Instant Pot Vegetarian Chili
This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Please read my disclosure.From the very first spoonful, my instant pot vegetarian chili had me hooked! It’s rich, smoky, and slightly spicy, it’s everything I want in a hearty meal. Packed with three kinds of beans and colorful veggies, it’s family-friendly, easy to make, and completely ready in just 30 minutes.
There’s nothing quite like cozying up with a warm bowl of chili after a long day. For me, it’s the ultimate comfort food – filling, hearty, and packed with bold, delicious flavors. My instant pot vegetarian chili has become a go-to in my kitchen. If you’re into flavorful, hearty meals like this one, you should also check out my vegan black bean chili.
👩🏽🍳 Why I Love This Recipe
What I adore most about this vegetarian chili is how easily it adapts to whatever I’m in the mood for. Some nights, I keep it simple with just beans, veggies, and spices, letting the bold flavors shine. Other nights, I’ll raid the fridge, tossing in zucchini, a handful of spinach, or whatever’s calling my name. Honestly, it’s become such a staple in my kitchen that I’ve lost track of how many times it’s brought warmth and comfort to my table.
I can’t live without my Instant Pot for meals like my vegetarian chili. It turns a handful of pantry staples and fresh veggies into a rich, aromatic dish that tastes like it’s been simmering all day, but it’s ready in under 30 minutes! This isn’t just any chili. It’s hearty without being heavy, packed with three types of beans, and spiced to perfection with just the right balance of smoky, savory, and spicy flavors. I’ve tried and loved many vegetarian chili recipes, but this one stands out.
Curious about my two secret ingredients? They’re unsweetened cocoa powder and smoked paprika. Together, they create a deep, smoky flavor that rivals any traditional meat chili. The best part? This version is healthier, vegetarian, and packed with protein and fiber.
It’s ideal for busy weeknights or meal prepping for the week ahead, and it’s totally kid-approved. The Instant Pot makes it a breeze – just sauté, add your ingredients, pressure cook, and you’re done! From my kitchen to yours, I hope this recipe becomes a staple in your home as it has in mine.
Latest Recipe Video!
🥘 Ingredients
I know the ingredient list might look a little long, but trust me, everything is easy to find, and the prep time is super quick. Here’s what I always grab to make this delicious veggie chili in the Instant Pot.
Canned Beans: I use kidney, black, and pinto beans to make the chili hearty, filling, and packed with protein. They’re easy to find and perfect for meatless meals!
Bell Peppers & Onion: These veggies add vibrant color and a flavorful base. I love how they make the chili fresh and delicious.
Crushed Tomatoes: They create a rich, savory foundation that ties all the flavors together. Any brand works, but I swear by San Marzano!
Spices: Chili powder, smoked paprika, and unsweetened cocoa powder give this chili its smoky, bold, and slightly spicy kick. It’s the secret to that “cooked-all-day” flavor.
Vegetable Broth: This ties everything together with a light, savory touch. It’s my go-to for making the chili perfectly hearty without being heavy.
🍲Substitutions
Beans: I love swapping out beans for chickpeas, lentils, or even white beans to switch things up. If I’m using dried beans, I soak them overnight and adjust the cook time.
Veggies: This recipe is perfect for cleaning out the fridge! Sweet potatoes, butternut squash, or greens like spinach work beautifully just adjust the spices to keep the flavor balanced.
Sauce: I often replace soy sauce with vegan Worcestershire for a slightly tangier kick. It’s a simple swap that adds a lot of depth.
Tomatoes: Canned fire-roasted tomatoes are my favorite for a smoky, rich flavor. They’re an easy way to level up the chili!
🔪 How To Make
When the weather starts to turn chilly, the first thing I can’t wait to cook is my vegetarian chili in the Instant Pot. Today, I’m excited to show you exactly how to make it.
Sauté: First, I set my Instant Pot to sauté and add a drizzle of olive oil. Then, I toss in the bell peppers, onion, and garlic, letting them cook for 2-3 minutes until they’re soft and the kitchen smells incredible!
Pressure Cook: Next, I add everything else to the pot: beans, spices, and all and give it a good stir to combine. Then, I close the lid, set the Instant Pot to high pressure, and let it cook for just 4 minutes!
Release Pressure: Once the cooking is done, I let the pressure release naturally for 5 minutes before carefully doing a quick release. Then, I give the chili a good stir to bring everything together, it’s almost ready to enjoy!
Serve Chili: Finally, I ladle the warm chili into bowls and top it off with my favorite toppings. A little cheese, a dollop of low-fat sour cream or Greek yogurt, diced tomatoes, green onions, or crunchy tortilla chips, whatever you love, pile it on and enjoy!
💭 Expert Tips
My #1 Secret Tip for making my Instant Pot vegetarian chili is to adjust for newer Instant Pot models to avoid that dreaded “burn” warning! I learned this the hard way when my first batch stopped mid-cook because the tomatoes and beans stuck to the bottom. Now, I always add the vegetable broth and spices first, give it a quick stir, and then carefully layer the beans and tomatoes on top without mixing. It’s such a simple tweak, but it makes all the difference for a smooth, stress-free cooking process!
Other Tips To Keep In Mind:
- Use Spinach: I love adding a 5 oz box of chopped baby spinach for extra greens. Just toss it in with the other ingredients, and it blends right in perfectly!
- Adjust Spices To Taste: Everyone likes their chili a little different, so I always taste and adjust. Add more crushed red pepper for heat or more salt for balance, it’s totally up to you!
- Cook On The Stove: No Instant Pot? No problem! You can easily make this chili on the stovetop, check the FAQs for all the details.
- Make It Kid Friendly: For kids, I like setting up a toppings bar so they can customize their bowls. You can also puree the veggies with the tomatoes and tone down the spices for picky eaters.
📖 Variations
The beauty of this vegetarian chili is how easily you can make it your own! These are my favorites variations:
Cool & Fresh Toppings: I love adding a dollop of sour cream or plain Greek yogurt for a creamy, tangy touch (or cashew cream for a vegan option). For something bright and fresh, I go for sliced green onions, fresh cilantro, or a spoonful of salsa, it’s like a flavor burst with every bite!
Crunchy & Spicy Toppings: Crushed tortilla chips, crackers, or pepitas are my go-to for a little crunch, they add the perfect texture. If I’m craving heat, I’ll dice up a jalapeño, toss in a chipotle pepper, or swirl in some adobo sauce for that smoky, spicy kick.
Fresh Squeezed Lime Juice: A squeeze of lime adds a bright, citrusy flavor that brings the chili to life. If I don’t have lime, lemon works just as well!
Brown Rice or Quinoa: These mix-ins are hearty and pair perfectly with chili, making it even more filling. My kids especially love adding a scoop to their bowls!
Cheese: Melty cheese is always a hit, whether it’s shredded cheddar, a Mexican blend, or even vegan cheese. It’s the ultimate finishing touch for a cozy bowl of chili!
🍽 Serving Suggestions
My Instant Pot vegetarian chili is so hearty and satisfying, it’s perfect on its own. But if you’re like me and love to pair it with a little something extra, here are some of my favorite sides to round out the meal!
A Fresh Garden Salad: I love pairing my chili with a crisp, refreshing salad like tomato avocado cucumber salad or my delicious Mexican fruit salad on greens. It’s light, colorful, and a perfect balance to the hearty chili!
Cornbread: my healthy cornbread is always a hit with chili! I also love serving it with fluffy low calorie biscuits.
Grains: A side of rice or quinoa is simple and satisfying, but vegan Mexican rice really takes it up a notch. It’s a flavorful way to round out the meal!
Quesadillas: Strips of veggie or vegan quesadilla are my favorite for dipping into chili. They’re fun, tasty, and perfect for scooping up every last bite!
🫙 Storage Directions
It’s easy to store this simple chili so that you can eat it throughout the week! And it tastes even better the next day when all of the flavors have a chance to meld together for longer!
Refrigerator: I store any leftover chili in an airtight container, and it keeps fresh in the fridge for up to 4 days. I always make sure to keep the toppings separate to avoid sogginess!
Freezer: Once the chili cools completely, I transfer it to a freezer-safe container. It freezes beautifully and lasts up to 3 months, perfect for meal prep!
Reheating: I let my chili thaw in the fridge, then either gently reheat it on the stovetop or use the microwave’s defrost setting. It tastes just as good as the day I made it!
Make-Ahead Tips: When I’m short on time, I chop all the veggies and rinse the beans a day or two ahead. I keep them in separate airtight containers in the fridge, so all I have to do is toss everything in the pot and cook!
❓Recipe FAQs
CAN YOU MAKE THIS VEGETARIAN CHILI ON THE STOVETOP?
If I’m making this on the stovetop, I start by heating olive oil in a large pot and sautéing the onions, garlic, and bell peppers for about 5 minutes. Then, I add the rest of the ingredients, bring it to a boil, and let it simmer on low for 30 minutes to an hour. The longer it simmers, the thicker and richer it gets.
What can I replace meat with in chili?
There are so many great plant-based options to replace meat in chili, and I’ve tried them all! Beans, chickpeas, and lentils are my go-to for their protein and meaty texture. For something different, I’ll crumble tofu or use tempeh for a chewy, hearty bite. Mushrooms or eggplant work beautifully too—when sautéed or roasted, they take on a rich, meaty feel. Sometimes, I even use Beyond Meat for a protein-packed.
Is vegetarian chili healthy?
As a nutritionist, I love that my vegetarian chili is not only delicious but also incredibly nutrient-dense. It’s packed with heart-healthy plant-based protein and fiber, keeping you full and energized for hours. My Instant Pot vegetarian chili is a powerhouse meal, low in calories, high in antioxidants from onions and peppers, and rich in vitamins, minerals, and wholesome carbs from the beans and veggies. Plus, it’s low in unhealthy fats, making it a guilt-free, satisfying choice for any meal!
🍛 More Instant Pot Recipes!
- Instant Pot Tomato Soup with Cumin
- Instant Pot Risotto
- Instant Pot Vegan Posole
- Instant Pot Chili Mac
- Instant Pot Applesauce
Love this plant based soup recipe? Please leave a 5-star rating 🌟 in the recipe below and/or a review in the comments section further down the page!
You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, and PINTEREST to see more delicious, healthy, family-friendly food, and if you have any questions, I’m here to help!
📋 Recipe Card
🎥 Watch How to Make It
The Best Instant Pot Vegetarian Chili
From the very first spoonful, my instant pot vegetarian chili had me hooked! It's rich, smoky, and slightly spicy, it’s everything I want in a hearty meal. Packed with three kinds of beans and colorful veggies, it’s family-friendly, easy to make, and completely ready in just 30 minutes.
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 300kcal
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 1 green bell pepper diced
- 1 yellow bell pepper diced
- 1 red onion diced
- 5 garlic cloves minced
- 1 cup vegetable broth
- 15 oz kidney beans, drained and rinsed 1 can
- 15 oz black beans, drained and rinsed 1 can
- 15 oz pinto beans, drained and rinsed 1 can
- 1 cup frozen corn
- 28 oz crushed tomatoes 1 large can
- 1 tbsp chili powder use a heaping tbsp or add more to taste
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ⅛ tsp crushed red pepper more or less to taste
- a couple splashes of soy sauce
- 1-2 tsp salt more or less to taste
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- ½ tsp regular paprika
Instructions
- Turn your instant pot to the Saute function, and add your olive oil, bell peppers, onion, and garlic. Saute lightly for 2-3 minutes.
- Add everything else into the pot (beans through paprika in the list above) and stir to combine. Close your instant pot and pressure cook on high for 4 minutes
- Once the pressure cooking is done, let it natural release for 5 minutes, then quick release the rest of the pressure.
- Serve warm with any toppings you like! 1 Tbsp cheese, low fat sour cream or plain greek yogurt, diced tomatoes, green onions, or tortilla chips.
Notes
- I always adjust for newer Instant Pot models to avoid that dreaded “burn” warning! I learned this the hard way when my first batch stopped mid-cook because the tomatoes and beans stuck to the bottom. Now, I always add the vegetable broth and spices first, give it a quick stir, and then carefully layer the beans and tomatoes on top without mixing. It’s such a simple tweak, but it makes all the difference for a smooth, stress-free cooking process!
- I love adding a 5 oz box of chopped baby spinach for extra greens. Just toss it in with the other ingredients, and it blends right in perfectly!
- Everyone likes their chili a little different, so I always taste and adjust. Add more crushed red pepper for heat or more salt for balance—it’s totally up to you!
- No Instant Pot? No problem! You can easily make this chili on the stovetop, check the FAQs for all the details.
- For kids, I like setting up a toppings bar so they can customize their bowls. You can also puree the veggies with the tomatoes and tone down the spices for picky eaters.
Nutrition
Serving: 2ladles | Calories: 300kcal | Carbohydrates: 61.8g | Protein: 18.1g | Fat: 1.7g | Sodium: 800mg | Fiber: 20.2g | Sugar: 4.3g
Awesome!!!!
So glad you liked this recipe Susan!
Delicious recipe. Thank you !! Do you think this recipe would also work well in a crock pot?
Hi Simone! Yes absolutely this would be a great crock pot recipe! 🙂
Anjali,
Our family (both vegetarians and non) all loved this Chili – so much so that there were no leftovers! We will definitely make this again.
Woohoo!! That’s so wonderful to hear Brenda!! 🙂 This chili freezes really well so if you want you can always make a double batch next time and freeze half for a rainy day! 🙂
A-mazing!! Those are so many ingredients, but it’s chilli!! And only veggies!! Can’t wait to try it!
Thanks Sean! I’m sure you will love this recipe!! Keep me posted on how it turns out!
Sounds great and delicious. I love eating spicy food. I will prepare this vegetarian chili tomorrow morning.
Great! I’m sure you will love it!
That is a superb formula! The chocolate makes it practically like a mole!
Thanks Dev!! I agree the chocolate gives it that extra deep, smoky quality – similar to a mole sauce! So glad you liked it!!
Hi,
I myself am a vegan and this recipe is absolutely awesome. It’s spicy and delicious. Not a fan of corn though!
That’s great! For the corn – you can always substitute it for something else (another veggie that you do like!)
This recipe looks so delicious! Definitely have to try this recipe out as soon as possible. Thanks for the share, love checking out your blog.
Yay!! I can’t wait for you to try this recipe Jessica – it’s one of our favorites 🙂 I’m sure you will love it!
I’ve been making this chili for the last few years, it’s always a hit! I want to make a freezer meal for a friend who’s getting ready to have a baby. Am I OK to freeze the ingredients uncooked (to be put in the crockpot later) or should I cook everything and then freeze? Thanks in advance!
Hi Amber! Yay! So happy to hear this recipe has worked out so well for you! If you’re going to freeze this, I’d recommend cooking everything together and then freezing it (vs. just freezing the uncooked ingredients). It’ll taste a lot better if you cook it and then freeze. Hope that helps and congrats to your friend!
I’ve tried others, but this has become my favorite chili recipe, hands down. Delicious and healthy. Even the meat eaters in my life love it. Over rice, over pasta or right out of the pot with a big spoon! 🙂
For something really different, try adding a bit of peanut butter. It adds some fat and a few calories, but it goes really well with the already great flavor of this chili. About 1tsp or so per serving.
Thanks Anjali!
Yay!! So happy to hear that Tom! Really interesting idea about the peanut butter – I’ll have to try that next time! 🙂 Thanks for letting me know!
Hi there, just wondering – when you say chilli powder, are you referring to actual ground chillis or the chilli powder blend which contains chilli, oregano, cumin, etc.
Hi Joe! I’m talking about the chili powder blend that you can buy at the grocery store – this is a good example. Hope that helps!
Finally got around to trying the recipe. It really was the best vegetarian chilli that I’ve ever had! Thank you! I think I might add some more cumin next time though. I’d also like it a bit more spicy. What do you suggest I increase for this? More cayenne? Thanks again.
Yay!! So happy to hear that Joe! And yes absolutely – if you want more spice (like hot – pepper spice) – then add more cayenne and chili powder too. Hope that helps! So glad you liked this recipe!
Try adding Light Life Smart Ground, leave it chunky. Use way more cocoa and ancho chili powder if you really want to rock it.
Thanks for the tip Rick! But actually, I wouldn’t recommend using Light Life Smart Ground because it’s a very highly processed, soy protein based “fake meat.” Take a look at the ingredients: Water, textured soy protein concentrate, soy sauce (water, soybeans, salt, wheat), less than 2% of: chicory extract (inulin), natural flavor (from plant sources), salt, barley malt extract, caramel color, evaporated cane syrup, barley malt, hydrolyzed soy and corn protein, molasses, yeast extract, dried garlic, dried onions. The textured soy protein concentrate, hydrolyzed soy protein are problematic as ingredients to eat on a regular basis (I have more details on why here). But love the idea of using more cocoa and ancho chili to give it more heat! Hope that helps!
I’m making this chili right now. I just tasted my first bite and WOW! So flavorful! I didn’t have any green or red peppers on hand so those didn’t make it in. I don’t have frozen corn either…so I figured I’d use canned-but then I found there was none in my cabinets! So I used a can of mixed veggies that had corn in it. I drained and rinsed it so that the liquid wouldn’t interfere with the flavor. Despite my changes it is yummy! I can’t wait to make it again with the peppers!
Glad this recipe worked so well for you Joy!! I’m sure you’ll love it with the peppers in it too. Thanks for letting me know! 🙂
This is our go to chili. I make it often, and I always get positive comments from all ( vegetarians and meat eaters alike. I use what ever beans we have available and I used canned corn because it is usually available. Don’t like green peppers so I use all red or yellow, sometimes I even add another vegetable. It is sincerely ALWAYS a hit. Thank you for this recipe.
Awww yay!!! That’s so awesome to hear Chris!! Yeah you can totally mix up the veggies in this based on your preference and it should still always work 🙂 Thanks for letting me know!
Made this tonight and it really hits the spot!!!! Wanted to use up some tins in my pantry and this did just that and I now have 3 weeks worth of chilli in the freezer! Result
Woohoo! That’s awesome Phil – so happy to hear that! I love freezing this recipe – it defrosts great – you won’t even be able to tell it was frozen 🙂 Enjoy!
I was so excited to find this recipe yesterday – I’m always on the look out for a good Vegetarian chili because there are so few. I made this and the cornbread today and it was amazing! The hubby loved it too! I think my can of crushed tomatoes was a little too tangy so I add 1/2 tspn more of the cocoa and that fixed that problem! And let me just say, thank you for introducing me to Trader Joe’s Cornbread! It was so delicious and the perfect pairing with this chili. I topped with avocado pieces and a little cheddar cheese. I’m going to try this in the slow cooker next time. I have finally found a veg chili recipe keeper!
So happy to hear that Paaru!! I’m glad you and your husband enjoyed this chili and the cornbread so much! 🙂