Instant Pot Sausage and Pepper Pearl Couscous
Browned Italian sausage, sweet bell peppers, and fire-roasted-style tomato flavor cook together with chewy pearl couscous in one pot. It's an easy Italian-American weeknight dinner that's ready in under an hour and needs only a single pot to wash.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 31 min
- Wait
- 3 min
- Total
- 49 min
- Makes
- About 8 cups (6 generous servings)
Steps
Before you start
- Use a 6-quart (5.7 L) Instant Pot or larger. Do not fill beyond the two-thirds line.
- Buy pearl (Israeli) couscous, which has large beads about the size of peppercorns. Fine Moroccan couscous will turn to mush under pressure.
- Choose mild or hot bulk Italian sausage, or buy links and squeeze out the meat from the casings.
- Chop the onion and peppers before you start. The sauté steps move quickly.
Prep the vegetables
- Dice the onion into ½-inch (1 cm) pieces, cut the bell peppers into ¾-inch (2 cm) pieces, mince the garlic, and lightly crush the fennel seeds, if using, with the flat of a knife.
- Measure the broth and couscous and open the can of tomatoes so everything is ready.
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Ready when: Vegetables are cut into even pieces so they cook at the same rate.
Tip: Keep the pepper pieces larger than the onion. They soften under pressure but should not disintegrate.
Brown the sausage
- Press Sauté and set it to More/High.
- When the display reads Hot, add the olive oil and the sausage.
- Break the meat into 1-inch (2.5 cm) chunks with a spatula and cook, stirring only occasionally, for 6 to 8 minutes.
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Ready when: Sausage is no longer pink and has deep brown crusty edges, with browned bits on the pot bottom.
Tip: Let the sausage sit undisturbed for a minute or two at a time so it browns instead of steaming.
Soften onion and peppers
- Add the onion, bell peppers, oregano, fennel seeds, red pepper flakes, salt, and black pepper to the sausage and its rendered fat.
- If there is more than 3 tablespoons of fat in the pot, spoon off the extra.
- Cook, stirring often, for 4 minutes.
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Ready when: Onion looks translucent at the edges and the peppers are slightly glossy and bright.
Toast garlic and paste
- Stir in the garlic and tomato paste.
- Cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute until the paste darkens to a brick red and smells sweet and fragrant.
- Press Cancel to turn off the Sauté function.
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Ready when: Tomato paste turns a deeper red-brown and coats the sausage and vegetables.
Tip: Don't let the garlic scorch. Turn off the heat as soon as the minute is up.
Deglaze the pot
- Pour in ½ cup (120 ml) of the broth.
- Scrape the bottom of the pot firmly with a spatula, loosening every stuck brown bit.
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Ready when: The pot bottom feels completely smooth when scraped, with no stuck-on bits.
Tip: This step prevents the Instant Pot's "Burn" warning, so don't skip it.
Layer couscous and tomatoes
- Add the couscous and the remaining 1 cup (235 ml) broth, then stir so the beads are mostly submerged and level.
- Spoon the diced tomatoes and their juices evenly over the top.
- Do not stir them in.
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Ready when: Couscous sits in the broth with the tomatoes layered on top.
Tip: Tomatoes sinking to the bottom can scorch. Keeping them on top is what prevents the Burn warning.
Pressure cook
- Lock the lid and set the valve to Sealing.
- Cook on Pressure Cook (High) for 2 minutes.
- The pot takes about 10 minutes to come to pressure before the countdown begins.
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Ready when: Display counts down from 2 and then switches to a count-up timer when cooking ends.
Natural release
- Leave the pot undisturbed for a 5-minute natural pressure release.
- Then carefully turn the valve to Venting to release the remaining steam, keeping your hands and face away from the steam.
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Ready when: The float valve drops and the lid unlocks easily.
Tip: Releasing pressure immediately can make the dish foam and sputter. Wait the full 5 minutes.
Stir and checkOven 160°F / 70°C
- Open the lid and stir thoroughly, folding the tomatoes and sausage through the couscous.
- The mixture will look slightly loose.
- Check a bead: it should be tender and chewy with no hard center.
- Insert an instant-read thermometer into a piece of sausage to confirm it reads at least 160°F (71°C).
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Ready when: Couscous is tender and chewy and the sausage reads at least 160°F (71°C).
Tip: If it seems soupy, press Sauté and stir for 1 to 2 minutes to evaporate extra liquid. It also thickens as it sits.
Finish and serve
- Stir in the Parmesan until melted and creamy.
- Let the pot sit uncovered for 3 minutes so the couscous absorbs the sauce.
- Taste and add a pinch of salt if needed.
- Top with the basil and serve with extra Parmesan.
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Ready when: The sauce clings to the couscous and no pool of liquid remains.
Tip: Add the basil at the end so it stays bright green.
Good to know
Tips
- Layer the tomatoes on top without stirring. This is the best way to prevent the Burn warning.
- Don't increase the couscous without also adding liquid. It absorbs about 1 cup of liquid per cup of beads under pressure.
- Pearl couscous keeps absorbing liquid as it sits, so serve soon after the rest, or loosen leftovers with a splash of broth.
- For a brighter finish, add a teaspoon of red wine vinegar or a squeeze of lemon juice just before serving.
Make ahead
"Chop the onion, peppers, and garlic up to 2 days ahead and refrigerate in airtight containers. The finished dish can be made up to 2 days ahead and reheated."
Storage & reheating
"Room temperature: up to 2 hours. Refrigerator: up to 4 days in an airtight container. Freezer: up to 2 months in freezer-safe containers; thaw overnight in the fridge. Reheat in a skillet or microwave with a splash of broth or water, stirring until steaming hot (165°F/74°C)."
Substitutions
- bulk Italian sausage (mild or hot) → Chicken or turkey Italian sausage. Leaner, so use 1½ tablespoons olive oil and brown for 1 to 2 minutes longer. Cook to 165°F (74°C) for poultry sausage.
- pearl (Israeli) couscous → Orzo. Use the same amount and reduce the pressure cook time to 1 minute, then natural release for 5 minutes.
- low-sodium chicken broth → Vegetable broth. Use low-sodium and adjust salt to taste at the end.
- fresh basil leaves → Fresh flat-leaf parsley. Use the same amount for a milder fresh finish.