This delicious, comforting Instant Pot vegan chili with quinoa, black beans and sweet potatoes is a healthy, easy and flavorful entree. It's incredibly filling and nutritious, and can be varied endlessly!
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Chili is a staple in our household in fall and winter, but this chili is perfect all year around. Instant Pot veggie chili is easy to make, tastes fantastic, and is suitable for most allergies and dietary restrictions.
My family has always loved a good veg chili. It's a leaner and lighter alternative to meat based chili, but tastes at least just as good. It's also a great way to incorporate more vegetables in your diet, or to use up any leftover vegetables that you have available.
This dish is easy to customize and adjust to your preferences. The base recipe is really mild, but you can make it as spicy as you'd like. See the Variations section below for some ideas!
Why you'll love it
- Really easy to make
- Tastes amazing
- Packed with protein and healthy ingredients
- Easy to adapt and customize to suit your preferences
- Vegan, gluten free, dairy free, plant based and suitable for most diets
- Low calorie and low fat
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Ingredients
Canned diced tomatoes: A great base for any chili! You can also use tomato sauce or fire roasted tomatoes instead.
Canned black beans: Always taste great in chili. Alternatively, use pinto beans or red kidney beans.
Quinoa: A protein rich grain that pairs really well with the beans.
Onion: Adds flavor to the dish.
Garlic: Use garlic cloves, garlic paste or even garlic powder.
Sweet potatoes: These taste great in vegan chilies, and become soft and tender in the pressure cooker.
Vegetable stock: Or vegetable broth. A great base for the chili. You can also use water instead, of make broth from a bouillon cube.
Peppers: I use a green bell pepper and a red bell pepper, but any peppers will do.
Chili: Fresh chili adds a little spice to the dish. Adjust the spice levels by adding more or less of this ingredient, or omit it altogether if you prefer.
Tomato paste: Also known as tomato puree. Adds a lovely, deep tomato flavor.
Seasoning: I use salt, fresh ground black pepper, cumin, oregano and chili powder. You can adjust the seasoning as you like, or use a store bought chili seasoning mix or taco seasoning.
💡 TIP! You can easily adjust the recipe by adding any vegetables, beans, and spices that you like. Make sure to keep the same vegetable broth to quinoa ratio to allow the grains to cook properly.
Instructions
You can find full instructions + ingredient measurements in the recipe card at the bottom of this page
One: Add a little olive oil to an Instant Pot, and turn on the SAUTE setting. Add diced onions, and sauté for a few minutes until the onion is soft. Add crushed or chopped garlic, and sauté for another minute. Turn off the pot.
Two: Add diced bell peppers, quinoa, peeled and diced sweet potatoes and all the seasoning to the Instant Pot. Stir to combine.
Three: Add the vegetable stock to the pot. Stir. Then, add the canned diced tomatoes and tomato paste. Don't stir. It's important that the tomato ingredients are left on top of the chili. Cover with a lid, and turn on the PRESSURE COOK or MANUAL setting, and set the timer to 10 minutes.
Four: After the Instant Pot has finished cooking, carefully turn the valve to manually release the steam. Add drained canned black beans, and stir. You can alternatively cook the chili on SAUTE setting for a few minutes to allow it to thicken, and add additional seasoning as needed, or simply serve immediately.
Top tips
- Use a kitchen utensil to turn or press the valve to release the steam. This is a much safer option that could prevent you from harm.
- Make sure that you don't over fill the Instant Pot. You should never fill it above the max line indicated on the inside of the pot.
- Use a wooden spoon to loosen up any stuck pieces of onion before you start pressure cooking. If any bits are stuck to the pot, it might not be able to build up pressure, and will display the Instant Pot Burn Message instead.
- Don't stir after you add the tomato based ingredients. They have to be left at the top of the chili, or your dish will burn in the Instant Pot. You can stir to incorporate the ingredients evenly before serving.
- If you think the chili is too thin, you can simply allow it to simmer on SAUTE setting for a few minutes until it's to your liking. Alternatively, you can add an extra can of drained beans.
Serving suggestions
This chili is best served as an entree or main course for lunch or dinner. The chili can be served on its own, or paired with delicious side dishes or toppings.
I like to top it with lime, cilantro, and sour cream or Greek yogurt. You can also add homemade tortilla chips, guacamole, salsa and shredded cheddar cheese.
If you want to pair your chili with a side dish, I recommend traditional cornbread, Nando's Spicy Rice (Copycat) or basmati rice, or Sweet Potato Flatbread.
Variations
Extra beans: Feel free to replace the black beans, or add as many additional beans that you like. Canned kidney beans and pinto beans always taste great in a chili, but chickpeas and black eye beans can be used as well.
Extra veggies: This is a great recipe for using any vegetables that you have at the back of the fridge, and you can add anything that you like. Try adding frozen or canned corn, more onions, diced carrots, kale, spinach, zucchini, butternut squash, celery or eggplant.
Spice: Adjust the spice levels by adding an extra chili or two, or by adding some chili powder. To completely remove any spice, you can omit the chili. This recipe makes a very mild chili, and is suitable for children.
Equipment
To make this recipe, you will need an Instant Pot or pressure cooker that's at least 6 quarts. You can also use a larger pot, especially if you want to double or triple the recipe.
Additionally, you will need a wooden spoon to stir the ingredients, and a cutting board and a sharp knife to prepare the vegetables.
Storage
Store any leftover Instant Pot vegan chili in a sealed container in a refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat in a microwave, Instant Pot or on the stove, and serve it warm.
You can also use the leftover chili in other dishes, for example in a casserole or soup, or on top of an Air Fryer Baked Potato.
This is a freezer friendly chili, and you can freeze it for up to 6 months. Thaw it in a refrigerator overnight, and reheat before serving. I love to make a big batch of chili to store in the freezer for busy days.
The flavor of the dish builds up over time, and just like with most stews, a good chili tastes even better the next day (or week!).
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Frequently asked questions
Absolutely. You can cook plain quinoa in a pressure cooker, or add it to other recipes like chili, stews, soups and more.
Yes, it's usually best to drain and rinse the beans before you add them to a chili. The liquid that the beans come in is safe to eat, but doesn't taste very nice.
You can substitute meat with a vegetarian protein source, like beans, quinoa, red lentils or other grains. Alternatively, you can use a vegetarian meat alternative, which you can find in most supermarkets.
You might also like these recipes
- Instant Pot Vegetable Soup
- Instant Pot Chili Mac
- Turkey Sweet Potato Chili
- Chili Lime Rice
- Vegetarian Chili with Quinoa
- Mixed Bean Chilli
- Slow Cooker Chilli Con Carne
- Chilli Cheese Toast
If you make this recipe, make sure to post a photo to Instagram with #hintofhealthy!
Recipe
Instant Pot Vegan Chili
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 small sweet potatoes (or 1 large)
- 1 (15 oz) can black beans (drained and rinsed)
- 1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes
- ½ cup quinoa
- 1 green bell pepper
- 1 red bell pepper
- 2 cups vegetable stock (or water)
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 onion
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon oregano
Instructions
- Add a little olive oil, cooking spray or a splash of water to an Instant Pot, and turn on the SAUTE setting. Add diced onions, and sauté for a few minutes until the onion is soft.1 teaspoon olive oil, 1 onion
- Add crushed or chopped garlic, and sauté for another minute. Turn off the pot.4 garlic cloves
- Add diced bell peppers, quinoa, peeled and diced sweet potatoes and all the seasoning to the Instant Pot. Stir to combine.2 small sweet potatoes, ½ cup quinoa, 1 green bell pepper, 1 red bell pepper, ¼ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon pepper, ½ teaspoon cumin, ½ teaspoon paprika, ½ teaspoon oregano
- Add the vegetable stock to the pot. Stir.2 cups vegetable stock
- Then, add the canned diced tomatoes and tomato paste. Don't stir. It's important that the tomato ingredients are left on top of the chili. Cover with a lid, and turn on the PRESSURE COOK or MANUAL setting, and set the timer to 10 minutes.1 tablespoon tomato paste, 1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes
- After the Instant Pot has finished cooking, carefully turn the valve to manually release the steam.
- Add drained canned black beans, and stir.1 (15 oz) can black beans
- Alternatively, cook the chili on SAUTE setting for a few minutes to allow it to thicken, and add additional seasoning as needed, or simply serve immediately.
Video
Notes
- Store in a refrigerator for up to 4 days, or freeze for up to 6 months. Reheat the leftover chili in a microwave, or on the stove, and serve it warm. This is an excellent freezer meal, and perfect for meal prep!
- Feel free to add extra vegetables or canned, drained beans if you want. Pinto beans, kidney beans, carrots, zucchini and butternut squash would make great additions.
- Be careful when you turn or push the venting valve to release the steam, as the steam will be hot.
- Make sure that the tomato based ingredients are left at the top of the chili when you pressure cook the dish.
Nutrition
Food safety tips
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
- Avoid touching the hot steam when releasing the pressure
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