A crockpot favorite gets an Instant Pot makeover.
How to make stuffed peppers in the Instant Pot.
It was a real thrill for me when I first figured out how to make stuffed peppers in the Crockpot. This dish is super yummy, with those tender peppers filled up with seasoned ground beef and rice and the cheese melting on top, but making them the old-fashioned way was always kind of a hassle. Browning the beef, mixing up the filling, stuffing the peppers, setting them in a pan of water, and then baking them for an hour – it was just too much work to do very often.
The Crockpot version made it all much easier. I could just fill up my peppers in the morning, set them in the crock, and have them ready and waiting at dinnertime. What could possibly be better than that?
I’ll tell you what: having them ready in under 20 minutes, without any more work!
The Instant Pot makes it possible. All you have to do is hollow out your peppers, load in the filling, and set them in the Instant pot over a bath of water or broth. Nine minutes on the manual setting, five to release the pressure, and ta-da – your stuffed peppers are ready to serve.
So now, I can have my stuffed peppers whenever I want – and plenty of time to eat them.
Instant Pot Stuffed Peppers
- Rinse the peppers and cut off the top parts and remove all the membranes and seeds inside.
- In a bowl, combine together onion, tomatoes, ground beef, cooked rice, egg,1.5 cups of shredded cheese, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, and minced garlic. Mix well to combine.
- Fill each pepper with the mixture. Add your broth or water to the inner pot of the Instant pot. Insert the steam rack and place the stuffed peppers on top of the rack. Lock the lid. Turn the steam release to Sealing. Press Manual and set the time to 9 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally for 5 minutes, and then do quick release.
- Top pepper with the remaining shredded cheese. To help cheese melt faster, put lid back on for a couple minutes.
Tools used to make this Instant Pot Stuffed Peppers:
Instant Pot: This 6qt Instant Pot pressure cooker is always my go to!
Mixing Bowls: These bowls are pre-heated oven, microwave, fridge and freezer safe, and dishwasher safe.
Kitchen Knife Set: Every kitchen needs a set of great kitchen knives.
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Instant Pot Stuffed Peppers
Ingredients
- 5 bell peppers multiple colors
- 1 small white onion diced
- 15 oz can diced tomatoes
- 1 pound extra lean ground beef
- 2 cups cooked rice
- 1 egg
- 2 cup shredded cheese blend I used a cheddar jack blend, divided
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1 Tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 cup broth or water
- dried or fresh parsley for garnish optional
Instructions
- Rinse the peppers and cut off the top parts and remove all the membranes and seeds inside.
- In a bowl, combine together onion, tomatoes, ground beef, cooked rice, egg,1.5 cups of shredded cheese, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, and minced garlic. Mix well to combine.
- Fill each pepper with the mixture.
- Add your broth or water to the inner pot of the Instant pot. Insert the steam rack and place the stuffed peppers on top of the rack.
- Lock the lid. Turn the steam release to Sealing. Press Manual and set the time to 9 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally for 5 minutes, and then do quick release.
- Top pepper with the remaining shredded cheese. To help cheese melt faster, put lid back on for a couple minutes.
Video
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Nutrition Information:
Nutrition Disclaimer
Family Fresh Meals is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is only an estimate. We recommend running the ingredients through an online nutritional calculator if you need to verify any information.
Sheila says
I made these peppers and my family and I loved it !!!
Mary says
Hello:) eager 2 try this recipe.One suggestion is for recipes to included the time the IP had to come to pressure which can b anywhere from 15-40 min approx. Ty, on advance. All the very best!
Sharon Farmer says
If I use my 8 qt. Instant pot and double the recipe, will I need to add additional cooking time.
Corey says
No cooking time will be the same.
Chelsea says
Are you supposed to cook the meat before making the mixture?
Corey says
No the meat will cook inside of the peppers.
Lisa says
I love your blog and your awesome recipe ideas! Your photos are so very helpful, too!!
I’ve never made stuffed peppers and cant wait to make these. Do you drain the tomatoes or add them in, liquid and all? (I’m sure you would’ve said to drain them if I am supposed to, but just want to be extra sure. 🙂
Corey says
You are correct, do not drain them. I hope you love the recipe!
Michelle says
Is the calorie count total or per pepper?
Angie says
Can these be frozen ?
Corey says
Yes, you can freeze them. I would freeze them individually.
Jack says
This recipe was great. Only comment is the stuffing is way too much. I ended up having enough for 10 jumbo peppers. Will reduce ingredients for next time
Misty Morehead says
My family loved this! Thank you!
Karlee says
I have a lot of leftover filler, they didn’t have very big peppers at Walmart… could I freeze this mixture?
Corey says
Yes! The filling freezes well 🙂
Alicia Henigan says
does this recipe work well with ground turkey as well? would that change the cook time?
Corey says
I have only made the recipe as written Alicia, but I would think you should keep the cooking time the same. Let us know how it works out for you 🙂
Holly says
Mary, I put my liquids in the microwave before adding to IP this greatly decreases the come to pressure time.
Michelle Harrison says
I seriously love this recipe. I’ve been making better homes and gardens recipe for 30 years. This is similar and way easier. I add cheese with the mixture and sprinkle with Parmesan. Thank you for a great, time saving recipe!!
Cindy says
I love this recipe and even the littles, grandkids, love it. I’ve made this quite a few times and find it easily adapts to other seasoning. Italian, Mexican, middle eastern… it always seems to work great!. My grandaughter turned me on to it, they love it to. Thanks for sharing. If I dont have leftover rice I use instant and it cooks perfectly in the peppers.
Joy says
These were great. I ended up having a tad too much filling and may have overstuffed the peppers a bit as they ended up needing a few more minutes to cook. Will definitely make again!
Chrissy says
I made as described and did not feel the beef was thoroughly cooked so I resealed and cooked for another 5 mins. Hoping this will help.