This Instant Pot Stuffed Pepper Soup is easier than making stuffed peppers themselves, with marinara sauce, ground chicken, rice and peppers.
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How to make stuffed pepper soup in the Instant Pot
- With Instant Pot on sauce mode, add olive oil, onions and garlic. Once fragrant, add chicken and saute until lightly browned, then add smoked paprika, Italian seasoning and salt. Turn off saute mode.
- Add diced tomatoes, marinara sauce, beef broth and rice. Pressure cook for 3 minutes.
- Once pressure has released, safely open lid then stir in bell peppers & let sit for 2 minutes.
- Serve in large bowls and top with cheese and parsley. Serve and enjoy!
Ingredients and substitutions
- Olive oil – any neutral oil will work in place of olive oil. Neutral oils can be grapeseed oil, canola oil, avocado oil, etc.
- Yellow onion – red onion, sweet onion or shallots can substitute yellow onion.
- Garlic – use fresh or jarred minced garlic in this recipe.
- Ground chicken – ground turkey or extra lean ground beef can also be used in this recipe.
- Smoked paprika – cayenne pepper is a great alternative to paprika. Chili powder or taco seasoning can also be used as a substitution.
- Italian seasoning – use dried oregano, dried basil, dried thyme or dried rosemary as a substitution (or a combination of all of these spices to make your own Italian seasoning)
- Salt (to taste)
- Diced tomatoes – canned tomatoes or freshly diced tomatoes can be used as a substitution
- Marinara sauce – any tomato sauce will work just fine in this recipe.
- Beef broth – chicken broth or if in a pinch, vegetable broth, can also be used.
- White rice – any variety of white rice can be used. Substitute brown rice, quinoa or couscous if necessary but note that it may alter cook time.
- Green and red bell peppers – substitute with any colour of choice or use poblano peppers for additional heat.
- Parmesan cheese (optional topping)
- Parsley (optional for garnish)
What is stuffed pepper soup?
Stuffed pepper soup is essentially a deconstructed stuffed pepper within a hearty, comforting soup. The soup includes protein from the ground chicken, crunch from the bell peppers, grains from the rice and a flavourful broth to tie everything together. Even though you can have stuffed peppers as a dish year round, this soup is the perfect way to bring in soup season the right way.
Storing and reheating
This soup will last in the fridge for 3-4 days making it a great meal prep recipe for lunch or dinner. When ready to enjoy, reheat in the microwave on high for about 2-3 minutes.
Can you freeze stuffed pepper soup?
Technically, yes you can freeze this stuffed pepper soup. If you go forward with freezing this soup, be weary that the peppers can get mushy and lose taste/texture after they've been frozen.
To freeze, allow the soup to cool to room temperature. Freeze a batch in glass meal prep bowls/containers that have lids. Individual servings allow you to pull them out and enjoy whenever you are in a hurry and need a quick meal.
If the container allows for it, microwave the stuffed pepper soup from frozen for 6 to 7 minutes on high. Stir it half way through the cook time. You can also allow the soup to defrost in the fridge overnight and then microwave for 2-3 minutes.
More Instant Pot soup recipes
Meal prep tools for this recipe
- The Instant Pot DUO Plus 60
is the version I use in this recipe. - Grab some Glass meal prep bowls if you plan on packing this soup up for lunch!
- I get free range chicken from my monthly Butcher Box – it's a great way to enjoy healthier meats and poultry and they're even offering 2 free ribeyes and bacon!
is the version I use in this recipe.
Instant Pot Stuffed Pepper Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 lb ground chicken
- 2 tsp PC Black Label smoked paprika
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 (796mL) can Diced tomatoes
- 1 (650mL) jar marinara sauce (or any type of tomato sauce)
- 4 cups beef broth (or chicken broth)
- 3/4 cup white rice
- 2 green peppers, chopped
- 2 red peppers, chopped
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated (optional, for topping)
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley (optional for garnish)
Instructions
- Set Instant Pot to saute mode. Add olive oil, onions and garlic, sauteeing for 30 seconds. Add chicken and saute for 3-4 minutes until lightly browned, then add smoked paprika, Italian seasoning and salt, sauteeing another 1-2 minutes. Turn off saute mode.
- Add diced tomatoes, marinara sauce, beef broth and rice in that order. Put lid on Instant Pot and cook on high pressure for 3 minutes, then do a quick release of the pressure.
- Open lid when safe to do so and stir in bell peppers, then replace lid and let sit for 2 minutes. Serve in large bowls and top with cheese and parsley. Serve and enjoy!
Video
Nutrition
Katie says
I followed the directions perfectly and before the instant pot was even pressurized I got the message that food was burning. Took the lid off and it was stuck to the bottom. Any ideas on where I went wrong? Used a jar of marinara and a can of diced tomatoes… ground turkey instead. Even had a little extra broth!
Taylor Stinson says
Hey Katie – I’m wondering if you stirred the pot before cooking? Or if you added the olive oil to the bottom of the pot first? Did you add the rice closer to the bottom? Those are usually the primary issues because it shouldn’t be burning with that much liquid. I’m sorry you had trouble 🙁
Liz says
Can I make this in a slow cooker or stove top?
Taylor Stinson says
Hey Liz – you can definitely make on the stovetop. Brown the meat first, then dump everything in the pot, bring to a boil and simmer for 30-40 minutes.
Lauren Wiley says
This recipe was delicious and boyfriend approved. Super hearty and filling.
Taylor Stinson says
So happy you enjoyed Lauren!!!
KRISTEN RICHMOND says
– 5 STARS – Delicious and husband approved! This was easy to make with easy to follow instructions. I will definitely be making it again!
Taylor Stinson says
I’m so happy you enjoyed it!!! Thanks for reporting back 🙂
Shirley says
What about long grain brown rice? Would you make any changes.
Taylor Stinson says
Brown rice will need to cook for much longer so unfortunately I can’t recommend it here 🙁
Amy says
Instant rice or regular white? Does basmati work?
Taylor Stinson says
Regular rice! And basmati will work as well 🙂