Instant Pot Chicken and Sweet Potato Chili

An easy instant pot chicken chili recipe that can be prepped and in the bowl in less than 1 hour! And it’s full of flavor and good-for-you nutrition. 

When fall arrives I could eat chili and soup just about every day. In fact, we did pretty much eat chili, soups, and stews for about 10 weeks straight last winter when we remodeled our kitchen. I’m not sure I’d recommend this, but I made a vow to myself that we wouldn’t eat out more than usual, so I frozen a ton of food ahead of time in our deep freezer, and when that ran out, I started making all sorts of stuff in our slow cooker and instant pot. The main challenge was washing the darn thing out with the hose in 30-degree weather! Not to mention chopping veggies and such on a folding table in a bedroom. But I digress…

This chili features one of my favorite starchy vegetables – sweet potatoes. Sweet potatoes are a good source of dietary fiber and are high in Vitamins A and C. I prefer to leave the skin on, so just scrub the potatoes really well before cubing. The addition of pinto beans provides more filling fiber, and crushed tomatoes add a dose of disease-fighting lycopene. Using skinless chicken breast makes this chili low in saturated fat and super simple (no need to brown any ground meat before cooking).

 If you don’t have an Instant Pot, you can easily make this recipe in a slow cooker. Make the recipe as described, cover, and cook on low power for 6 to 8 hours or until the chicken is fork-tender.

Serve the chili with tortilla chips, cheese, and other chili toppings, and be sure you wear your comfy sweat pants. If you ask me, just about everything tastes better in sweat pants.

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Instant Pot Chicken and Sweet Potato Chili

Servings 6 servings

Author Jessica Ivey, RDN

Ingredients

• 3 cups cubed sweet potatoes
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 medium-size yellow onion, chopped
• 1 (28-oz.) can crushed tomatoes
• 1 (15-oz.) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast
• 2 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Optional Toppings: shredded Cheddar cheese, nonfat plain Greek yogurt, chopped fresh cilantro, hot sauce

Instructions

1. Combine sweet potatoes, bell pepper, onion, tomatoes, and beans in an Instant Pot, stirring. Place chicken on top of vegetables, and sprinkle with chili powder, garlic, cumin, pepper, and salt. 

2. Cover Instant Pot, and, using manual setting, set to 18 minutes on high pressure, making sure the pressure valve is sealed. When done, let the pressure slowly release.

3. Remove chicken, and place in a bowl. Shred with two forks. Return chicken to Instant Pot, and stir gently to combine. 

4. Serve with desired optional toppings and tortilla chips. 

What’s your favorite comforting cold weather food? Let me know in the comments!