This chili is the perfect for those cooler Autumn temperatures, but truth be told, this is great any time of the year as an easy throw-together meal on its own or as a side for lunch or dinner. As with any tomato-based food, this chili is even BETTER as leftovers!
Serves: 4-6 depending on appetite and whether you’re making as a meal or side
Prep Time: About 10 minutes
Cook Time: About 20 minutes (add an extra 10 minutes for fire roasting the peppers)
Notes: You’ll need an InstaPot for this recipe but you can easily slow cook the chili in a CrockPot or a large soup pot — just brown the ingredients separately and add an extra 45 minutes to simmer the chli in the pot. Fire roasting your own peppers adds a flavorful touch, but you can easily skip the grill or oven and add your favorite peppers in whatever form you have on hand (jarred, canned, fresh, etc)
Ingredients:
- 2-3 Tablespoons of avocado or vegetable oil
- 3-4 cups water
- 1/2 cup of water & flour or cornstarch slurry
- 1 lb. lean ground beef
- 2 cans of red kidney beans or 2 cups of rehydrated dried red kidney beans (we like to use the dark red)
- half of an onion diced small
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon or less of crushed red peppers (depending on your spicy preference)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tablespoon ketchup
- 2 Tablespoons chili powder
- a pinch (or less than 1/4 teaspoon) of cinnamon powder
- 1 dried bay leaf
- 2 diced fresh tomatoes or 1 small can of diced tomatoes
- salt & pepper to taste
- fresh whole poblano peppers that you’ve charred on a grill or open flame (or peppers of your choice)
Steps:
- Set the Instapot to “Saute” and go ahead and throw the diced onions in the Instapot. Once the onions start to sizzle in the oil, add your ground beef and all your dry seasonings except the bay leaf. Stir only sparingly to brown the meat. This should take about 10 minutes.
- Once meat is browned but not yet fully cooked add all the rest of the ingredients except the poblano peppers. Now put lock the lid onto InstaPot and press “Chili”
- After 15 minutes or so, turn off the InstaPot and release the pressure. Once all the air is released from the pressure valve, remove InstaPot lid and very slowly stir in your slurry a little at a time to thicken the chili. Once the chili is thickened to your liking, at this point you can either dice the poblano peppers and stir that into your chili right before serving or garnish with each serving. Embellish your chili with your favorite toppings — I like a little sour cream, diced onions, freshly shredded cilantro or cilantro paste works well too, and lots of shredded cheddar. Don’t forget the Saltine crackers! Enjoy!