Cutting around the stem of a bell pepper wastes usable flesh and puts your knife right through the seed core, which means picking loose seeds out of every piece afterward. Standing the pepper up and cutting around it in flat panels avoids both problems entirely.
This method works the same whether you're prepping a red, yellow, orange, or green pepper, and it scales cleanly from thin strips for a stir-fry to a fine dice for salsa.
This guide covers the standing-cut technique, how to adjust it for strips versus dice, and the mistakes that leave you fishing seeds out of your prepped pepper.
What You'll Need
- Chef's knife or paring knife — A chef's knife handles the panel cuts, while a paring knife gives more control for trimming the inner ribs.
- Stable cutting board — Bell peppers have a slightly curved, waxy skin that can shift under the knife, so a board anchored with a ROO Mat keeps things steady.
- Bowl for the core — A place to drop the stem, seeds, and core in one go instead of picking loose seeds off the board afterward.
How to Chop and Dice a Bell Pepper, Step by Step
Stand the pepper upright
Set the pepper on its base, stem pointing up. This orientation is what lets you cut around the core instead of through it.
Slice off the top panel
Cut straight down, following the curve of the pepper, to remove a flat panel of flesh from one side. You should end up with a clean piece of pepper wall, no seeds attached.
Rotate and repeat for each side
Turn the pepper and repeat the same downward cut for the remaining 3 sides, working your way around the core. You'll end up with 3 to 4 flat panels and a slim core holding the stem and seeds.
Trim the panels
Lay each flat panel skin-side down and trim away any remaining white pith along the edges, which can taste slightly bitter.
Slice into strips or dice
Cut each trimmed panel into strips for stir-fries and fajitas, or turn the strips 90 degrees and dice for salsa, salads, or omelets.
Discard the core in one piece
The stem, seeds, and core should lift out as a single unit. Drop it straight into your scrap bowl instead of scattering seeds across the board.
Photo by Mikhail Nilov on Pexels
Upgrade Your Prep: Get the ROO Bundle
ROO is a silicone mat that sits under your cutting board. It grips smooth countertops so the board never slides, and its built-in 7-cup pouch catches peels and trimmings as you cut. The Bundle includes the mat, a rubberwood board, and a reusable storage bag. $54.99.
Shop the ROO Bundle →Common Mistakes to Avoid
Trying to carve around the stem while the pepper lies on its side wastes usable flesh and makes it far more likely you'll cut directly into the seed core.
The pith along the inside edges of each panel carries more bitterness than the flesh itself, which is noticeable in raw preparations like salads or salsa.
Slicing through the stem and seed core scatters loose seeds across your board and your prepped pepper pieces, meaning you'll spend extra time picking them out by hand.
A bell pepper's skin is slightly tough and waxy, and a dull blade tends to slip or tear instead of cutting cleanly through it.
Upgrade Your Prep Workflow: The ROO Bundle
A bell pepper's curved shape and waxy skin make it more likely to shift mid-cut than a flatter vegetable, which is exactly when a stable board matters most. The ROO Bundle's silicone mat grips the counter so the board holds firm through each panel cut, and the scrap pouch keeps the seed core contained instead of scattering across your workspace.
Upgrade Your Prep Workflow: Get the ROO Bundle
Keep your board steady through every panel cut, and the seed core contained in the pouch.
Check out the ROO Bundle →Frequently Asked Questions
Why cut a bell pepper standing up instead of on its side?
Standing the pepper up lets you cut straight down around the core in flat panels, which avoids the seeds entirely and wastes far less usable flesh than carving around a stem lying on its side.
Do I need to remove the white pith inside a bell pepper?
It's not required, but the pith carries more bitterness than the flesh, so trimming it makes a noticeable difference in raw dishes like salads or salsa. It matters less in cooked dishes where the flavor mellows.
Does this cutting method work for all pepper colors?
Yes, red, yellow, orange, and green bell peppers all have the same basic structure, so the standing panel-cut method works identically across all of them.
What's the best way to cut a pepper for a stir-fry?
Cut the panels into strips about a quarter-inch wide, following the natural curve of the pepper. Strips cook evenly and hold their shape better than dice in a hot pan.
How do I dice a bell pepper finely for salsa?
Cut your trimmed panels into thin strips first, then turn the strips 90 degrees and slice across them into small cubes. The panel method makes this two-step dice much cleaner than trying to dice an intact pepper.
Standing a bell pepper up and cutting around the core instead of through it turns a fiddly vegetable into one of the fastest things on your cutting board. Once you've done it a few times, you'll never go back to carving around the stem.