How to Cut a Pepper in 4 Easy Ways

From fajitas, pizza, and omelets, to sandwiches, stuffed peppers, sautées, and more, peppers are the perfect addition to any dish. Peppers can also work as a complementary side when roasted, stir-fried, grilled, or mixed with a sauce. With so many peppers, knowing which to use can add a lot to your dish.

There are many different ways to cut a pepper, but there are at least four common ways that you may need to familiarize yourself with before starting on your favorite pepper dishes.

Prepare your peppers

Before getting started, you’ll want to select fresh vegetables that display no signs of aging or damage. When shopping for this versatile veggie, look for peppers that are firm, bright in color, and smooth, with little to no blemishes or soft spots. When you’re ready to start cooking, be sure to rinse off your fresh produce with warm water to remove any unwanted dirt or debris.

How to cut bell peppers into rings

The first technique on our list is slicing a bell pepper into a ring shape. First, you will want to lay the pepper on its side, with the stem pointing sideways. Next, hold the bottom half of the bell pepper in your free hand and remove the stem by slicing the top of the bell pepper off. 

Once the top has been removed, you may choose to slice the bottom of the bell pepper off or leave it intact for now for a better grip. You’ll then want to remove the core of the bell pepper, which contains the seeds. To do so, run your knife along the inner walls of the pepper until the core becomes detached. If the core is particularly difficult to remove, you may opt to remove the core out with your hand. 

Once the core and its seeds have been removed, you’re ready to start cutting rings out of the pepper. To do so, grasp the pepper at one end and start slicing at the other in a downward motion, creating rings out of the bell pepper.

How to cut peppers into strips

The next option for cutting bell peppers will produce long, rectangular strips. To get started, lay your pepper flat on its side and remove the top of the pepper containing the stem, as well as the bottom side of the pepper. 

Next, stand your pepper up again, allowing it to sit on its bottom side. Slice the pepper from top to bottom in one spot, opening the pepper up vertically. Lay the pepper down again. Remove the core and seeds by inserting your knife into the vertical opening and running it along the inside edges of the pepper.

Once the core has been successfully removed, remove any remaining white pith from the inside walls with your knife. Next, slice the pepper from top to bottom, creating strips about four to five centimeters long.

How to dice peppers

Dicing a bell pepper is another great way to prepare this ingredient for many dishes. First, lay your pepper on its side and remove the top and bottom of the pepper by slicing it in a downward motion with your knife. 

Once you’ve removed the stem and bottom of the pepper, stand your pepper up again. You can remove the core of the pepper in one of two ways. First, run your knife along the inside wall of the pepper. Otherwise, you can pull the core out by hand.

Next, make a vertical slice in the pepper by running your knife from top to bottom on one side. Your pepper should now resemble one flat strip. Lay this strip down on your cutting board, with the inside wall facing up. Start slicing the pepper from top to bottom, creating strips. These strips can be as thick or thin as you prefer, based on the dish you are preparing it for. 

Lastly, take the newly cut strips and rotate them 90 degrees on your cutting board. Now that they are laying longways across your board start chopping the pepper strips to create finely diced pepper pieces.

The easiest way to cut stuffed peppers

The last way to cut a pepper on our list is perfect for creating stuffed peppers. Begin by laying the pepper sideways on your cutting board. Next, use a downward motion with your knife to slice the top off the pepper and remove the stem. You’ll want to leave the bottom of the pepper intact to create a bowl shape. This contains the other ingredients included in your stuffed pepper recipe.

Next, you’ll want to remove the inner core and seeds. Insert your knife into the opening created at the top of the bell pepper, and run it along the edges of the core to detach the core from the walls of the pepper. Once detached, remove the core and any remaining seeds or white pith from the pepper walls. At this point, your bell pepper should be hollow and ready to hold your stuffed bell pepper recipe ingredients.

Pick the perfect pepper

With so many peppers to choose from, the flavor combinations can get overwhelming. Let Instacart do the heavy lifting for you! Just add everything you need to your cart and choose same-day pick up or delivery at check out. Less time shopping means more time to kick up your feet.

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