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Instant Pot Chili that is award winning and bringing home cook-off victories across the country. You don’t want to miss diving into a bowl of our best chili!
If you want chili from scratch, this traditional chili is your answer. It took us 10 years to discover an award winning recipe and this is finally it, plus it’s an instant pot recipe which means it’s all done in less than 1 hour (with instructions for cooking on the stove top or crock pot as well)!! It is full of bacon, ground beef, beans, classic chili spices and all the toppings you want!
Let’s talk about how to make this homemade chili step by step, discuss what goes well with it, and how to freeze it to eat later. So much to talk about, so let’s get going!
We attended a chili cook-off and brought this awesome Cheesy Ground Beef Enchilada Chili. It was so good, but soooo many arteries were clogged that night. It’s pretty unhealthy, but I heard a rumor that if you don’t eat it alone the calories don’t count.
If you want a healthy chili recipe, you should definitely try our award winning healthy turkey instant pot version, which uses ground turkey instead of beef.
Chili is good year round, but we especially love it for Halloween. Well, chili or our melt-in-your-mouth buttermilk pancakes depending on our mood. Both are easy and perfect for the family. Now on to this award winning instant pot chili recipe…
Chili Cook-Off Idea!
Muffin Tin Trick
Listen to this, at the chili cook-off we went to a couple of people brought muffin tins and then placed a sample scoop of each kind in the well so they could try them all and vote without going back or over-eating. GENIUS. That’s seriously the smartest thing ever.
Ingredients for Instant Pot Chili
This chili recipe uses all the traditional chili ingredients in just the perfect ratio. Here is everything you will need:
- Meat: Ground Beef and Bacon
- Canned Beans: Kidney Beans, Pinto Beans, and Black Beans
- Tomatoes: Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes and Tomato Paste
- Vegetables: Red Onion, Red Bell Pepper, Garlic, and Jalapeño
- Broth: Beef Broth and Worcestershire Sauce
- Spices: Oregano, Ground Cumin, Kosher Salt, Ground Black Pepper, Smoked Paprika, Chili Powder
- Toppings: Sour Cream, Cilantro, Cheddar Cheese, Corn, Limes, Chips, Green Onions, etc.
The measurements and all the details for each ingredient can be found in the recipe card at the end of this post.
How to Make Chili in an Instant Pot
Making this recipe in an instant pot is really easy because there’s an actual setting for chili and beans (if you don’t have that setting, you can totally use “manual”). That pretty much takes all of the thinking out of this, and everything can be done in the instant pot, which means only one dish to clean!!
Let’s go through it step by step:
- Sauté: Turn your instant pot to “sauté” and cook the bacon until crispy. Remove the bacon and sauté the bell peppers and onions until tender.
- Brown: Add the ground beef and cook until browned and drain any excess grease. Add all the remaining ingredients and stir everything together.
- Cook: Place the lid on the instant pot and set to “chili” mode with the vent in seal position (“manual high pressure” can be used too). Cook for 18-20 minutes and allow the valve to natural release for 10-15 minutes.
- NOTE: If you get the burn notice, please see the section below.
- Serve: Once it is cooked, serve it up and top with all your favorite toppings.
All these instructions can also be found in the recipe card at the end of this post.
What to Eat with Homemade Chili
Really any sort of bread will get the job done beautifully, but if you are making this in an instant pot, then you probably want dinner done in a hurry, so these 1 Hour Rolls are your answer! I often like something light and fresh with my chili like this garden balsamic avocado salad.
I’ve also heard that people eat cinnamon rolls with chili, and I fully endorse this! Try our World’s Best Cinnamon Rolls! And imho, all chili tastes the best with a side of cornbread or our crazy easy 7-Up biscuits!
Burn Notice FAQs
We’ve had a lot of questions, comments and concerns about the burn notice on the instant pot. We really think it just depends on your Instant Pot. Some are more sensitive than others. We have not ever had a burn notice on ours, but if you are getting them, here are a few tips and tricks…
Prior browned bits on the pot- If your pot had previous food stuck to the bottom of the pot it will continue to cook and confuse the pot to thinking that something is burning. Clean your pot well after every use. Bar Keeper’s Friend is my go-to cleaner for browned bits in pots and pans.
– PROBLEM: Is your bacon extra thin or lacking fat? Both of these can cause the bacon to stick to the bottom of the pot and cause a burn notice. Those browned bits stuck to the pot because of the lack of fat can make the pressure cooker think that you’ve walked away and left meat to burn.
– REMEDY: To counter this, please use a good quality bacon and stir often to keep it from sticking. You can also add a little oil to the pot if not much fat is rendering off the bacon.
If your chili has been combined and then you get the burn notice you probably didn’t thoroughly stir everything together or something is stuck to the bottom of the pot. This is why that bacon step is important. If you added those heavy ingredients and added the lid something will probably stick and burn. Stir well, make sure you measured properly.
If none of these tips work, you should contact instant pot as you may have a model that needs to be replaced.
Chili FAQs
This recipe is too big to be doubled in both a 6 qt Instant Pot and an 8qt. It can be one and a halved in an 8qt Instant Pot. We have also been told you can double it in an 8qt Instant Pot if you take out 1 or 2 cans of beans.
1. Start with your bacon. Always. See our How to Cook Bacon post for all the details on bacon! Whenever bacon is going in a dish we crisp it first, drain the fat and leave the browned bits in the pan. It adds extra flavor to whatever comes next.
Start by pressing the “sauté” button and once you can feel the heat, add the chopped bacon, stirring occasionally until crisp. Remove to a paper towel lined plate and drain the fat.
2. Next, grab your ground beef. Any kind is fine for chili since other flavors are in there, but there’s more flavor in an 80/20 versus 90/10, though you will need to drain out the fat before continuing on.
Make sure you stir occasionally in order to crumble the meat instead of having big chunks. Chili shouldn’t be big and chunky.
Scroll down to the Notes section of the recipe card for all the details.
Toppings for Homemade Chili
The toppings you choose for your chili is totally up to you! You can add more crunch, creaminess, heat, freshness, acidity…really anything that makes you happy! Here are a few of our favorite chili toppings:
- Cheese
- Sour Cream
- Sliced Jalapenos
- Green Onions
- Cilantro
- Tortilla Chips or Corn Chips
Storage Tips
Leftover chili should be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container. It will keep for up to 5 days.
If you want it to last a little longer, classic chili is really easy to freeze. Cool your chili completely and store in ziplocs with all the air pressed out, or we prefer to use our Food Saver. You can store individual servings to eat for lunch or larger portions to feed the whole family later. They will last in the freezer for up to 3 months.
To reheat the chili, let it thaw in the fridge overnight and then warm it up in a pot on the stove top. Warming up a single bowl in the microwave works great too!
Our Favorite Cheat Sheet
P.S. Have you seen our Instant Pot cheat sheet? Head there are all our tips for cooking all the basics in your Instant Pot!
When it comes to classic chili, I want it to be full of flavor, bold and comforting! Friends, this recipe is the result of me making dozens of recipes in order to find the greatest of all time. So I tell you hands down this is the VERY BEST CHILI!
Here are some more CHILI RECIPES that you’ll love:
- Instant Pot Turkey Chili
- Best Stove Top Chili
- Ground Beef Enchilada Chili
- Brisket Chili
- White Chicken Chili
- All our Chili, Soup, and Stew Recipes here!
Looking for more Instant Pot recipes?
Watch How this Chili Recipe is Made…
Thank you for all of your love and support with making this the #1 chili out there!
Instant Pot Chili Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ½ Pounds Ground Beef
- 6 Strips Bacon, good quality, chopped
- 1 Can Kidney Beans, 15 ounces, drained
- 1 Can Pinto Beans, 15 ounces, drained
- 1 Can Black Beans, 15 ounces, drained
- 1 Can Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes, 15 ounces, with juice
- 1 Can Tomato Paste, 6 ounce
- 1 Red Onion, chopped
- 1 Red Bell Pepper, seeded and chopped
- 1 Jalapeño, seeded and minced *optional
- 2 Cups Beef Stock
- 1 Tablespoon Dried Oregano
- 2 teaspoons Ground Cumin
- 2 teaspoons Kosher Salt
- 1 teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
- 1 teaspoon Smoked Paprika
- 2 Tablespoons Chili Powder
- 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 Tablespoon Garlic, minced
For Garnish
- Sour Cream
- Cilantro
- Cheese, shredded
- Lime, fresh, optional
Instructions
- Turn your instant pot to sauté and add the bacon.6 Strips Bacon
- Cook until crisp, stirring often to cook evenly.
- Remove the bacon to a paper towel lined plate.
- Add the onions and peppers and cook until tender.1 Red Onion, 1 Red Bell Pepper
- Add the meat and cook until browned.1 ½ Pounds Ground Beef
- Drain off any excess grease, we just tilt the pot and use a large spoon.
- Add all of the remaining ingredients and 3/4 of the bacon and stir to combine.1 Can Kidney Beans, 1 Can Pinto Beans, 1 Can Black Beans, 1 Can Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes, 1 Can Tomato Paste, 1 Jalapeño, 2 Cups Beef Stock, 1 Tablespoon Dried Oregano, 2 teaspoons Ground Cumin, 2 teaspoons Kosher Salt, 1 teaspoon Ground Black Pepper, 1 teaspoon Smoked Paprika, 2 Tablespoons Chili Powder, 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce, 1 Tablespoon Garlic
- Turn the instant pot to chili (if you don't have a "chili" setting, use the "manual" setting) and cook for 18-20 minutes (see note). Allow pressure to release for 10-15 minutes or quick release with the vent.
- Serve with limes, sour cream, cheese, and a little bacon!Sour Cream, Cilantro, Cheese, Lime
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I absolutely love this recipe, and so does everyone in my family.
Although, we’ve now renamed it “Baby Chili” since my sis-in-law went into labor right after I made it for dinner, ha!
Oh my gosh, you are kidding me! Now that’s a story! Thank you for the feedback!
The chili is good, but you guys of gone a little overboard on monetizing your website, don’t you think? I now see what other people have complained about, scroll forever and read through tons of work just to get to the recipe. It’s too much
We are in the process of redesigning our website as we speak. Sorry for the unpleasant experience!
What do you suggest I use instead of bacon and bacon grease without compromising flavor?
There aren’t many things that can replace the taste of bacon, but you can use turkey bacon or pancetta.
SB, making this tonight for dinner! Can’t wait to try it. ~Joy, Louisiana
Yesssss! Let us know how it goes! Happy Halloween!
Trying this tonight, hopefully my kids like it! I normally just make stuff up as I go when it comes to chili, but decided I wanted to try a real recipe this time. Though I only had a orange pepper, hopefully that doesn’t change things too much!? The weather has finally turned cool and it feels like fall, perfect day for the first chili of the season!
How did it go?? The orange pepper should be just great!
I used Axis Meat, and added green onion and Fritos to garnish. this is award winning chile for instant pot.
Thank you so much Eugene!
This is my go to recipe ! I have made it several times and love it ! Flavour is awesome!
Polishing off my first bowl as I write this review! I just finished making this for the first time and am so happy with how it turned out! I would consider myself a “beginner-ish” in the kitchen, so the fact that this turned out so great on the first try is fantastic, especially since I didn’t even realize this was what I was craving until I took my first bite, which is always a little nerve-wracking with the insta-pot. I went rogue and made my own take on beef chorizo since I had ground beef to use, added corn, an ancho chili, used diced tomatoes since I didn’t have the kind you listed (nor did I have peppers…added green chili peppers from Trader Joes instead) and then topped it off with greek yogurt, cilantro and ripped up corn tortilla. I’m SO thrilled with how it turned out–this and at least five other recipes of yours have been bookmarked for future use 😉 Plus…zero clean up!? All my chili dreams have come true 🙂 Thank you!
Thank you so much Katie!! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! I love all the improvising you did with what you had on hand. That’s one of my favorite things about cooking! Thanks for taking time to give us feedback!
We absolutely love your chili recipe and have made it several times! I even have a batch in my instant pot as I write this review. It’s comforting and flavorful and very easy to make on evenings when we’re on the go. Thank you for sharing your delicious recipe!
Thank you so much!! And thank you for taking time to give us feedback! We really appreciate it!
I’d give this recipe 10 stars, if I could. I cannot remember how many times I made the recipe last winter. My husband even had me make a pot for him to take to work to share with the guys in his shop! Our first cool, fall day is in a couple days and this is what I’m making!
Hurray!! You’ve made my day Dianne! So glad you enjoy this chili! It is a regular on dinner rotation all fall and winter long!
Can’t stand your website! Please make a button that jumps right to recipe and not have all this unnecessary noise and as after ad and random videos cluttering it up!
Never got to the recipe because I COULD NOT FIND THE ACTUAL recipe!!!
Hi,
I’m so sorry for any hassle. Our site is actually being redesigned with that button, but unfortunately a whole redesign is like building a house and while we are ready to launch in a few weeks it has definitely been a lot of work.
Again, so sorry for your frustration.
Here is in a link to the printable recipe: https://ohsweetbasil.com/wprm_print/52423
Yes! I had the same issue as others here. Could not find the recipe at all. It was very confusing. I went back here 3 times before finally realizing it was at the very bottom after a great deal of other info and ads and other suggested recipes and a ton of pins! If you could at least place at the top a noticeable disclaimer stating that to jump to the recipe or ingredients, scroll to the very very very bottom. That would not require a great of fixing. Honestly, I am not likely to look for recipes from Oh Sweet Basil when your site is this confusing to navigate.
Hi Maddy! We are in the process of redesigning our website as we speak and adding a “Jump to Recipe” button. Sorry for the inconvenience!
I don’t think it’s very helpful or friendly for all of the people that were upset about the recipe being at the bottom of the page to give the recipe only one two or three stars…
Perhaps now that the sweet people at Sweet Basil have fixed this problem, you can go back and change your star rating (and/or actually make the recipe and rate it on its flavor instead of rating the website design)…
I doubt they make a fortune writing this blog for us, so to the person that mentioned monetization…I’d also suggest that you take the same time you took to complain and re-rate the recipe based on the taste…
***I’m just a regular human that doesn’t have any connection to anyone at Sweet Basil, but I had to give my two cents because I almost passed this recipe up because it wasn’t 4.75 stars or more…
Thank you for the support Dionna!
I started ranting before I could rave…!!!
AWESOME RECIPE! Thank you Sweet Basil People!
I used Cornish game hens instead of ground beef.
I used mustard instead of tomato paste.
I used a cantaloupe instead of the onion.
I used radishes instead of the jalapeño.
I used a turquoise pepper instead of red.
I used iced tea instead of beef stock.
I used Tapioca instead of beans.
I baked it on a cookie sheet at 475 degrees for two days and it was the best doggone made from scratch chili I’ve ever tasted!!!
Burn Baby Burn Disco Inferno!!!
Hi! This looks great! I’d like to make it the night before serving to a crowd. Do you recommend reheating on low on the stove prior to serving?
Yes! That works great!