minimal fat, which is a concentrated source of calories.
Do different yellow pepper varieties change the calories?
There can be slight calorie differences between varieties of yellow peppers. However, most common garden varieties like California Wonder, Golden Summer, and Sweet Banana have very minor variations in calories and nutrition profiles. The much bigger factor is the individual pepper’s size and weight.
The Bottom Line
In summary, a medium whole raw yellow bell pepper weighing around 150 grams contains about 40 calories.
The precise calorie amount can range from 25 to 55 calories depending on the size of the pepper – smaller peppers have less and larger ones have more. But the typical medium yellow pepper clocks in right around 40 calories.
Yellow bell peppers are not significantly lower in calories than other colored bell peppers. All fresh pepper colors provide roughly the same number of calories.
In addition to being low calorie, yellow peppers deliver a powerhouse of beneficial antioxidants, vitamins, minerals and plant compounds that offer health perks beyond their calorie content.
Enjoying yellow bell peppers as part of a healthy diet filled with fruits, veggies, lean proteins, whole grains, and legumes can help manage calorie intake while providing essential nutrition.
