Homemade Instant Pot Chili with dry beans, made using ground beef and dried unsoaked beans, is the perfect comfort food for a fall or wintry evening. It’s also a great dish to feed a crowd, or for game day. The addition of Masa Harina (cornmeal) in this chili recipe thickens the chili and gives it a corn flavor. Add your choice of toppings to take this homemade Instant Pot chili recipe over the top!
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Table of Contents
Introduction
Did you know that October is National Chili Month? It’s not yet October, but the leaves are changing color, the weather’s turning cooler and I’m starting to make soups, stews, and other comfort foods. I love the advent of fall and I thought it would be appropriate to post an Instant Pot Chili recipe to observe this occasion!
Chili is derived from Chili con Carne (translated as ‘chili with meat’ in Spanish), which originated in Texas. During the Chicago World’s Fair in 1893, the San Antonio Chili Stand helped popularize Texas chili to other parts of the United States. What’s Cooking America has a fascinating article about the origins of chili, in case you’d like to find out more!
Chili purists might say that chili should not include beans and/or tomatoes. Well, my recipe for Instant Pot Chili has both beans and tomatoes. Because I happen to like both in my chili.
You might be tempted to use canned beans because they’re convenient: no pre-soaking, no long cook times, just open the can and pour. But the Instant Pot allows you to use dried beans without the inconveniences.
The hands-on time for this Instant Pot Chili with dried beans recipe is about 10 minutes. For the rest of the time, the Instant Pot is doing the cooking while you get other important things done!
TIPS AND SUBSTITUTIONS
Beans
This recipe uses dried beans instead of canned beans. Dried beans are much more economical and don’t have added salt and preservatives.
The dried beans should be pre-soaked, but I’m going to show you a shortcut. I sometimes (always!) forget to soak my beans, so here’s a tip for you that works like a charm with any recipe that uses pre-soaked dried beans. Do a quick Instant Pot pre-soak while you’re cutting up the vegetables and preparing your ingredients.
Masa Harina (Corn Flour)
This recipe calls for masa harina (pronounced ‘maasa areena’) which is a finely ground Mexican corn flour used to make tortillas. Added to the chili after pressure cooking, the masa harina will thicken the Instant Pot chili and give it a slight corn flavor.
Please keep in mind that the recipe needs a certain amount of liquid to avoid sealing issues and the burn message. If you choose not to use the masa harina, the chili may be runny or thinner than you want.
Masa Harina can be found in the Latin/Mexican section of your grocery store or at a Latin grocery store. If you can’t find it, you can either substitute corn meal or take a few corn tortillas and powder them in a mini food processor.
Chili Powder
If you’ve never cooked homemade chili before, it’s important to note that the chili powder called for in this Instant Pot Chili recipe is Mexican chili powder commonly available in American grocery stores which is a mixture of different spices including cumin and garlic.
Please don’t use cayenne pepper or ground chili pepper that you get from Asian, Indian, Mexican, and ethnic markets – you won’t be able to eat this chili; it’ll be too spicy! So be sure to check the ingredient list. I like to use McCormick chili powder.
Toppings
Ladle the cooked Instant Pot Chili into bowls and serve with your choice of the following toppings:
- sour cream
- shredded cheddar cheese
- diced shallots or red onions or green onions
- sliced jalapenos
- hot sauce
- cilantro
- cornbread to crumble over the top
- my personal favorite: Fritos corn chips!
If you’re new to the Instant Pot and aren’t familiar with how to use it, you might find it helpful to first read one of the following guides and then come back here to learn how to make this recipe.
- General Instant Pot Instructions for Beginners
- Instant Pot ULTRA Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot DUO EVO PLUS Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot DUO NOVA Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot DUO GOURMET Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot DUO CRISP Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot PRO Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot PRO CRISP Beginner’s Manual
Instant Pot Chili with Dried Beans – Ingredients
- Bell peppers
- Tomatoes
- Pinto beans
- Onions
- Chili powder
- Garlic
- Beef broth
- Masa harina
- Oregano
- Cumin
- Cocoa powder
- Salt
- Pepper
- Ground beef
How to Make Chili using Dried Beans in the Instant Pot (Step by Step Instructions)
- Soak Beans
- Turn on Saute Mode
- Saute beef
- Saute vegetables
- Add spices, broth
- Pressure cook
- Do a natural release of pressure
- Stir in masa harina
- Serve with your choice of toppings
Soak Beans
- Soak dried beans for 4 to 8 hours or use my preferred method: Instant Pot Quick Soak Beans.
How to Turn on Saute Mode
- Instant Pot DUO: Select the Saute function.
- Instant Pot ULTRA: Select the Saute function and press Start.
Saute Beef
- Once Instant Pot is hot, add vegetable oil to the inner pot.
- Add ground beef to the inner pot.
- Stir with a wooden spoon to break up the meat into smaller pieces and saute until meat is browned, about 3 minutes.
Saute Vegetables
- Add onions to beef and saute until soft, about 2 minutes.
- Stir in bell peppers.
- Stir in garlic.
Add Spices, Broth
- Add chili powder, oregano, cumin powder, cocoa powder, salt, black pepper and cayenne pepper.
- Stir well and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Add beef broth, tomatoes and pre-soaked dried beans (whether using quick Instant Pot pre-soak or countertop pre-soak).
Instant Pot Duo Pressure Cook 20 minutes
- Close the lid and make sure steam release handle is in ‘Sealing’ position
- Press Manual (or Pressure Cook) and ‘+’ or ‘-‘ until the display reads ‘20′ (20 minutes).
Instant Pot Ultra Pressure Cook 20 minutes
- Close the lid.
- Select Pressure Cook mode and adjust the time to 20 minutes (00:20).
- Press Start.
Pressure Cooking Process (Duo and Ultra)
- Instant Pot display will change to On.
- Once the Instant Pot is pressurized, the float valve will go up.
- The display will count down to 0; it will then switch to Keep Warm mode and display L0:00 or 00 00 and begin to count up the number of minutes since pressure cooking completed.
How to Naturally Release Pressure (NPR) on the DUO and ULTRA
- Allow the pressure to release naturally (NPR). The float valve will be in the down position. This may take 15 to 30 minutes. [Find out more about the pressure release methods and how and when to use them. ]
- Press Cancel and open the Instant Pot.
* After 15 minutes, if you wish to, you can release the remaining pressure by moving the pressure release to the venting position.
Stir in Masa Harina and Add Toppings
- Select Saute mode.
- Stir in masa harina.
- Cook until chili is thickened, about 5 minutes.
- Press Cancel.
- Allow the Instant Pot chili to rest for 5 more minutes before serving; it will thicken some more.
- Ladle chili into serving bowls and serve with your choice of toppings: sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese, chopped red onions, shallots or green onions, sliced jalapenos, hot sauce, diced avocado, or Fritos chips (not the healthiest, but my favorite!)
Homemade Instant Pot Chili (with dried beans)
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups dried pinto beans
- 2 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 ½ lbs ground beef (⅔ kg)
- 2 cups onion chopped
- 1 cup bell pepper chopped
- 2 tablespoon garlic minced
- 3 tablespoon Mexican chili powder
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 2 teaspoon cumin powder
- 2 teaspoon cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
- ½ teaspoon black pepper powder
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper or to taste
- 4 cups beef broth
- 14.5 oz diced tomatoes (1 can or 411 grams) or 2 cups fresh tomatoes, chopped
- ¼ cup masa harina e.g. Bob’s Red Mill brand
- Your choice of toppings sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese, chopped red onions, shallots or green onions, sliced jalapenos, hot sauce, diced avocado, or Fritos chips
Instructions
To pre-soak pinto beans in the traditional way in a bowl:
- Rinse pinto beans and drain.
- Place beans in a medium bowl and add enough water to be 1 inch above the level of the beans.
- Let bowl sit on countertop for 4 to 8 hours.
- Drain and set aside.
To do a quick pre-soak of pinto beans in Instant Pot:
- Rinse pinto beans and drain.
- Add pinto beans to inner pot of Instant Pot and pour in enough water to be 1 inch above the level of the beans.
- Close the lid and pressure cook on High Pressure for 5 minutes.
- Do a Natural Pressure Release (NPR), about 12 minutes. [Read More: The Different Pressure Release Methods]
- Press Cancel and open the Instant Pot; drain the beans and set aside.
Instant Pot Chili Instructions:
- Select Saute mode.
- Once the Instant Pot is hot, add oil to inner pot.
- Add ground beef to inner pot.
- Stir with a wooden spatula to break up the meat into smaller pieces and saute until meat is browned, about 3 minutes.
- Stir in onions and saute until soft, about 2 minutes.
- Stir in bell peppers and garlic.
- Add chili powder, dried oregano, cumin powder, cocoa powder, salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Stir in beef broth, tomatoes and pre-soaked pinto beans (use either countertop or Instant Pot quick pre-soak method from above).
- Close Instant Pot lid and pressure cook on High Pressure for 20 minutes.
- Do a Natural Pressure Release (NPR), about 15 to 18 minutes. ** [Read More: The Different Pressure Release Methods]
- Press Cancel and open the Instant Pot.
- Select Saute mode
- Stir in masa harina.
- Cook until chili has thickened, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes.
- Press ‘Cancel’.
- Allow the Instant Pot Chili to rest for 5 more minutes before serving, it will thicken some more.
- Ladle chili into serving bowls and serve with your choice of toppings: sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese, chopped red onions, shallots or green onions, sliced jalapenos, hot sauce, diced avocado, or Fritos chips (my favorite!)
Notes
- Prep time does not include steps that are already accounted for in the ingredient list, e.g. chopped onions, minced garlic, cut vegetables, etc.
- If you choose not to thicken the chili with masa harina, your chili will be soupy. Please keep that in mind before you omit the ingredient.
- * The chili powder called for in this dish is Mexican chili powder which is a mixture of spices including cayenne and garlic. Don’t use ground chili pepper!
- ** After 15 minutes, if you wish to, you can release the remaining pressure by moving the pressure release handle to venting position.
- See the blog post for more detailed recipe tips. You don’t want to miss any!
Nutrition
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I am not a certified nutritionist. I provide my best estimate of nutritional information merely as a courtesy to my readers. If you depend on nutritional information for dietary or health reasons, I suggest using your favorite online nutrition calculator to confirm the nutritional value of this recipe based on the actual ingredients that you use.
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Mitch98 says
Thank you Neena!
Have made your recipe at least twice and it is better every time. The taste and consistency came out perfectly. I most recently made it for an annual work Chili cook off competition. I included 3 small modifications that really made it even more outstanding. Many of my fellow Texans love spice and we have some really fantastic Hatch Chilies in the U.S. I substituted two large Hatch Chilies for the green pepper. I also added 1 cup of red wine, substituting for 1 of the 4 cups of beef broth. Lastly, I traded ground beef for local natural farm raised cubed beef stew meat from a colleague’s ranch that I cut up slightly smaller into 1/2 inch pieces (usually they’re about 1 inch). Since I didn’t have any masa, I used 1/4 cup cornmeal/corn flour mixed into 1/2 cup of water to make a slurry, which I then added at the end. The final texture, flavor and consistency of the Chili was amazing. You could taste all the individual ingredients such as the beef, Hatch Chili and wine. At least a half dozen colleagues asked for a copy of your recipe! Highly recommend! The original recipe without my modifications is still perfect!
Neena Panicker says
Thank you so much for your comment. You truly made my day. Sometimes blogging can be a grind, but then I get a comment like yours and I get new energy and motivation! I’m so happy you enjoy the recipe and thanks for sharing your modifications!
Cathy says
Took quite a bit longer to cook. Taste was very good.
Neena Panicker says
Hi Cathy, I’m glad you enjoyed the taste of the chili with dry beans. You can reduce the cook time by soaking longer or using cooked beans.
Carey says
This recipe looks really good and wanted to try this recipe but was wondering if there is enough liquid to add in 2 c pinto beans.
Neena Panicker says
Hi Carey, the recipe calls for 1.5 cups, and I think you’ll be able use 2 cups and be fine. It will be thicker.
Amanda T. says
I’ve been using this recipe for years now. Sometimes I don’t have a bell pepper on hand so I use 4oz of canned diced green chiles, a few Tablespoons each of chopped pickled jalapeño and the brine. It’s definitely a favorite in our house and I make it often. We like to use leftover to make nachos! Thanks!
Neena Panicker says
Thank you for commenting, Amanda. I love that you have been making this chili with dry beans for so long!
Ash M says
Amazing recipe, thank you so much! For using dried beans, the suggestion of cocoa powder and for the suggestion of the masa harina to thicken it! A stroke of genius. I ended up adding tomato paste for a stronger tomato flavor and about 2 TBSP of honey because my chili powder is too spicy.
Neena Panicker says
Hi Ash, thank you for the comment! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed the chili with dry beans!
Zonie Maloney says
Wow! love the spice set up, especially the secret ingredient: cocoa powder.
I followed the steps precisely–
1) Quick pre soak in the IP 5 minutes –12 natural release
2) 20 minutes for pressure cooking
3) 17 minute natural release
I ‘ve used both kidney and pinto beans and the timing was spot on for either.
It’s so good I couldn’t stop eating it! Thanks for sharing.
Neena Panicker says
Thank you for trying the recipe, and for including your timings! Happy Holidays.
itsfreaknme says
This is not chill. There are a lot of chilli recipes out there that are way more authentic, but due to propriety issues ingredients have to be changed. This went way to far. No tomato sauce ? One can of diced tomatoes? Only 2tbl of chilli powder? Harina? Look elsewhere. There’s way better. I made this twice, trying to like it. Didn’t happen.
Neena Panicker says
I’m sorry you did not like the recipe and I hope you find one you like better.
Leah says
I soaked my beans for 4 hours and they came out a little undercooked. Pressure cooked for an additional 5 minutes and it came out fine. Love this recipe!
Neena Panicker says
Leah, some beans can take longer to cook because they are older. Thanks for your comment.
Deepa says
Great recipe! I used some mixed dry beans l got from Costco and did not add any beef (next time I will). I also added a few glugs of a dark ale. I didn’t have masa harina so I just ground up some tortilla chips, and that worked great. Thanks Neena!
Paint the Kitchen Red says
Hey Deepa, thanks for your comment. I’m glad the recipe worked for you and I love that you’re changing it up!
overmedium says
Wow, this is an incredible recipe! I am new to Instapot, and this is my third or fourth dish I made. What great flavors and consistency, really is impressive. I did your 5 minute ‘bean soak’ and that worked out great – beans cooked perfectly. The only changes I made to the recipe was that I used a plant based hamburger, and I used 3 different beans instead of one type. Thank you for this winner!
Paint the Kitchen Red says
Hi there, thank you so much for your feedback – I’m glad that you liked the recipe!
David says
20 minute pressure cooking is not very long. My beans came out crunchy.
Paint the Kitchen Red says
David, did you soak them beforehand? If not, you need extra time. Or sometimes older beans end up not cooking properly no matter how long.
Wendy says
This is hands down the best Chile recipe. I use 1\3 cup each of pinto and black beans (soaked). I also use fire roasted diced canned tomatoes.
Neena Panicker says
Thank you so much, Wendy! Nice idea to have black beans (so healthy!) Thank you for commenting.
James says
I didn’t have a green pepper so just used a bit more onion. I didn’t have beef broth so substituted water. I didn’t have ground beef so threw in a bit of ground pork sausage, only a quarter pound or so. Since I didn’t have as much meat, I added a couple of teaspoons of canola oil to the sauteing process. And with all those changes it still came out great. This recipe is bulletproof.
Paint the Kitchen Red says
Thank you, James! I’m so glad you enjoyed it.
Narnz says
This is a wonderful recipe. I made alterations because I found our garden whole tomatoes and jalapeños in our freezer. I pretty much followed your recipe and hubby loved it. Thank you for sharing 🥰
Paint the Kitchen Red says
I’m glad you and your family enjoyed the recipe!
Wendy says
This is the best Chile. I use soaked black and pinto beans and fire roasted tomatoes. Anaheim chili and a Serrano. Because we love spice. Shared with some friends.
Paint the Kitchen Red says
Thanks so much, Wendy! I’m glad you liked the recipe.
Jenni says
Wow! Am starting to learn how to use dried beans with success as well as the Instant Pot and this recipe was superb! I did the Instant Pot bean “soak” and it worked great.
Did a lot of changes to the recipe because I had leftovers to use up but used the spice ingredients (except the chocolate….sure wish I had that but …didn’t). and sauce ingredients as written. I added 1cup large chopped celery (put in with the beef)) and added 4 chopped chipotle peppers in adobo and cut the cayenne in half.. After it cooked, I added 2 charred red bell peppers as the masa harina was added.
I thought all the Chipotle would make it too hot but it was perfect!
Paint the Kitchen Red says
Thanks for sharing your modifications, Jenni. I’m so happy you liked the recipe.
Carol says
Great flavor, just the right amount of spice and easy to make. I used pink beans because that’s what I had and combined all the spices before putting them in. Delicious
Paint the Kitchen Red says
Thanks, Carol! I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe and were able to make it with what you had on hand.
itsfreaknme says
I guess you’re a bot
You have no idea what chilli is
Cindy Lou Who says
You’re a mean one, Mr Grinch!