Equipment

• 3 qt Pressure Cooker (Instant Pot)

Ingredients

Main Ingredients

• ½ lb Lean Ground Beef or Turkey (97% lean)
• ½ small Sweet Onion, diced (or yellow onion)
• 1 large Clove of Garlic, minced (or 2 small)
• ½ 4 oz can of Diced Green Chiles (mild or hot, to your preference)
• 2 tsp Chili Powder
• 1 ½ tsp Cumin
• ½ tsp Mexican Oregano (or regular dried oregano)
• ¼ tsp Thyme, dried
• ⅛ tsp Chipotle Chili Powder (for heat & smoky flavor)
• 1 tsp Smoked Paprika
• ¾ tsp Kosher Salt (or ½ tsp table salt)
• ¼ tsp Pepper
• 1 14 oz can Diced Tomatoes, with juice
• 1 14 oz can Tomato Sauce
• 1 15 oz can Red Kidney Beans (drained & rinsed thoroughly)
• 1 ½ cups Sweet Potato, diced (peeled)
• 1 small Bay Leaf
• ½ cup Water

Suggested Garnishes

• Fresh Avocado, diced or sliced
• Crushed Tortilla Chips
• Sliced Corn Tortillas (they’ll soften and meld into the chili, adding a wonderful texture)
• Fresh Cilantro Leaves, chopped
• Cotija or other shredded Cheese (Cheddar, Monterey Jack)
• Sour cream or Greek yogurt
• Jalapeños, sliced (fresh or pickled)

Instructions

1. Brown the Meat: Set your Instant Pot to the Sauté function (Normal/Medium heat). Once the display indicates “Hot,” add the lean ground beef. If using ground turkey, add about 2 teaspoons of olive oil first. Cook the meat, breaking it up with a spoon, until it is mostly browned.
2. Sauté Aromatics: Add the diced sweet onion to the pot and stir it into the meat. Continue to sauté until the onion begins to soften and turn translucent, typically for 3-5 minutes.
3. Add Garlic: Stir in the minced garlic and cook for just 1 minute more until it becomes wonderfully fragrant. Be careful not to burn the garlic.
4. Seasoning Boost: Incorporate the diced green chiles, chili powder, cumin, Mexican oregano, dried thyme, chipotle chili powder, smoked paprika, kosher salt, and pepper. Stir all the spices thoroughly, allowing them to toast lightly for about 30 seconds to release their full aroma.
5. Layer Tomatoes: Pour in the can of diced tomatoes along with their juice. Give it a good stir, ensuring you scrape the bottom of the pot with your spoon to loosen any browned bits. This is a crucial step to prevent a “burn” notice during pressure cooking.
6. Add Remaining Ingredients: Now, add the tomato sauce, drained and rinsed kidney beans, diced sweet potato, bay leaf, and water. Stir everything well to combine. Make sure all ingredients are submerged in the liquid.
7. Simmer Briefly: Let the contents of the pot come to a gentle simmer, stirring occasionally. This helps the flavors meld and ensures even cooking.
8. Seal and Set: Give the chili one final, thorough stir, again scraping the bottom of the pot. Close the lid of your Instant Pot, twisting it to lock it in place. Ensure the steam release knob is set to the “Sealing” position.
9. Pressure Cook: Cancel the Sauté function. Press the ‘Pressure Cook’ button (or ‘Manual’ button on older models) and use the ‘+’ or ‘-‘ buttons to select a cooking time of 5 minutes on High Pressure.
10. Monitor Pressure Build-Up: Stay near the pot as it comes to pressure. Occasionally with thicker mixtures like chili, it might start the countdown before fully pressurizing. If the float valve (pin in the lid) is still DOWN when the countdown starts, cancel the cooking cycle, open the lid, stir well (scraping the bottom again), close the lid, reset to “Sealing,” and restart the ‘Pressure Cook’ for 5 minutes. This helps ensure proper pressure build-up and prevents a “burn” warning.
11. Natural Release & Quick Release: Once the 5-minute pressure cooking cycle is complete, allow the Instant Pot to naturally release pressure for 5 minutes. This is called a Natural Pressure Release (NPR) and helps tenderize the ingredients further. After 5 minutes, carefully turn the steam release knob to the “Venting” position to perform a Quick Release (QR) for any remaining steam.
12. Serve: When the float valve drops completely, indicating all pressure has been released, carefully open the lid. Give the chili a good stir and remove the bay leaf. Serve hot and generously garnished with your favorite toppings! Chili is always elevated by fantastic accompaniments.

Notes for the Best Sweet Potato Chili

• This chili, like many hearty stews, often tastes even better the next day after the flavors have had more time to meld and deepen. It’s a fantastic meal prep option!
• As mentioned, for a 6-quart pressure cooker (or larger), you can easily double all the ingredients to yield more servings while keeping the cook time the same.
• **Vegetarian Option:** To make this chili vegetarian, simply omit the lean ground beef or turkey. You can compensate by doubling the amount of kidney beans, or adding another can of black beans, or even incorporating cooked lentils for added protein and texture.
• **Spice Level Adjustment:** For a milder chili, reduce the chipotle chili powder or omit it entirely. For more heat, add a pinch of cayenne pepper or extra chipotle powder.

Nutrition Information

Nutrition information is automatically calculated and should only be used as an approximation.

Calories: 238 kcal per serving