Making instant pot stuffed bell peppers can’t get any easier than this! No pre-cooking of peppers or sautéing onion is needed. Simply fill with them and cook under pressure. Easy-peasy comfort food ready in no time!
Guys, have you tried making instant pot stuffed bell peppers? If you haven’t I highly recommend doing so. Juicy sweet peppers, ground beef & rice filling & tomato sauce complement each other and create a delicious dinner!
By the way, if you are looking for more pressure cooker recipes, check these ones out:
- Instant Pot Stuffed Pepper Soup
- Instant Pot Fried Rice
- Instant Pot Sweet Potato Gratin
- Instant Pot Bolognese Sauce
- Instant Pot Chicken Lentil Soup
Ingredients needed to make instant pot stuffed peppers
- Sweet Bell Peppers
- Small Onion
- Ground Beef
- Cooked Rice
- Marjoram
- Salt and Pepper
- Tinned Tomatoes
- Breadcrumbs
- Garlic
How long does it take to cook stuffed peppers in a pressure cooker?
When using medium sized peppers like I did the 8 minutes active cooking time is all it takes to make these instant pot stuffed peppers.
However, the time needed to cook these bell peppers may vary. If you are using very large peppers then you might need to add an extra minute or two to the overall cooking time – just to be sure they are cooked through.
Now I used similar sized peppers but from 2 different producers and I noticed a slight difference in the tenderness. So please don’t be afraid to add more time if needed to adjust it to your needs.
How to make stuffed bell peppers in Instant Pot pressure cooker
If you know how to make beef and rice stuffed peppers in the oven, then all you need to do is use your instant pot instead of the oven. I like making instant pot stuffed bell peppers because it saves me time, energy and the peppers turn out extremely juicy.
To fill the peppers all you need to do is cut off the tops of the peppers. Then remove the seeds and membranes. When you are done, make the filling by combining finely chopped onion, garlic, beef, rice, marjoram, salt, black pepper and half of the tinned tomatoes (without the liquid). I use hands to mix this but you can also use a wooden spoon or normal soup spoon. Just make sure you combine everything properly.
When you are done, fill each pepper to the top.
Now get your Instant Pot pressure cooker, pour in ½ cup water + the remaining tomatoes with juice. Insert in the steam rack and place the peppers onto it. You will fit 4 medium-large peppers in which will serve 4 people.
Lock the lid, place the steam release to SEALING position and press manual. Adjust the time to 8 minutes and you are done! Before opening the pot let the pressure drop naturally. It only takes about 4 minutes in this case.
I suggest letting it cool down slightly before serving as they will be piping hot.
Useful tips
- To make these pressure cooker stuffed bell peppers use any type of rice you like.
- Marjoram can be substituted with oregano.
- You can also add some fresh parsley to the filling.
- I sometimes add ketchup to the tomatoes right before serving to make the sauce richer.
- Great for meal-prep: Cooked stuffed bell peppers can be stored in the fridge for up to 4 days!
- Optional – Top these stuffed bell peppers with shredded cheese right before serving!
Check out more Easy Instant Pot Recipes on my blog. Chicken Stock, Tortellini Soup, Chicken Paprikash … they all can be made in your Instant Pot!
Want to see how to make Instant Pot Stuffed Peppers? Watch the video!
Instant Pot Stuffed Bell Peppers
Ingredients
- 4 medium Bell Peppers
- 1 small Onion
- ½ pound Ground Beef (220 grams)
- 2 cups Cooked Rice , packed (300 grams)
- 1½ tablespoon Marjoram
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 Garlic Cloves
- 3 tablespoons Breadcrumbs
- 1 can Tomatoes (14 ounces/400 grams)
- ½ cup Water
Instructions
- Rinse the peppers. Cut off the top parts and remove all the membranes and seeds.
- In a bowl, combine together finely chopped onion, ground beef, cooked rice, marjoram, salt, pepper, minced garlic, breadcrumbs and ½ can of tomatoes (without their juice). Mix well using your hand or spoon.
- Fill each pepper with the mixture.
- Add water and the remaining tomatoes (with juices) to the inner pot of the Instant pot. Insert the steam rack and place the stuffed peppers onto it.
- Lock the lid. Turn the steam release to SEALING and press MANUAL. Adjust the time to 8 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally (about 4 minutes) before opening the lid.
- Let the peppers cool down slightly before serving.
Notes
- This recipe was made in a 6-quart/6-liter Instant Pot.
- The cooking time does not include time needed for the pot to come to the pressure and release its pressure.
- If using large peppers you might need to adjust the cooking time slightly to make sure they are tender and the meat is cooked through.
- Marjoram can be substituted with oregano.
- This recipe is enough to fill 4 medium peppers. If you use large peppers you will need more filling.
- Optional: top cooked stuffed peppers with shredded cheese. You can also add some ketchup to the tomatoes to make it thicker and richer.
- The meat to rice ratio can be adjusted to your liking.
Jessica says
This is our favorite instant pot recipe to make at home! I’m currently visiting my mom and want to make it, but she only has a slow cooker. Do you have a suggestion for time conversion in slow cooker or oven?
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Hi Jessica. It will take about 45-60 minutes in the oven (I would cook it at 350 Fahrenheit/180 Celsius), but I would recommend cooking the ground meat beforehand. Then, you don’t have to worry – all you want is the peppers to soften to your liking and the filling to be heated through. Hope this helps.
Ann G says
This recipe was fast and delicious! I used both marjoram and thyme about half of each totaling 1-1/2 TB as the recipe calls for and about 1 TB of Worcestershire. The one thing that I prefer is a thicker sauce this sauce was more soupy. The flavor was delicious and I would make it again and recommend it as well.
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Thanks for your feedback, Ann G!
Angela says
These peppers are amazing! We love stuffed peppers but they’re so hard to pull off when you work out of the house all day. Plus it’s 116 in Phoenix and no! No oven! I did swap out the rice for riced cauliflower and you can’t even tell the difference.
THANK YOU I’m making these tonight for the second week in a row.
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
I love your substitution – will be trying it myself next time! Thanks for the inspiration :)
tim says
You can always make the stuffing and stuff the pepper in advance and freeze it….That way you can come home throw a few peppers in the instant pot and go take a bath and clean up while it cooks..When you are done cleaning supper will already be cooked.
Marianne says
Great basic recipe. Added some fresh corn cut from the cob and some barbecue sauce over the cooked peppers. Delicious.
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Thanks so much for your feedback, Marianne!
Carl says
Can you use cauliflower rice instead of regular rice? Trying to stay as low carb as possible. Thank you
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Hi Carl. I haven’t tried it, but I think it should work. Will be trying it myself next time so thanks for the idea!
Joanne says
This recipe is my husbands favorite stuffed pepper recipe. I have made it several times. Each time, he says, hope there’s leftovers for lunch! Thank you!
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
You are welcome, Joanne! Thank you for your feedback.
Joe says
I loved stuffed bell peppers and this recipe just made me love them more!!!
👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Yay! :) Thanks for your feedback, Joe.
Cassie Richwine says
I just made this and it was delish! I used turkey meat and brown rice along with roasted tomatoes, but I only had 1 long half pepper that was frozen and one small a yellow pepper that was fresh. So I had a lot of extra rice mix so what I ended up doing was putting that and the peppers in a pot in the pot situation and cooked it that way with the sauce underneath in the inner pot. It turned out pretty good I tested after about 10 minutes of cooking 5 minutes of natural release and the temperature was perfect. Then I added the sauce to the top of them and some cheese decided to cook them for another couple of minutes I just cooked it until it beeps that it was on pressure and then released the pressure. Excellent recipe. Thank you so much for making stuffed peppers available to me to make it anytime! This one is definitely a keeper!
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
That’s so good to hear, Cassie! Thanks for finding time to leave such a detailed feedback. Our readers will definitely appreciate it!
Gayle says
Too much filling for 4 peppers. The flavor was good and peppers were tender, but I would split them and lay them across the rack next time. What do I do with the juices in the pot? It seems a waste to just put tomatoes in the pot instead of putting on top of peppers. I fried up the leftover filling to serve beside the filled peppers. Will make again with some modifications
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Hi Gayle. Thanks for your feedback. I used large peppers so if you buy smaller ones you will more likely end up with some leftover filling. This you can just throw in or form a small ball. Also the tomatoes act as liquid and we just pour this over the peppers when serving them.
Whitney says
Do you brown the hamburger before putting them in the pot?
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
No, there is no need.
DJ says
Hi! I want to do 3 servings in my 3 quart. Would that affect the cooking time?
Julia | Happy Foods Tube says
Hi DJ. Now I don’t have a 3 quart instant pot so can’t say for sure. However, I would leave the cooking time the same. Hope this helps.