This Instant Pot Chili is comforting and delicious. You can easily double the recipe by using a 10qt instant pot, which is perfect for this freezer-friendly chili recipe.
If you love a good hearty chili, you will love this recipe. Making chili in the instant pot makes it much easier, and it tastes like you’ve been cooking it all day, thanks to the pressure cooker function. We doubling this chili recipe in our 10qt instant pot so we can have a bunch of chili meal prepped for the freezer.
Don’t want to make this in the instant pot? You can also make it on the stovetop, but you’ll need to cook it longer to let the flavors mingle and develop.
Recipe ingredients and notes
- Olive Oil – We use olive oil to bloom the spices and brown the onions, garlic, and peppers.
- Onion – This adds a delicious flavor, but you can omit if needed.
- Garlic – Don’t have fresh garlic? You can also use 1/2 teaspoon of granulated garlic in a pinch.
- Bell Peppers – We use a combo of red bell pepper and green bell pepper. You can also add in some jalapeno for heat.
- Ground Beef – Don’t eat beef? You can also use ground chicken or ground turkey.
- Beans – This chili recipe has black beans, but you can also use red kidney beans or pinto beans.
- Spices and seasonings: Oregano, Cumin, Chili Powder, Unsweetened Cocoa Powder, and Salt & Pepper give this chili a rich and delicious flavor paired with the other ingredients.
- Diced Tomatoes – We use diced tomatoes in a can. Have an abundance of tomatoes? Dice some up and add them too! You could also use fire-roasted tomatoes for more of a smokey flavor.
- Beef Broth – The beef broth gives it a rich flavor and adds more needed liquid to the chili.
- Tomato Paste – We use tomato paste to give more of a deep tomato flavor to our chili. Tomato paste is a thick, concentrated paste of tomatoes that packs a ton of flavor and goes well with chili. You can save the leftovers from the can in the freezer. We use a souper cube to save ours, but you could also use an ice cube tray.
How to make Instant Pot Chili
Brown the meat in the instant pot on saute mode with the oil. Drain the fat from the meat and set the meat aside.
Saute the peppers and onions with oil in the instant pot for 3-4 minutes and then add the garlic and cook for another minute. Add the seasonings and cook for another minute to bloom the spices.
Turn off saute mode and pour the beef broth, beans, diced tomatoes with the juice, and ground beef. Stir to combine.
Place the lid onto the instant pot securely and turn it on manual at high pressure for 15 minutes. It will take time for the pressure to build up.
Once the cooking time is up, let it naturally release for 10 minutes, and then carefully release the pressure after the 10 minutes have elapsed.
Stir the chili, and then use a spoon to serve it in bowls with your desired toppings.
Recipe tips and variations
- We cook beans and freeze them into 1-cup portions. I will make chili the day I’m batch-cooking beans or use the 1-cup freezer portions. I do not drain the beans. I use a bit of water from cooking the beans too. We don’t recommend doing this for canned as it has an off-putting flavor and texture.
- Our top picks for beans are kidney beans, black beans, and pinto beans. If it were a white chicken chili, we’d prefer using Great Northern Beans.
- This chili freezes well, and we love freezing it in portions.
- You can also make this recipe with ground chicken or ground turkey.
Storage and reheating tips
- Refrigerate: Store any leftover chili in an air-tight container in the refrigerator and enjoy it within 3-4 days.
- Freeze: To freeze leftover chili, place it in an airtight freezer-safe container and freeze for 4-6 months. We use souper cubes to freeze in convenient portion sizes.
- Reheat: We like to reheat chili in a saucepan on the stovetop, stirring on medium heat until the contents are warmed throughout.
How to serve
We love serving with tortilla chips, avocado, cheddar cheese (we use follow your heart shredded cheddar for dairy-free), or even cornbread!
Frequently asked questions
The best beans for chili are red kidney beans, pinto beans, or black beans. For a white chili, we recommend using a white bean like Great Northern Beans.
Yes, you can add corn, zucchini, and mushrooms or add sweetness by adding sweet potatoes, pumpkin, or butternut squash.
We recommend chopping up some jalapenos or adding some cayenne powder. Use caution when adding as it can become spicy quickly.
Adding unsweetened cocoa powder adds more depth of flavor to the chili. It gives a delicious richness and helps all the flavors stand out more.
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Instant Pot Chili
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Print Pin Recipe 🖤 SaveIngredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil divided
- 1 medium onion diced
- 1 tablespoon garlic minced
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 1 green pepper diced
- 2 lbs ground beef
- salt & pepper to taste
- 1/2 tablespoon oregano
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 cup beef broth
- 3 cups black beans if using canned rinse and drain the beans
- 1 28 oz diced tomatoes with liquid
- 1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder optional, but adds good flavor!
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
Instructions
- Turn the instant pot onto saute mode and wait until it says “hot.” Then add 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Brown the meat and cook until no longer pink. Use a potato masher to break the meat up.
- Transfer the cooked beef to a large plate lined with paper towels to absorb excess grease.
- Add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil to the instant pot and place on saute mode again.
- Saute the onions and peppers for about 3-4 minutes and then add in the garlic and seasonings and cook for another minute to let the spices bloom. Then stir in the optional unsweetened cocoa powder if using.
- Turn off saute mode and pour the beef broth, beans, tomato paste, and diced tomatoes with juice into the pot. Stir to combine, scraping any bits on the bottom of the pot.
- Add in the beef and then stir again to combine.
- Place the lid onto the instant pot securely and turn it on manual at high pressure for 15 minutes. Once the time is up, let it naturally release for 10 minutes, and then carefully release the pressure after the 10 minutes have elapsed.
- Stir the chili, and then use a ladle to serve into bowls with your desired toppings.
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Nutrition
The nutritional information is automatically calculated and can vary based ingredients and products used. If the nutrition numbers are important for you we recommend calculating them yourself.
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Can I do in the crockpot instead?
We only recommend it if you prep the ingredients (brown, sautee) as written as this will result in the best flavor.
This was not very good and doesn’t have no flavor I’m going to go buy chili packets
We’re sorry you didn’t enjoy it. We mention salt and pepper to taste and I’m wondering if you didn’t add salt? This chili has excellent reviews on pinterest but you can always alter to add more of less of something. 🙂