Here is an easy and flavorful pressure cooker chili with dry beans recipe. Using a 13 bean blend and no soaking required. You can now made homemade Instant Pot chili in under 45 minutes! A hearty dinner idea that is perfect year round.
Ever since I got my Instant Pot over a year ago I have been busy creating new recipes our (and your) family will enjoy, this pressure cooker chili with dry beans is now a favorite amongst our Instant Pot recipes.
Instant Pot Chili with Dried Beans
One of the very first recipes I made was our easy Instant Pot chili recipe that only has 5 ingredients. It is fabulous and we still make this a few times a month, but sometimes you want homemade.
Ninja Foodi Chili with Dry Beans
If you only have a Crockpot Express or Ninja Foodi you can use the same instructions below. The latter uses the lid that is not attached is all you need to remember. It doesn’t matter what the brand is as long as you have the pressure function.
If you are new to pressure cooking we have a lot of easy one pot meal recipes for you here. To begin with let’s start with a few basic tips:
- Make sure to Bookmark our InstaPot recipes page. We add new ones each week!
- Then PRINT this —–> Instant Pot cooking times cheat sheet that will help you understand how long meat, vegetables and beans take to cook in your pressure cooker.
- I HIGHLY recommend you buy this non stick pot.
- You should know how to deglaze a pressure cooker after sautéing but it won’t have as many issues with this better liner.
For reference, this is the model I have (a 6 quart) and use for all recipe creations.
How to Make Chili with Dried Beans
It was a lot easier than I thought it would be initially. I was also surprised that you really could use any bean variety of your choice. As long as you used the timing and liquid requirements in the recipe card below it would come out great every time. Give it a whirl yourself!
In this case you are going to use high pressure and this Instant Pot cooking times for beans chart to see if times vary for the first step of cooking your beans. Once you get them tender you can proceed to making all sorts of things, in this case chili.
Drained you can add all sorts of flavors to thicken the sauce around them and into dishes like baked beans or the kid fave of Instant Pot chili mac which is done in 15 minutes (after this first tenderizing step) and gets thumbs up from the grown ups too.
How to Make Instant Pot Chili with Dry Beans
Of course when it comes to any easy chili recipe, it’s all about the add ins. Keep these substitutions in mind when making your homemade chili with dry beans. If you love spicy chili then add more chili powder and maybe a tbsp or so of Tobasco or Sriracha…whatever your hot sauce of choice is really.
If you want to load your chili up with vegetables then feel free to add lots of onions, green onions, and diced bell peppers of all varieties are great too!
13 bean mix was used here from Bob’s Red Mill (found in the aisle with all the other dry beans in a bag) has a basic chili recipe on the back. I figured I could use that as a base and turn it into a pressure cooker chili with dry beans for sure. If you just prefer pinto bean chili then use just those. We have a whole post about cooking beans in a pressure cooker here to read further.
FAQ
For that multi cooker you would use the lid that is not attached and the pressure cook button on the front. No soaking is required but if you do soak overnight it will cut down the cook time by more than half. Just throw in with 3x the water and follow our timing.
Yes, always. Especially if you are using dried beans you need to rinse well to remove the debris and possible small rocks that may have been missed in the processing. For canned it is not necessary unless you want to avoid discoloring your dish with the liquid in the can.
I like flavorful but not spicy spicy so I would say the directions below are for a Ninja Foodi chili version of chili….amp it up from there. It is really easy to create a very flavorful dish with a variety of spices in your cupboard right now.
Of course you can always add a chili packet of seasoning into your homemade chili using dry beans to make things even easier. We mix it up with our other version using canned beans that is done in just 30 minutes with a natural release. Both are winners for dinner in my opinion.
Ingredient Notes
- Dry beans mix is what you see here. I used a bagged 13 bean soup mix I found at the store so you get a nice variety.
- Ground beef 80/20 fat content is best. I guess you could leave this out if you wish, hamburger is a must in our house though. Alternatively you could make a Instant Pot chicken chili version.
- Onions and green onions are added for added texture. I like to dice fine (for the kids’ sake) and use yellow or white onions.
- Diced tomatoes are already canned so there is no work for you. I like the petite version so they are smaller and more bite sized.
- Tomato sauce will make it thicker into a chili more than a soup consistency.
- Seasoned salt, I used Lawry’s for a pop of flavor since it would be rather bland if you didn’t add anything.
- Can of diced chiles we use is the mild version but there is a spicy one you can get too.
- Chili powder, more or less, will add some heat into the mix. Use red pepper flakes or Tobasco if you want it really hot.
- Garlic salt, you can add some minced garlic too if you want
Cheese shredded to put on top when it’s done is a must for us, we often times serve it over Instant Pot white rice as well.
Pressure Cooker Chili With Dry Beans Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 small onion, diced
- 2 whole green onions, diced
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1.5 cup dry beans, I used 13 bean soup mix
- 4 3/4 cup water
- 1 can diced tomatoes, 14.5 oz., we used petite diced
- 1 can tomato sauce, 14.5 oz
- 1 can diced chiles, 4 oz
- 3 tsp seasoned salt, I used Lawry’s
- 1.5 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp garlic salt
Instructions
- Put 4 cups of water and 1 1/2 c. (using a measuring cup) of dry beans into your pressure cooker. Seal lid and steam valve and set to bean setting for 30 minutes. Quick release, drain, and set beans aside.
- Turn Instant Pot to saute and add olive oil and ground beef. Cook about half way done and then add onions, spices, and green onions. (if you’re going to want to drain your meat then don’t add spices now, add after you drain.)
- Cook until pink is gone and turn pressure cooker off.
- Add in your diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, beans that you put to the side that have been cooked, and fill your tomato sauce can 1/2 way full of water and put that in your pot too. Gently stir.
- Seal your lid and steam valve and set to pressure, high, for 5 minutes.
- Do a quick release and serve topped with cheese, chives, green onions etc….
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
What dried beans are best for chili?
Well, when it comes to a traditional chili recipe, kidney beans are considered the best choices. They retain their firmness and shape under heat, are very hearty, and absorb spices and flavors nicely. Really it is up to you though and I would recommend that you switch it up to see which are your faves.
- I use light red beans of this variety with my Instant Pot and 5 ingredient Crockpot chili recipes as well but they’re canned.
- I like to try new things though and that is why I went with this blend to see how it would work.
- In the end the mix of beans gave it a more interesting flavor and texture as well. It got thumbs up all around the table so I’d make it this way again for sure.
- Use what you like though and go from there, this variety is just a suggestion. If you follow the measurements below you could easily swap these out for the “regular” type.
- I’m not a “regular” person I guess and like to think outside the box, especially when cooking is involved.
The great thing about cooking dry beans is that if you’re in a homebound or emergency situation, they are something that are likely to never expire. I have a plastic container with every bean imaginable just for situations like this. You just never know right. 😉
Other Instant Pot Dry Bean Recipes You’ll Love
No need to use pre soaked pressure cooker black beans anymore. Just submerged in water or beef broth. Then cook on high pressure, and you too can go from dry to perfect in no time. These Instant Pot 15 bean soup requires no soaking either!
Instant Pot Hoppin John is great year round topped with a small dollop of sour cream Our Instant Pot red beans and rice is great using canned kidney beans. Great if you need an easy pantry recipe for a meal.
This is great game day food! Quick to make and so tasty. Always a hit!
We also prefer a mild chili, and this one is delicious! It is full of flavor and so easy to make in the instant pot.
Glad it is a hit
Just made it. So good.
Oh good!
If my instant pot doesn’t have a bean setting…would I just use the manual setting?
I can’t have tomatoes because of a medication I’m taking. How would you change this recipe if you didn’t use tomatoes?
To substitute just with broth would make it more like a bean soup
@The Typical Mom, I always use broth in place of water in my recipes. When using broth instead of water, the measurements remain the same. You’ll end up with more flavorful meals. I buy broth by the case, and anytime I cook with bones, I make and freeze my own bone broth.
Trying this right now! Almost ready!
Can the mixed beans be substituted with pinto beans?
Yes that should work fine.
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