Instant Pot Stuffed Bell Peppers With Sausage and Quinoa

Italian stuffed bell peppers with sausage and quinoa are a twist on a recipe that goes back to my childhood. My grandma made her version of stuffed peppers with green peppers, ground beef, and rice. As a child, I remember not being fond of this meal. As a young adult missing home-cooked meals I found myself calling my grandmother asking how to make her recipe. I have since made and evolved stuffed bell peppers many different times. Most recently Instant Pot Stuffed Bell Peppers have made their way on the menu. For this particular stuffed Bell Peppers recipe, I am using Italian sausage and quinoa for more of an Italian flair but depending on the spices and fillings you use they could have more of a Mexican flavor or could easily be a vegetarian dish if you leave out the meat.

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For Instant Pot Stuffed Bell Peppers you will need:

• Uncooked quinoa rinsed
• Italian sausage
• Frozen corn
• Diced tomatoes with green chilies
• Medium-Sized bell peppers
• minced garlic
• Onion powder
• Sea salt
• Black pepper
• Italian seasoning
• Water
• Shredded mozzarella cheese 

How To Make Quinoa In The Instant Pot

To start you need to precook the quinoa in the instant pot. Rinse one cup of uncooked quinoa in a fine metal strainer like this one. Add quinoa to the instant pot along with 1-½ cups of water. Pressure cook on high for 2 minutes letting the pressure naturally release completely, about 15 minutes. Once it is safe to open the instant pot remove the quinoa and set it aside.

Instant Pot Italian Stuffed Bell Peppers

Start by browning the Italian sausage in a skillet or, use the saute function in the Instant Pot. Once the sausage is browned add minced garlic, onion powder, salt and pepper, and Italian seasoning. Stir in frozen corn, tomatoes with green chiles, add the cooked quinoa and stir to combine the ingredients.

Preparing the filling in the Instant Pot using the sauté function is convenient, however, the completed filling mixture would need to be transferred out so that the inner pot could be cleaned and the trivet placed inside. For this reason, I absolutely love having a second liner or even using my second Instant Pot and avoid turning the stove on altogether.

How To Pressure Cook Stuffed Bell Peppers

Place the trivet in the Instant Pot along with 1 cup of water. Slice the tops of the bell peppers off and clean out the seeds and cores. Spoon the sausage and quinoa mixture into the pepper all the way to the top and carefully place the stuffed pepper on the trivet. Complete this for all your peppers and then lock the lid in place and set the cooking time for 0 minutes. This may seem silly, but we are just looking to steam everything and soften the pepper. Since the filling is completely cooked it isn’t necessary to “cook” these.  Once the cooking cycle is complete QR the pressure completely.

Top each of the peppers with a sprinkle of mozzarella and Parmesan cheese and place the lid back on for 2-3 minutes to allow the cheese to melt.

I prefer a bit more filling when I serve these so that’s where the extra sausage and quinoa filling comes in. There will definitely be more filling than you have peppers but don’t worry there are lots of ways to use it.

More Instant Pot Beef Recipes

How To Use Leftover Sausage & Quinoa Pepper Filling

1. Make a double batch of stuffed peppers and freeze.
2. Serve extra filling on the side stuffed peppers if you have hearty eaters.
3. Use the next day over tortilla chips for nachos. (I promise this is good)
4. Serve with over-easy eggs in the morning. Also sounds strange but is delicious! 
5. Use as a burrito filling.
6. Serve without peppers to the picky eater in your house.
7. Dice Peppers and mix in, cover with cheese for an easy casserole.

Stuffed Bell Pepper Recipe Variations

If you prefer rice substitute Instant Pot Jasmine White Rice for quinoa. Use cumin and chili powder and omit the Italian seasoning if you want a Mexican stuff bell pepper. Or swap out red bell peppers for your favorite variety of bell pepper for different flavor combinations.

Can I Freeze Stuffed Bell Peppers?

Halve bell peppers, core, and remove seeds. Spoon sausage and quinoa filling mixture into each half of the peppers. Place stuffed peppers in a glass baking dish and cover with plastic wrap. Place covered peppers in the freezer. When the peppers are completely frozen wrap them individually in plastic wrap and place them in a labeled freezer bag. Store for up to 2 months.

How To Cook Frozen Bell Peppers

Remove frozen stuffed bell peppers to the fridge overnight to thaw. Bake at 400° for 25-30 minutes.

Pressure cook frozen bell peppers straight from the freezer. Start by placing the trivet in the bottom of the Instant pot and 1 cup of water. Place the frozen stuffed peppers on top. Pressure cook on high for 4 minutes with a quick release. Sprinkle with cheese and replace the lid for 2-3 minutes to allow the cheese to melt.

Confused about how to use your Instant Pot? I want to help you.