Instant Pot Stuffed Pepper Soup

If you love stuffed peppers, then you’re going to love this comforting Instant Pot Stuffed Pepper Soup. It’s easy to make for dinner and tastes great as leftovers. No need to spend time stuffing peppers!

Everyone loves one pot meals! This easy stuffed pepper soup recipe comes together in an Instant Pot or pressure cooker.

This warm and comforting soup is filled with all of the traditional stuffed peppers ingredients – rice, meat, tomatoes and peppers. It requires only 10 or 15 minutes of prep work.

Enjoy this hearty soup as the perfect family dinner!

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Everything cooks in a pressure cooker to make prep and clean up easy.
• This dish is packed with flavor and fresh ingredients.
• The recipe requires less than 15 minutes of hands on time.
• You can easily adapt the flavor to fit your taste.

Ingredients You Need

You will need a few easy to find ingredients to make this stuffed pepper soup recipe.

• Ground Beef: This recipe uses lean ground beef but you can use ground beef with a higher fat content, if desired. You can also substitute with Italian sausage, breakfast sausage or ground chicken or ground turkey.
• Bell Peppers: You will need one red bell pepper and one green bell pepper. Or you can use all of one color.
• Onions: Use a yellow onion or sweet onion.
• Rice: Use uncooked long-grain white rice. Jasmine or basmati rice are good choices. Rinse the rice before using to remove any excess starch. Do not use brown rice as it takes longer to cook.
• Beef Broth: Use low sodium beef broth. You can also substitute with chicken broth or water.
• Tomato Sauce: Adds the traditional stuffed pepper flavor and thickens the soup.
• Diced Tomatoes: Use plain or fire-roasted diced tomatoes.
• Seasonings: You will need freshly minced garlic, Italian seasoning, crushed red pepper, salt and black pepper.
• Optional Toppings: Garnish with shredded cheese and fresh parsley, if desired.

Equipment You Need

You will need one pressure cooker or Instant Pot that is 6 quart or larger. If you don’t have a pressure cooker, you can use a soup pot on a stove top. Instructions for cooking this soup on the stove top are provided below.

The Instant Pot is such a great way to cook soups. Try more of our favorite Instant Pot Recipes!

How to Make Instant Pot Stuffed Pepper Soup

The entire recipe comes together in an Instant Pot. Alternative instructions for cooking on the stove top and slow cooker are also included below.

1. Cook the ground beef, garlic and onions – First, press the Saute button and cook the ground beef, seasoning it with a bit of salt and pepper, until no longer pink. Drain any excess grease. Add the garlic and onion and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Press Cancel.
2. Scrape the browned bits – Add in a small amount of the beef broth and scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. This will help prevent a burn warning.
3. Stir in the remaining ingredients – Add the peppers, remaining broth, rice, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, and salt and pepper to taste.
4. Cook the soup – Secure and seal the lid. Cook on Manual HIGH pressure for 5 minutes.
5. Natural release the steam – Allow a natural 10-minute release, then carefully open the valve to do a quick release. Serve garnished with cheese and parsley, if desired.

Stove Top Instructions

If you are cooking this soup on the stove top, you will want to cook the white rice separately first.

To prepare this soup on the stove top, add the ground beef to a Dutch oven or soup pot. Season beef with salt and pepper. Cook the beef, stirring occasionally while breaking up beef, until browned. Drain the beef and transfer to a plate.

Saute the onions and peppers with 1 tablespoon of olive oil for 4 minutes, then add the garlic and saute for 1 additional minute. Add the remaining ingredients, then bring to a simmer and cover, cooking for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, stir in the cooked rice and serve!

Slow Cooker Instructions

You can easily adapt this recipe for a slow cooker. Simply brown the beef in a skillet on the stove top, then add everything to the slow cooker. Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.

Recipe Tips

• Adjust the spice level. If you do not like any spicy flavor, then you can omit the red pepper flakes. However, if you like more spicy flavor, add more red pepper flakes or up to 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper.
• Add beans: For more protein and fiber, add a can of kidney beans.
• Make it vegan! You can make vegan stuffed pepper soup by substituting the ground beef with vegan ground veggie crumble. Use vegetable broth instead of beef broth.

Storage and Reheating

Storage: Store leftovers in an air tight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. This soup does not freeze well as it contains rice which gets mushy when frozen in the soup.

If you want to freeze the soup, prepare it without the rice, allow it to cool completely and then store in freezer safe containers in the refrigerator. Thaw and reheat, then stir in the cooked rice just before serving.

More Instant Pot Soup Recipes

• Instant Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup
• Instant Pot Cabbage Soup
• Instant Pot Chicken and Dumplings
• Instant Pot Beef Stew
• Instant Pot Chicken Stew (This is a thicker stew.)

Did you make this Instant Pot Stuffed Pepper Soup? Leave a recipe review and rating below.