Instant Pot Chili
Can I tempt you with this delicious and comforting bowl of instant pot chili or should I say Instant pot chilli con carne or Chilli. You can always count on this recipe on a cold night or any other weeknight.
With the help of an electric pressure cooker, this chilli recipe can be yours in less than 30 minutes. It is quick, easy and packed full of flavours. Serve over some fluffy baked potatoes or rice and top with sour cream, shredded cheese and lime. Let me show you how to make the best pressure cooker chili the whole family would love.
Is it Chilli con carne, Chili or Chilli
These words basically mean the same. In Spanish “chilli” means pepper and “carne” is meat, the recipe originated from Spain. Although, Northern Mexico and Southern Texas claim it is theirs and I also read somewhere that this bowl of red is almost sacred. It’s even more authentic without beans but hey we all own Chilli. There, I said it! This instant pot chili is about to be the best you’ve ever had.
Here in the UK, we enjoy our spaghetti Bolognese upgrade “hello chili con carne” with jacket potatoes or rice. It can be made healthy, you can make it weight watchers or slimming world compliant too.
This recipe is versatile, I have had it in tortilla wraps and even added it to scrambled eggs. Oh My God, it was so good. I do this with my leftover taco beef as well, you should try it.
Related recipes: easy turkey chilli con carne and air fryer turkey steaks.
Ingredients
Lean ground beef: I used lean beef to save the extra step of decanting oil in this dish after cooking. Substitute for ground turkey or chicken.
Onions
Beef bouillon cubes (Knorr, OXO, Maggi and the likes)
Red kidney beans
Olive oil
Chopped tomatoes
Tomato puree
Red bell pepper
Brown sugar
Homemade chilli powder: I used a combination of cumin, paprika, cayenne pepper, oregano, dried coriander and garlic powder
Ingredient Variations to this recipe
Cocoa powder
Chocolate
Soy sauce
Apple cider vinegar
Pinto beans
Beef stock
Beer
Beef chunks instead of ground beef
How to make instant pot chili recipe
Turn on the instant pot and select saute or browning if using pressure king pro or any other electric pressure cooker. Add olive oil and heat until hot or shimmering, add the chopped onions and saute until onions are soft and translucent.
Next, add the ground beef to the pressure cooker and fry until completely brown. Decant excess oil
Dump the rest of the ingredients in: Add chopped red bell peppers, tomato puree, brown sugar cayenne pepper, cumin, paprika, oregano, coriander and crumble in the beef bouillon. Continue to saute and stir continuously, to release the fragrance of the spices for another minute or more so that the flavours can marry together. Also, make sure the ingredients is not stuck to the bottom of the pan otherwise, you would get a BURN notice.
Add chopped tomatoes and kidney beans, carefully stir to combine and in the process deglaze the pan too.
Lock the lid of the instant pot securely and set the valve to sealing or closed if using pressure king pro or any other electric pressure cooker and cook on high pressure for 8 minutes. Once the cycle is completed, the timer would beep and leave to natural pressure release for 10 minutes then quick pressure release.
Carefully open the lid, stir to combine. Check for salt and seasoning and adjust accordingly. Serve immediately with rice and toppings of choice.
How to serve instant pot chili
Here in the UK, chili is popularly served with rice (try this instant pot brown rice recipe) or baked potatoes, but you may also serve it with the following
Cornbread
Shredded cheddar cheese
Chilli topping choice includes
Avocado
Sour cream
Yogurt
Jalapeno
Lime wedge
Corn chips or flour tortilla chips
Can I make this Chili con carne on the stove top or in a slow cooker
Yes, this recipe is originally simmered over medium heat for about an hour or so on the stove top and longer in a slow cooker. The use of pressure cooker is just a great shortcut to enjoying this chili half the time it would take if you used the other cooking methods mentioned above.
On the Stove top: between 30 minutes to 1 hour cooking time
Slow cooker: 6 to 7 hours on low, 3 to 4 hours on high.
How to thicken Chili
Do you have soupy chilli instead of a thick, creamy meaty dish, don’t fret there is always a way out. You can thicken pressure cooker chili con carne by using 3 ways.
- by using the saute method after completing the pressure cooking cycle. Turn on the saute function and leave the chilli to simmer for few minutes to thicken to the desired consistency stirring frequently so it doesn’t burn. If this doesn’t work then move on to the next step
- Use cornflour slurry, this method is by mixing cornflour together with water to form a slurry. Add it to the thin chilli then stir to combine on saute mode until the desired thickness is achieved.
- use flour and water, this is very similar to cornflour slurry but in this case, you have to get to cook the chili a bit longer (on saute) in order to get rid of the floury taste.
For the above, you can use the sauce from the chilli to mix the cornflour or water instead of water. Start with 1 tablespoon of flour or cornflour to about 1/3 cup of liquid.
How to store it
In the refrigerator: this chili would keep for up to 5 days in an airtight container.
Freezer: store in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Other recipes on the blog you’ll love
Instant Pot Chicken Cacciatore
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Instant Pot Chili (Chili Con Carne)
Equipment
- Instant Pot
Ingredients
- 500 g Lean ground beef: Substitute for ground turkey or chicken.
- ½ cup Onions chopped
- 2 Beef bouillon cubes knorr, OXO, Maggi and the likes
- 1 can red kidney beans rinsed
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1½ can chopped tomatoes 600g
- 3 tablespoons tomato puree
- 1 Red bell pepper chopped
- ½ tablespoon brown sugar
Homemade chilli powder
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 ½ tablespoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ tablespoon oregano
- ½ tablespoon dried coriander
- ½ tablespoon garlic powder
Instructions
- Turn on the instant pot and select sauté or browning if using pressure king pro or any other electric pressure cooker. Add olive oil and heat until hot or shimmering, add the chopped onions and sauté until onions are soft and translucent.
- Next, add the ground beef to the pressure cooker and stir fry until completely brown. Decant excess oil if need be.
- Add chopped red bell peppers, tomato puree, brown sugar cayenne pepper, cumin, paprika, oregano, coriander and crumble in the beef bouillon. Continue to sauté and stir continuously to release the fragrance of the spices for another minutes and so that the flavours can marry together. Also, make sure the ingredients are not stuck to the bottom of the pan otherwise, you would get a BURN notice.
- Add chopped tomatoes and kidney beans, carefully stir to combine and in the process deglaze the pan too.
- Lock the lid of the instant pot securely and set the valve to sealing or closed if using pressure king pro or any other electric pressure cooker and cook on high pressure for 8 minutes. Once the cycle is completed, the timer would beep and leave to natural pressure release for 10 minutes then quick pressure release.
- Carefully open the lid, stir to combine. Check for salt and seasoning and adjust accordingly. Serve immediately with rice and toppings of choice.
Notes
On the Stove top: between 30 minutes to 1 hour cooking time
Slow cooker: 3 to 4 hours on high. How to store it In the refrigerator: this chili would keep for up to 5 days in an airtight container.
Freezer: store in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
Nutritional data: Please note that the nutrition label provided is an estimate based on an online nutrition calculator. It will vary based on the specific ingredients and brands you use. Under no circumstances will thedinnerbite.com be responsible for any loss or damage resulting for your reliance on nutritional information.
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My mom used to make this when I was young. She served hers over egg noodles. It had a totally different taste to me than a regular chili. I always thought it was special.
It’s 2020, recipes without nutritional information is makes the recipe only half inclusive of needed information.
Thank you for your observation Bob, the recipe has now been updated with nutritional information.