This Instant Pot stuffed pumpkin feast is the best thing that you can make in your Instant Pot this fall! A whole pumpkin stuffed with rice, steak, nuts, and cranberries ready in just 1 hour! Make sure to check out the video to see how I made this stuffed pumpkin in my Instant Pot.
Last weekend, we went to our local farmer’s market for our weekly fruit and veg shop and we found the cutest pumpkins and squash! Of course, I had to pick up one of each and that means that this month will be all about fall produce, so many new exciting fall recipes are coming!
I am SO excited to share this Instant Pot stuffed pumpkin recipe with you! My husband makes it every year, and trust me, this recipe is the best savory pumpkin meal that you will make in the Instant Pot!
It turns out so delicious that the pumpkin will literally melt in your mouth, it looks amazing, and it will definitely impress whoever you are cooking for!
Stuffed Pumpkin Recipe
There are so many possibilities when it comes to stuffing your pumpkin, but here’s what we did: We seasoned strips of steak and sautéed that in the Instant Pot with a piece of butter, then set the cooked steak aside.
At the bottom of the pot, you’ll get juices from the steak and that’s where all the flavors are! So we used that to make rice (along with a knob of butter and a cinnamon stick for extra flavor).
And then we stuffed the pumpkin with the
When you cut through the pumpkin for serving, the rice with the steak and nuts will fall over and that’s probably my favorite part in this recipe! So flavorful, fragrant and absolutely delicious!
The Ingredients
To make this Instant Pot stuffed pumpkin, you will need:
- Beefsteak cut into strips – use sirloin, ribeye or tenderloin.
- A whole pumpkin – make sure that it fits in your Instant Pot! We could fit a 3-pound pumpkin in our 8 quart Instant Pot, but don’t take my word for it and double-check that your pumpkin can fit in your IP!
- Pumpkin spice – make your own pumpkin spice at home, here’s a great recipe for you! This will save you a lot of money.
- Salted butter – this will go in the rice, cook the steak, and brush the pumpkin. So much flavor in there!
- Rice – use long grain rice or basmati rice.
- Cinnamon – I add a stick of cinnamon to the rice to flavor it, but feel free to add pumpkin spice instead, or just ground cinnamon if you like.
- Vegetable stock or water – I make my own vegetable stock in my Instant Pot all the time, it’s much healthier than store-bought stock as it doesn’t contain any unnecessary ingredients, plus I use kitchen scraps so it saves me a lot of money.
- Garlic, salt, and ground black pepper.
- Nuts – I use cashew nuts and walnuts. Feel free to use any other nuts if you like, or omit the nuts if you’re allergic.
- Sweet dried cranberries – to make this extra special, I add dried cranberries for a pop of color and sweetness.
Because there are many steps in this recipe, it’s easier when you have all the ingredients measured out and in one place before you start cooking. You could also print out the recipe if you like, just scroll down to the recipe card at the end of this post to see the exact amounts of each ingredient and print out the recipe.
How to make Instant Pot stuffed pumpkin?
- Prepare the pumpkin, wash it, then using a very sharp knife, carefully cut the cap out of the pumpkin. Clear away the seeds and the strings inside the pumpkin.
- To season the pumpkin, melt the butter, then add to it minced garlic, salt, and pepper. Brush that inside and outside the pumpkin.
- Cut the steak into strips, and season with pumpkin spice. On the Instant Pot, press on SAUTE and set for 10 minutes. Melt a piece of butter, and cook the steak strips until they’re brown. Set the steak aside, and leave the juices in the pot. You might want to deglaze the pot at this point, just add 1/4 cup of vegetable stock or water and deglaze.
- Add rinsed and pre-soaked rice to the Instant Pot, top with water until it covers the rice by 1 inch. Add a piece of butter, and 1 cinnamon stick. (see picture 1)
- Cover the Instant Pot with the lid, set the vent on sealing position and press on MANUAL or HIGH PRESSURE, and set for 4 minutes. Allow the Instant Pot come to pressure, then let it do a natural release for 10 minutes. When that’s done, quickly release the steam that is left, and carefully open the lid. (see picture 2)
- Fluff the rice with a fork, and take it out and set aside. (see picture 3)
- Wash the Pot, and put it back in the Instant Pot with the trivet. Add 1 cup of water to the bottom of the pot. Stuff the pumpkin with rice (see picture 4), followed by the layer of the steak (see picture 5). Put the pumpkin cap back on (see picture 6), put the pumpkin in the Instant Pot and cover the Instant Pot with the lid (see picture 8).
- Make sure that the vent is on sealing position, press on MANUAL or HIGH PRESSURE and set at 7 minutes. Allow the Instant Pot to come to pressure, and cook. When it’s finished, quickly release the steam and carefully open the lid. Allow it to cool down for a couple of minutes, then using the trivet handles take the pumpkin out.
- If you’re finding it difficult to take out of the Instant Pot, just use a medium-sized plate to hold the pumpkin and discard the water. Then using the same method, turn the pumpkin over the plate, and put it on a serving plate. Top the pumpkin/steak with toasted nuts and cranberries.
- Cut the pumpkin into wedges or half-moons, and serve with rice, steak, and nuts. Garnish with chopped parsley leaves.
Can I freeze this Instant Pot stuffed pumpkin?
Whether you make this for Thanksgiving dinner, or you just want to make this for your family over the weekend, I hope that you get some leftovers left. We usually have no leftovers, but last time we tested this recipe and photographed it, we froze 2 portions and I was so excited to take them out of the freezer a few days later to enjoy for dinner.
Once thawed and reheated, the food tastes as if it just came out of the Instant Pot when it was first cooked!
Just make sure that you freeze this in portions.
Did you know that you can make your own homemade pumpkin puree in your Instant Pot? Read my post on how to make pumpkin puree.
For more great Instant Pot recipes, make sure to check out my Instant Pot recipe collection.
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!
Instant Pot Stuffed Pumpkin
Recipe Video
Ingredients
For the steak
- 1 lbs steak strips
- 1 tsp pumpkin spice
- ½ tsp salt and pepper
- 1 tbsp butter
For the rice
- 2 cups long grain rice
- 1 cinnamon stick
- ½ tsp salt and pepper
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 tsp pumpkin spice
- ¼ tsp vegetable stock or water
Pumpkin
- 1 pumpkin we used 3 pound pumpkin, make sure it can fit in your Instant Pot
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- ½ tsp salt and pepper
For the nuts
- ¼ cup walnuts
- ¼ cup cashews
- ¼ cup dried cranberries
Instructions
Prepare the pumpkin:
- Prepare the pumpkin, wash it, then using a very sharp knife, carefully cut the cap out of the pumpkin. Clear away the seeds and the strings inside the pumpkin.
- To season the pumpkin, melt the butter, then add to it minced garlic, salt, and pepper. Brush that inside and outside the pumpkin.
Sear the steak:
- Cut the steak into strips, and season with pumpkin spice. On the Instant Pot, press on SAUTE and set for 10 minutes. Melt a piece of butter, and cook the steak strips until they're brown. Set the steak aside, and leave the juices in the pot. You might want to deglaze the pot at this point, just add 1/4 cup of vegetable stock or water and deglaze.
To make the rice:
- Add rinsed and pre-soaked rice to the Instant Pot, top with water until it covers the rice by 1 inch. Add a piece of butter, and 1 cinnamon stick. Cover the Instant Pot with the lid, set the vent on sealing position and press on MANUAL or HIGH PRESSURE, and set for 4 minutes.
- Allow the Instant Pot come to pressure, then let it do a natural release for 10 minutes. When that’s done, quickly release the steam that is left, and carefully open the lid. Fluff the rice with a fork, and take it out and set aside.
Stuff the pumpkin and cook:
- Wash the Pot, and put it back in the Instant Pot with the trivet. Add 1 cup of water to the bottom of the pot.
- Stuff the pumpkin with rice, followed by the steak. Put the pumpkin cap back on, then put the pumpkin in the Instant Pot and cover the Instant Pot with the lid.
- Make sure that the vent is on sealing position, press on MANUAL or HIGH PRESSURE and set at 7 minutes. Allow the Instant Pot to come to pressure, and cook. When it’s done, quickly release the steam and carefully open the lid. Allow it to cool down for a couple of minutes, then using the trivet handles take the pumpkin out.
- If you're finding it difficult to take out of the Instant Pot, just use a medium-sized plate to hold the pumpkin and discard the water. Then using the same method, turn the pumpkin over the plate, and put it on a serving plate. Add the toasted nuts and cranberries to the pumpkin.
- Cut the pumpkin into wedges or half-moons, and serve with rice, steak, and nuts. Garnish with chopped parsley leaves.
Notes:
- This recipe freezes well, divide into portions and freeze in freezer bags for up to 2 months.
- Defrost and reheat frozen stuffed pumpkin in the microwave or over the stovetop.
- I add a cinnamon stick to flavor the rice but feel free to add 1 tsp of pumpkin spice instead, or 1 tsp of ground cinnamon.
- When seasoning the pumpkin with the butter and garlic, make sure that you’re brushing the mixture inside and outside of the pumpkin for extra flavor.
- Make your own Instant Pot vegetable stock.
- This recipe was tested in the 6-quart Instant Pot, if you’re using an 8-quart then keep the time the same but add 2 cups of water to the Instant Pot when cooking the pumpkin instead of 1.
- To toast the nuts, either do this at the very beginning of the cooking and slightly brown them in the Instant Pot with a little bit of oil on SAUTE mode. Or do that in a pan over the stove.
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
© Little Sunny Kitchen
Cindy says
This recipe looks so beautiful for fall and sounds delicious! Only one problem . . . I don’t have an instant pot! Can this recipe be adapted and baked in the oven? Thank you!
Diana says
Hi Cindy, thank you! Yes, you definitely can make this in the oven. Follow the same instructions, and bake in the oven instead of using a pressure cooker until the pumpkin is done. Enjoy!
Maureen says
Do you think you could use quinoa instead of rice?
Diana says
I’m sure that you can! Enjoy!