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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.
This is now my go to chile recipe! Seems like a lot of ingredients and a few steps but so worth it. We crumble cornbread on top with shredded cheese and sour cream.
That sounds like absolutely perfection! Thank you so much for taking time to leave a comment!
I have to watch my sodium so I used all “no salt added” canned ingredients and unsalted broth. Also left out salt from the seasonings, but used a half salt substitute instead and reduced the amount by half. The recipe was amazing. My teens enjoyed it as well! We will definitely keep this as our go to chili recipe! Thank you!
Love to hear this! Thank you so much Tiffany and thank you for all the low sodium tips!
Wow it really is super good! Made it tonight. Followed the recipe except I did not add the black beans and for beef stock I used the Better than Boullion Roasted beef base. Didn’t add jalapeño but might next time. Fire roasted tomatoes were great. I didn’t think we would like the bacon but it didn’t distract from the chili. Will definitely make this frequently!! Thank you for sharing with us.
Thank you so much for the feedback Tricia! I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe! It is one of our most often repeated meals!
How would I double the recipe?
You would just double everything. It won’t quite fit in an 8 qt instant pot, but you could double everything and cook it on the stove top or in the slow cooker. You could also eliminate a could cans of beans and fit it into an 8 qt instant pot. I hope this helps.
I love this chili so much! It’s so easy in the instant pot and I have made it several times now. I am glad I found a chili recipe that I can go back to time after time!
Yay! Thank you so much Janet!
Read all the comments basically before attacking this.. my changes
1. Drained most of the fat from the bacon before adding peppers and onions. Deglazed with a few ounces of white wine and it freed up all bits on the bottom beautifully.
2. Increased saute on beef to Normal from Low.
3. Mixed in all spices first once beef was done BEFORE adding broth, beans and mixing tomato paste and fire roasted tomatoes together and dumping on top. Many commenters said to not stir and I did not.
4. Let natural release go for 10-12 mins before opening valve.
5. Stirred everything together once lid was off and served over rice with sour cream, parsley and sour cream like the picture.
Verdict? It was incredible. My wife had 2 portions as did I. It will be my non crockpot chili version from now on. Lordy, incredibly great. Will def. look at rest of site to find other top ranked recipes.
Notes section has some weird sentences adding together crockpot and Instant Pot directions and that needs editing btw.
Parsing it out into individual freezer containers right now. I have been disappointed by random “best” recipes on Pinterest. Not this time. Absolutely sensational. What a find.
Yay! Thank you so much Greg! Thank you for taking time to give your feedback and for leaving all your tips. I’ll review the crockpot instructions now and see if I can clear them up at all. I’m so glad you and your wife enjoyed it!
What spice rating would you give this? I’m wanting to try it, but I don’t really can’t handle much spice at all haha.
Hi Kelli! I am a total wimp when it comes to spice and this one is just perfect for me. If you are worried about the heat, you can half the jalapenos or omit them. You could also add regular diced tomatoes instead of fire roasted tomatoes. I think you are going to love it!
It’s not spicy at all, just flavorful. My wife hates spice too and we did the full Jalapeno and it was just great. Don’t worry about it being too spicy.
Now my go-to chili recipe
Yesssss! Love it! Thanks Cindi!
Double the recipe including the spices no jalapeno. My pressure cook for 2 3 minutes and 1 hour rest wit very little pressure. The meat and veggies were good and I drained excess grease before I pressure cook. I can taste a little to much chili season (maybe) . It just doesn’t taste right and it’s for a non-profit fundraiser and I’m in a chili cook-off. I added no hot peppers. I have it on 195 crackpot mode and going to bed. Any suggestions?
Hi Ronnie! I’m not sure what you are asking help on. How did it taste after being in the crockpot all night? Did you add the bell peppers? You could add more beans to spread out the chili flavor.
Tasty recipe, but too watery. Will add more tomato paste next time, and less than 1.5 cup broth.
Hi Linda! That is one criticism I’ve never had for this recipe! Adding more tomato paste and reducing the broth should definitely thicken it up!
I made the “Best Chili Recipe” today in the slow cooker and it was delicious. Definitely a keeper!
Thank you so much Deb!! I love when the weather cools down a little. Chili is perfect for this time of year!
I make mine in the crockpot and substitute beer for the beef broth (since I forgot to get broth from the store the first time I made it). Love it with the substitution. This recipe has now gone in my recipe box to make over and over again. And I’m not normally a chili fan.
This makes my day Christine! Thank you so much for the feedback!