Cheesy Chicken Chili (Instant Pot)

This Cheesy Chicken Chili is creamy spicy comfort food that no one can resist. Even better, it’s made in an Instant Pot so you will be serving it up in less than 30 minutes.



Years ago, before my mom retired, one of her co-workers, a lovely lady named Esther, shared a recipe she and her husband loved. Of course, my mom forwarded it on to me. It was called white chili, I suppose to differentiate it from typical Texas chili which is red.

This dish is different from typical Texas chili in at least two other ways: It has beans in it and chicken instead of beef. Texas chili does not have beans! If you’d like to hear a funny story at my expense, check out my Texas chili post.

Esther’s recipe also called for two cups of cream and eight ounces of sour cream but I like to make it with cream cheese, also adding tomatoes, green pepper and corn. It occurs to me that Esther probably wouldn’t recognize my version but that’s okay. It’s delicious and my name is way more descriptive. I am grateful for the inspiration!

Cheesy Chicken Chili (Instant Pot)

A word about the bell pepper/capiscum. If I’m honest, I must confess that I am not a fan of green peppers. I do like the background flavor they add when well cooked at the beginning of a dish, like with gumbo or étouffée but I always make a point to chop them finely so I don’t get a big bite of bell pepper. If you are a fan, do chop yours bigger. They add color to the dish.

Ingredients
2 lbs or 900g boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1 yellow onion, diced
1 green bell pepper/capsicum, chopped finely
2 tablespoon olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 can (15.5oz or 439g) white beans, drained and rinsed
1 can (15.5oz or 439g) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 can (15oz or 425g) can whole kernel corn, drained
1 can (10 oz or 283g) diced tomatoes with peppers (like Ro-Tel)
1 1/2 cups or 355ml chicken broth
8 oz or 225g cream cheese, at room temperature
2 tablespoons cornstarch
Salt to taste, if necessary

Topping ideas:
sliced jalapenos
sliced avocados
dollop of sour cream
minced fresh cilantro
fried tortilla strips
shredded Monterey Jack, cheddar or Mexican queso fresco

Method
Cut the trimmed of excess fat chicken breasts into large chunks. Season them with a light sprinkle of salt, black pepper and ground cayenne.

Use your Instant Pot’s sauté function on low to sweat the onion and bell pepper in the olive oil for a few minutes, until they are translucent and softened. Add in the minced garlic and give it a quick stir.

 Turn the Instant Pot off.

Add the chicken to the pot.

Top it with the cumin, chili powder, beans, chick peas, tomatoes (with juice), corn and chicken broth. Do not stir. We want to make sure the chicken stays covered.

Pressure cook for 15 minutes. Leave to pressure release naturally for 15 minutes, then vent and remove the lid.

Use tongs to fish out the chicken breast pieces and put them on a plate. Shred the chicken with a couple of forks.

Make a slurry of 2 tablespoons cornstarch and 2 tablespoons cold water in a measuring cup, stirring until the cornstarch is completely dissolved.

Cut the cream cheese into chunks and add them to the Instant Pot along with the cornstarch slurry.

Stir well. Sauté on low for a few minutes or until the cream cheese is melted and the chili thickens a bit. Return chicken to the Instant Pot. Add salt as needed to taste.

Stir well and serve with desired toppings.

Enjoy!

It's Multicooker Monday and our host is Sue from Palatable Pastime. Check out all the great recipes we are sharing that can be made with your small appliances.

• Crockpot Lo Mein from Veggies First Then Dessert
• Cheesy Chicken Chili - Instant Pot from Food Lust People Love
• Instant Pot Pasta and Cheese with Cauliflower from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Instant Pot Minestrone Soup from Making Miracles
• Potato & Dal Khichdi - Pressure Cooker from Sneha's Recipe
• Slow Cooker Lechon Asado from Palatable Pastime
• Toaster Oven Roasted Salted Almonds from Sid's Sea Palm Cooking
• Zucchini Chips from A Day in the Life on the Farm

Multicooker Monday is a blogger group created by Sue of Palatable Pastime for all of us who need encouragement to make better use of our small appliances like slow cookers, Instant Pots, Air Fryers, rice cookers and sous vide machines. We get together every third Monday of the month to share our recipes. If you are a food blogger who would like to post with us, please request to join our Facebook group.

Pin this Cheesy Chicken Chili! 

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Easy Beef Stroganoff Pasta - Instant Pot

This easy beef stroganoff pasta is a tasty one-pot meal, beefy and creamy with lots of mushrooms. It’s cooked in an Instant Pot so it’s on the table quickly without even firing up your stove.

I was craving beef stroganoff during my kitchen renovation so initially I planned to cook it on my one little electric burner in the laundry room, like many of our meals. Then it occurred to me that perhaps I could boil pasta in the Instant Pot. After all, one can use it to cook rice. Why not pasta?

I found various instructional posts online, especially one on Tidbits for Tasty Living. The challenge was on! I have to tell you, we could not have been more pleased with how it turned out.

Easy Beef Stroganoff Pasta

Since the pasta is going to be cooked in the Instant Pot, if you don’t have bowties, make sure to choose another small wide variety. Long thin noodles are not recommended in case they work their way out of the float valve. Feel free to substitute your favorite mushrooms or whichever ones you have on hand for the baby Portobellos.

Ingredients
4 lbs or 1820g lean beef, cut into thin pieces
2 tablespoons white vinegar
2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon Ajinomoto (MSG)- optional
1/3 cup or 41g flour
2 tablespoons or 30g butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons beef drippings (or sub more olive oil)
3 medium onions
200g or 7 oz baby Portabella mushrooms
1 cup or 240ml dry white wine
4 cups or 946ml beef stock
1 lb or 450g small dried bowtie pasta or other small pasta
2 cups or 490g sour cream
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Sea salt
Black pepper

Optional to garnish:
Parsley

Method
Sprinkle the beef with the white vinegar, salt and the Ajinomoto, if using. This helps to tenderize the meat. Refrigerate the beef for at least an hour but you can even do this step the night before.

When you are ready to cook the beef, drain any liquid that has collected and toss the pieces with the flour in a large bowl.

With the Instant pot on low sauté, melt the butter, adding a couple of tablespoons of olive oil to the skillet. While the butter is melting, chop your onions.

Sauté the onions for about five minutes or until they are softened and translucent. Remove them from the Instant Pot and put them in a bowl that is large enough to hold the meat after you’ve browned it as well.

Turn the sauté function up to high and brown the meat a handful or two at a time, adding a little more olive oil if necessary. As the beef browns, remove the browned pieces to a bowl and add more to the Instant Pot, until all the beef is browned and in the bowl.

Meanwhile, trim any hard stem ends off of the mushrooms and slice them.

Turn the sauté function to low once more and add the white wine to the pot and gently loosen any browned bits on the Instant Pot pan. Cook on the low heat until the wine is almost completely reduced.

Add the meat back in with the onions and set your Instant Pot to pressure cook for 20 minutes.

When the time is up, turn it off but leave it to depressurize naturally.

Add in the beef stock, pasta and sliced mushrooms. Stir well.

Cook for 5 minutes on high and release the steam manually when done. When releasing the pressure, cover the release valve with a kitchen towel and pulse it a few times to release the pressure a little at a time until fully releasing.

Stir in the sour cream and lemon juice. Check for salt, adding more if necessary, along with a generous amount of freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Garnish with a little parsley, if desired. Enjoy!

It's Multicooker Monday again, friends! Check out all the great recipes we are sharing using various small appliances. Many thanks to the group creator and host, Sue of Palatable Pastime. 

• Instant Pot Corned Beef with a BBQ Whiskey Glaze from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Instant Pot Beef Tacos from Palatable Pastime
• Easy Beef Stroganoff Pasta (Instant Pot) from Food Lust People Love
• Instant Pot Creamy Broccoli Mac N Cheese from Making Miracles
• Badshahi Chicken Legs - Air Fryer from Sneha's Recipe
• Slow Cooker Chicken Marbella from Karen's KItchen Stories

Multicooker Monday is a blogger group created by Sue of Palatable Pastime for all of us who need encouragement to make better use of our small appliances like slow cookers, Instant Pots, Air Fryers, rice cookers and sous vide machines. We get together every third Monday of the month to share our recipes. If you are a food blogger who would like to post with us, please request to join our Facebook group.

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Quick Corn Chowder - in an Instant Pot

This quick corn chowder is creamy and rich. It’s made with cream, cream cheese and plenty of sharp cheddar, not to mention tender red potatoes and crispy bacon. You can enjoy this savory warming soup in fewer than 30 minutes because instead of a long, slow simmer, it’s cooked under pressure in an Instant Pot.

Way back in 2016, I ordered an Instant Pot from Amazon. We were only in the States for a few weeks and, much to my chagrin, I never got around to trying it out before we headed home to Dubai. It never even made it out of the box. Of course, the Instant Pot couldn’t come with because it’s 110V and Dubai runs on 220V.

Since then I’ve traveled back and forth from overseas to Houston, only managing to get organized enough to make one recipe in the Instant Pot. It was delicious - a carrot snack cake, but still. Only one in almost four years of holidays with the Instant Pot. Sad, right?

That’s why I’ve joined a new bloggers group called Multicooker Monday where we will be sharing recipes using Instant Pots, slow cookers, sous vide precision cookers and even air fryers. This is our inaugural post. I hope this is the motivation I need to use the darn Instant Pot more. Make sure to scroll down to the bottom to see what everyone else has made today.

Quick Corn Chowder

If you don’t have an Instant Pot, this recipe can also be made using a traditional pressure cooker, or go old school and slow simmer the ingredients until the corn is tender and the potatoes are cooked through, before adding the cheeses, cream and milk in a stovetop soup pot. My recipe has been adapted from one on Taste of Home.

Ingredients
3 thick cut slices smoked bacon (about 6 oz or 170g)
1 medium onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 1/2 cups or 830ml chicken stock
3 cups or 16 oz or 450g fresh or frozen corn
4 medium (or 8 small) red potatoes
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne
4 oz or 113g sharp cheddar cheese, grated, plus extra for garnish, if desired
2 tablespoons cornstarch
4 oz or 113g cream cheese
1/2 cup or 120ml heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup or 120ml milk
Salt to taste
To garnish: green onion tops, chopped

Method
If you are using medium sized red potatoes, peel them and cut them into 1/2-inch or 1cm cubes. If you are using the baby red potatoes just cut them in half. Put the potatoes in a bowl with cool tap water and set them aside.

Cut bacon slices in small pieces and put them in the Instant Pot in as close to a single layer as you can manage.

Press the Sauté button and adjust to high heat. Cook the bacon bits scooting them around with a wooden spoon or silicone spatula to make sure they are all starting to crisp up. Keep stirring and frying until they reach your desired crispness, about 7-8 minutes.

Scoop the bacon bits out with a slotted spoon and put them on a paper towel to absorb the grease. Pour the bacon grease out into a heatproof measuring cup and then put 2 tablespoons of it back into the Instant Pot. (Save the rest of the bacon fat in a clean jar in your refrigerator for use in another recipe.)

With the Instant Pot still on sauté, add in the chopped onion and minced garlic. Cook for several minutes, stirring often, or until the onion is translucent.

Add in the chicken stock, corn, red potatoes, the two ground peppers and the sugar.

Lock the lid on your Instant Pot and make sure the vent is closed. The original instructions say to select manual setting; adjust the pressure to high and set the time for 15 minutes. I have one of the older Instant Pots so the instructions are a little different for mine. I select Soup, then adjust to high and set the time. Yours may differ as well so consult your owner’s manual.

When the cooking time is up, quick-release the pressure according to the manufacturer's directions.

Combine the grated cheddar with the cornstarch and mix well to coat. This is a great way to ensure that you don't create any lumps when adding the cornstarch to the soup.

Once again, select the sauté setting on your Instant Pot and adjust for low heat. Pour the cream and milk into the chowder. Stir well. Add the cream cheese cut in cubes. (Most of it sunk immediately!)

Add in the cornstarch-coated cheese and stir well.

Cook, stirring constantly, until the chowder thickens slightly and the cream cheese is completely melted, about 6-8 minutes. Taste for salt and add a little, if needed. Since chicken stock and cheese can both be quite salty, I often find that no additional salt is necessary for my taste. You do you.

Add in the crispy bacon, keeping back a little for garnish. Serve each bowl sprinkled with green onion tops, the reserved bacon, and if desired, (DO IT!) additional grated cheese.

Enjoy!

Super big thanks to Sue of Palatable Pastime for creating the multicooker group and hosting our inaugural event. I am looking forward to using my Instant Pot more. Check out the other multicooker recipes below!

• Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes with Sour Cream and Chives from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Instant Pot Chicken and Mushrooms from Making Miracles
• Instant Pot Spaghetti from Palatable Pastime
• Quick Corn Chowder - Instant Pot from Food Lust People Love

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