Description
Make a rich, velvety red pepper and tomato soup quickly using your Instant Pot. This recipe delivers deep flavor with minimal effort.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 large red bell peppers, roughly chopped
- 1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes, undrained
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 cup heavy cream (or full-fat coconut milk for dairy-free)
- 1 teaspoon sugar (optional, to balance acidity)
Instructions
- Set the Instant Pot to the Sauté function. Add olive oil. When hot, add the onion and cook until softened, about 4 minutes.
- Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute until fragrant. Press Cancel.
- Add the chopped red bell peppers, crushed tomatoes, vegetable broth, basil, oregano, salt, and pepper to the inner pot. Stir to combine.
- Secure the lid and set the vent to Sealing. Select Manual or Pressure Cook on High for 10 minutes.
- When the cooking cycle finishes, allow for a Natural Pressure Release (NPR) for 10 minutes, then carefully move the valve to Venting to release any remaining pressure.
- Open the lid. Stir in the heavy cream and sugar, if using.
- Use an immersion blender directly in the pot to blend the soup until completely smooth and creamy. Alternatively, carefully transfer the soup in batches to a regular blender and blend until smooth, then return to the pot.
- Taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed before serving.
Notes
- For a deeper flavor, you can roast the red peppers separately before adding them to the pot, though this is not required for this quick method.
- If you prefer a thicker soup, mix 1 tablespoon of cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of cold water and stir this slurry into the soup after blending. Set the Instant Pot to Sauté (Low) and cook until the soup thickens slightly.
- This soup freezes well. Cool completely before transferring to freezer-safe containers.
- Prep Time: 10 min
- Cook Time: 25 min
- Category: Soup
- Method: Pressure Cooking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1.5 cups
- Calories: 220
- Sugar: 12
- Sodium: 450
- Fat: 14
- Saturated Fat: 8
- Unsaturated Fat: 6
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 20
- Fiber: 5
- Protein: 4
- Cholesterol: 45