This Instant Pot stuffed pepper soup is healthy, hearty, and simple to make. Your family will love this comforting easy weeknight dinner!
I have a stove top stuffed pepper soup on here, and I liked it so much that I wanted to try it out in the ‘ole Instant Pot. Now that it’s chilly out, I have soups/stews/cozy food on the brain. And in the freezer. So many blog leftovers in the freezer. You can expect plenty more of these types of recipes from me as the colder months approach.
Stuffed pepper soup is way less fussy than making actual stuffed peppers, and I’m all about things being easy. The shift from warm weather to cold always throws me into hibernation mode, and I pretty much just want to eat warm carbs. *shrugs*
On a sorta related note, I just ordered a new sealing ring for my Instant Pot (actually, I ordered four of them from Amazon). I was testing a different recipe and my IP stopped working! It wouldn’t come up to pressure, and then I saw how the sealing ring had warped.
I suggest keeping some extra sealing rings on hand, because you never know when yours may need replacing. I wish I listened to my husband when he suggested I should get extras. Oh well. That recipe will have to be re-tested since timing got totally messed up, and I ended up having to cook it like 3x as long to get the meat to be tender, but at least I know the flavor was there. 😛
How to make stuffed pepper soup in an Instant Pot
- Sauté the onion with the olive oil for 3 minutes; add the beef and continue cooking for another 3-4 minutes.
- Add the remaining ingredients to the electric pressure cooker and cook on high pressure for 10 minutes.
- Do a quick pressure release and add salt & pepper and any garnishes as desired.
Pro tip: I used 3/4 cup of rice and the soup was very thick… perfect for a hearty meal. If you want it to be more soupy, I suggest using 1/2 cup of rice (or even less if you want it to be lighter).
Can I use cooked rice in this recipe? You can use cooked rice, but then I suggest adding it once the soup has been cooked (the pressure cooking will turn it to mush). You will end up with an overall thinner soup if you do this method, though, so you may want to try the stovetop recipe instead.
I hope you’ll give this easy electric pressure cooker stuffed pepper soup a try.
Questions about this soup? Let me know in the comments below!
Instant Pot Stuffed Pepper Soup Recipe
This Instant Pot stuffed pepper soup is healthy, hearty, and simple to make. Your family will love this comforting easy weeknight dinner!
Ingredients
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3/4 cup uncooked rice (I used jasmine)
- 1.5 pounds extra lean (95% lean) ground beef
- 1 red bell pepper chopped finely
- 1 green bell pepper chopped finely
- 1 (13.5 fluid ounce) can tomato sauce
- 1 (28 fluid ounce) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes (with juices)
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 3 dashes Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
Chop your onion and add it to your Instant Pot along with the olive oil. Press the sauté button and cook for about 3 minutes, then add the ground beef and continue cooking for another 3-4 minutes or so, stirring occasionally.
Add the remaining ingredients to your Instant Pot and give it a stir. Rinse the rice (put it in a sieve and run it under the tap) prior to adding it to your Instant Pot. Important note: The soup in the photos is quite thick and hearty. If you prefer it to be less thick, use 1/2 cup of rice. The soup gets pretty close to the fill line of my 6-qt. Instant Pot, so be sure not to go over.
Close the lid and set the valve on "sealing". Cook on high pressure for 10 minutes. It will take at least 10-15 minutes for the Instant Pot to get up to pressure. Once the countdown is over, carefully release the pressure manually.
Season soup with salt & pepper as needed.
Recipe Notes
- Serves 6-8 depending on how much people eat.
- You can use regular diced tomatoes if you wish, but the fire-roasted ones give it extra flavor.
- I use this 6-quart Instant Pot.
- Inactive time indicates the time it'll take the Instant Pot to come up to pressure.
- I have a separate recipe for the stovetop version of this soup.
- Crockpot version: You can definitely make this stuffed pepper soup in a slow cooker. Brown the beef first, and then transfer it to your Crockpot, along with everything except for the rice and salt & pepper. Cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 3-4 hours. About 20-30 minutes prior to serving, add the rice. Stir it every now and then so it doesn't stick to the bottom of the Crockpot.
Love easy Instant Pot soups with beef? You may like my Instant Pot beef taco soup.
Matt Robinson says
October 8, 2018 at 11:01 PMI didn’t know what I was craving tonight until I saw this. So great!
Natasha says
October 9, 2018 at 2:08 PMHaha I’m glad!
Mary Ann | The Beach House Kitchen says
October 9, 2018 at 6:13 AMStuffed peppers have always been one of my favorite meals Natasha. My Gram made the best when I was growing up. I recently made a stuffed pepper soup and Tom and Casey loved it. I’ll need to give your recipe a try too! It looks soooo good!
Natasha says
October 9, 2018 at 2:07 PMThank you!! It’s just so comforting. 🙂 I think I prefer the soup version to actual stuffed peppers.
Leigh Ann says
October 9, 2018 at 7:13 AMThis soup sounds so good to me! Saving this one for sure!
Jennifer @ Show Me the Yummy says
October 9, 2018 at 11:09 AMLove this soup! And I love my instant pot!
Danielle says
March 17, 2019 at 6:55 PMHi! Why would we be getting the burn message? Has this ever happened for you?
Natasha says
March 17, 2019 at 7:17 PMHi Danielle! I have never received the burn notice, even on recipes where I worried it would happen (like ones with rice and not much liquid). Is it possible that something has stuck to the bottom of your Instant Pot? That could be the most likely culprit. I don’t know why it would happen with a soup – it has tons of liquid. Does anything seem stuck on? I wonder if it’s just a weird error due to some sort of malfunction.
Megan says
April 16, 2019 at 10:16 PMI made the soup today and my husband ate 3 bowls! (He does not like regular stuffed peppers.) I did get the burn message on my Instant Pot even though I followed the recipe exactly as written. A fair amount of rice did burn and coat the bottom of my pot. I ended up transferring the soup to the stove to finish the cooking process. Delicious! I’ll definitely make this soup again in the crockpot or on the stovetop.
Natasha says
April 17, 2019 at 2:12 PMThat’s so bizarre about the burn message! I’ve heard the newer Instant Pots tend to show that burn warning more often. I have yet to see one on my Instant Pot. I’m glad at least it was tasty, Megan!
Jamie says
March 23, 2019 at 9:44 AMWhat can I sub for meat? We are vegetarians. Also would it change the cooking time? It looks amazing.
Natasha says
March 23, 2019 at 12:32 PMThank you! Hmm… I’ve been giving this some thought, and it’s really hard for me to give you an answer without doing some testing. The beef is quite a large component of this soup and adds a lot of flavor. You could try just adding your favorite veggies and make it more of a vegetable soup. Adding black beans could make it more filling. I’d just add canned ones. As far as cooking time goes, maybe 8 minutes? It’s hard to say without testing. I do have vegan Instant Pot soup you may like that’s been tested if you like sweet potatoes: https://www.saltandlavender.com/easy-instant-pot-sweet-potato-soup/
Kyle says
May 5, 2019 at 5:15 PMJust wanted to say I’ve also been getting the burnt message, had to scoop out some stuff in order for it to go away! First time I’ve gotten the message too.
Natasha says
May 5, 2019 at 5:19 PMThat’s not good. Thanks for letting me know!
Jamey says
May 10, 2019 at 9:06 AMHi there, I’m new to the page. A couple of questions. I see where you add the beef but looks to be no draining of it. I’m guessing that’s why you say use the 95% lean. Also the picture looks to show Green onions but the ingredients don’t list that. Is that a garnish for after it cooks or should we add that in as well? Thanks for any tips. I’m a guy who’s never cooked before getting and instant Pot and it’s kept me interested and my wife is happy for my effort 🙂
Natasha says
May 10, 2019 at 9:10 AMHi Jamey! That’s correct – if you do choose a more fatty ground beef, draining most of the fat out isn’t a bad idea. I like to have some fat in there because it adds flavor. Yup, I used the spring onions as a garnish to make the photos pop a bit (I think I ran out of parsley that day and didn’t want to go to the store haha). Since there’s onion in there already, you definitely don’t need to bother adding it into the recipe. It tasted good as a garnish, but it’s definitely optional. 🙂
Janae says
May 14, 2019 at 7:14 PMAmazing!! I was initially worried after reading all the comments about it burning – but mine did not do that at all – yay! And it’s absolutely delicious!! My husband loves it so much he had 5 bowls! It feeds a lot too – bonus! Thank you!
Natasha says
May 14, 2019 at 7:22 PMHaha that’s great! My husband is also in the 5 bowl club. ❤️
Jay says
May 17, 2019 at 7:36 PMSo good !! I changed a few things though, I used one pound ground beef and one pound mild Italian to give it a little more flavor & 1/4 cup red wine because why not lol. It turned out amazing though, I do plan to make it again.
Natasha says
May 18, 2019 at 2:30 PMSo glad you liked it, Jay! And yes… red wine is definitely a good addition to so many recipes hahaha.
Misty says
May 19, 2019 at 11:54 AMI made this as part of my meal prep and it’s very good. I’ve been having it for lunch week days for the last 2 weeks since it’s easier to make a big pot of something then freeze. Is it possible to make with brown rice? I’ve never made brown rice in my Instant Pot and I’ve had it for 3 years, but I’ve read it takes longer to cook than white rice.
Natasha says
May 20, 2019 at 3:22 PMI’m so glad you like it! I too like to pack soup for work lunches. I think I’d give it the same amount of time with brown rice and if it’s a bit undercooked, maybe give it a minute or two longer next time (you could cook that existing batch a bit longer using the “saute” function if you find it’s undercooked).