We are chili freaks here on Fit Foodie Finds. This Instant Pot Chili recipe is made with ground beef, beans, tomato products, and homemade chili seasoning. It is seriously so easy to throw everything in the Instant Pot and have chili ready in under 40 minutes.
When it comes to chili, team Fit Foodie is obsessed. We love making chili for game day, an easy fall dinner, and an easy weeknight dinner. We love our Beef Chili recipe and wanted to develop a recipe that was similar, but made in the Instant Pot.
Why yes, it does come together 100% in the Instant Pot in 40 minutes — including the prep time. And yes, we do truly feel like this is the best Instant Pot chili on the internet.
What You Need for Instant Pot Chili
Grab your Instant Pot and the featured ingredients for this chili below.
- Ground beef (we used 85% fat!) – make sure your ground beef has a little bit of fat in it. It adds such great flavor.
- Ground pork – ground pork is an incredible flavor add. Feel free to use Italian sausage if you have that on hand.
- Pinto, kidney, and great northern beans: we know there is an internet debacle on whether beans are classic chili ingredients and I can tell you right now that we are team beans! Feel free to use 3 cans of your favorite.
- Tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and tomato paste: tomato products are essential for classic chili. We used tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and tomato paste.
- Maple syrup: our secret ingredient. SHHHHH. It brings out all those delicious chili seasoning spices.
- Hot sauce: if you don’t want to add hot sauce, you can add a dash of apple cider vinegar.
- Homemade chili seasoning – once you make your own homemade chili seasoning, you’ll never go back. It’s soooo much more flavorful.
Can’t Do Meat?
Instant Pot Vegetarian Chili
Try our u003ca href=u0022https://fitfoodiefinds.com/vegan-instant-pot-chili/u0022u003eInstant Pot Vegetarian Chili recipeu003c/au003e for a no-meat twist on Instant Pot chili!
Substitutions + Variations
Feel free to use ground pork, ground chicken, ground turkey or even a meat substitute for a vegetarian version.
Swap out any bean variety as per your preference. Cannellini or Great Northern beans can be great additions. You can also add more vegetables to this chili by adding bell peppers, corn, or mushrooms.
We recommend beef broth for this Instant Pot chili because the flavors lend themselves nicely to the ground beef and pork. But feel free to sub 1:1 for chicken broth, vegetable broth (or in a pinch) you can use water.
Homemade chili seasoning
Do yourself a favor and make your own chili seasoning. I promise you the flavor is better AND there isn’t any added junk. Try our homemade chili seasoning and keep a batch in your cabinet at all times.
what you need
- Chili powder
- Garlic powder
- Ground cumin
- Smoked paprika
- Salt
- Ground pepper
Recommended Kitchen Tools
FAQ
Can I make this chili vegetarian?
Absolutely! Just replace the meat with a meat substitute or more beans.
Is this chili spicy?
This recipe is moderately spicy. For more or less heat, adjust the chili powder and consider adding or removing jalapeños.
What is the secret ingredient in this Instant Pot?
The best secret ingredient for chili is a little bit of maple syrup. A bit of sugar will bring out all of the savory spices of your chili.
Freezer Instructions
Instant Pot chili is the perfect chili recipe to freeze! We wrote an entire post on how to freeze soup and it works the exact same way for chili.
- Let your Instant Pot chili cool completely.
- Then, transfer it into an air-tight container or freezer-safe gallon-size bag.
- Remove as much air as possible and seal.
- Freeze for up to 3 months.
Storage Instructions
Store your Instant Pot chili in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
To reheat: Either place multiple servings of the chili on the stovetop and heat over medium heat until boiling or place 1 serving of chili into a microwave-safe bowl and microwave on high for 1 minute and 30 seconds to 2 minutes.
Serving Instructions
Chili is best served with tortilla chips, jalapeno corn pudding, or even a delicious focaccia recipe.
