Instant Pot Turkey Chili (Whole30, Paleo, Keto)

The only thing easier than throwing something in the slow cooker is throwing it in the Instant Pot and having it less than an hour later. This Instant Pot Turkey Chili is a staple in my life because it is so incredibly easy to throw together last minute, and it can feed an entire army (or just yourself for lots and lots of meals)! It’s spicy and full of flavor, packed with delicious and colorful veggies, and is the best meal as these nights start to cool down in the fall.

Usually I dedicate the beginning of my blog to give scientific facts about the ingredients that I am using in the recipe. I feel like it’s very important to talk about not only things like macronutrients, but also how to choose what fruits and vegetables might benefit your personal microbiome. I also am passionate about sustainability – I try as often as possible to incorporate sustainable practices in my life and want to share my research and hacks with you all!

I’m going to break a bit with tradition to try to sell you on buying an Instant Pot, or at least a pressure cooker. I really did hold out for a long time on this kitchen appliance, but now I can’t say enough about how much I love it!

Instant Pot: is it worth it?

Okay, so I’m going to be very practical here and say that I did not get an Instant Pot for years for a variety of reasons. The first and most obvious reason that I did not want an Instant Pot was because I already had a slow cooker. It seemed to me that every recipe that was designed for the Instant Pot was something you could just make in the slow cooker.

On another practical note, I live in a very tiny living situation. I mean, not the tiniest, but I don’t really have room for much more than necessities. Already having a slow cooker meant that precious kitchen space was already being taken up by a similar kitchen appliance, so why would I add another thing that would be just as big? Similarly, if I already owned a slow cooker, why would I spend even more money on an appliance that I really didn’t need? I tend to be pretty frugal with my money whenever possible, so spending more money on a duplicate kitchen appliance never sounded the least bit appealing.

I also have to be honest: I was actually really scared to get any kind of pressure cooker. We’ve all seen the horrible photos of what can go wrong with a pressure cooker is improperly opened or when it doesn’t seal correctly. Even if I hadn’t seen any of those photos, I have a vivid enough imagination to picture what damage my house (or something less repairable) would sustain if something went wrong with my Instant Pot. This might be the funniest reason in retrospect, but I had to have a lot of people talk to me about the Instant Pot – and I mean A LOT of people – before I caved.

Here are the reasons I eventually bought an Instant Pot.

Firstly, while it does have a slow cooker mode, it does so much more. Yes, you could just plan ahead and have an amazing slow cooker meal ready for you at home when you get there after a long day’s work. But there are several factors that lead me to choose the Instant Pot over the slow cooker:

1. Forgetting. Like, come on, I’m not a super human and I just sometimes forget I don’t have food prepared.
2. Leaving the slow cooker on all day at home alone with the dog scares me. What if the hungry dog smells the delicious smells, jumps up and burns himself on it? Or worse, spills super hot food all over himself? Maybe you have dogs that are less likely to jump on counters, but I usually don’t have anything tempting out just in case. The Instant Pot can cook things in the evening, saving me the hassle and worry surrounding the dog.
3. Instant Pots really aren’t that expensive, and actually are pretty cheap if you buy them at the right time. I think we bought ours on a Black Friday sale and it was under $50. Is it the nicest model? No. Is it a brand I’ve heard of before? Also, no. But it gets the job done and I definitely love it.
4. Instant Pots are much safer than you would think. Today, they come with literally all types of bells and whistles to keep you from doing something to harm yourself. There may have been an adult that once tried to open my (cheap, off brand, and not fancy) Instant Pot without releasing the pressure valve, and the machine literally would not let the lid off. Maybe they weren’t trying too hard and could have successfully blown everything up, but eventually they did have to come ask me for help to get the lid off. I’m not sure if they put any safety devices or whatnot on Instant Pots, but I felt at least a little assured that it could potentially be difficult to accidentally blow up your Instant Pot. Regardless, don’t ever remove an Instant Pot lid without first following the proper safety steps.

So that’s my take on Instant Pots! I definitely have made space in my kitchen (and heart) for this amazing kitchen appliance that has cut down my cooking time and inspired many recipes such as my very popular Quick Red Curry with Chicken recipe. I can’t wait to share more with you to cut down on your cooking time and to make your life easier!

How to make Instant Pot Turkey Chili

There really isn’t much to this recipe. All you need is:

• ground turkey meat
• cans of crushed tomatoes
• small can of green chiles
• green bell peppers
• red bell peppers
• onions
• cumin
• chili powder
• salt and pepper
• olive oil
• water or chicken broth

To make this chili, first chop your peppers and onions and set aside. Heat your Instant Pot on “sauté” mode and add in the olive oil. Once the oil is heated, sauté the peppers and onions for about 5-8 minutes with the salt, pepper, cumin, and chili powder. They should be cooked all the way through and should be tender.

Next, add in the cans of crushed tomatoes and cans of green chiles. If you love spicy chili, add in extra chili powder and/or extra green chiles to turn up the heat! Then, add in your ground turkey meat and stir well. Lastly, pour in either water or chicken broth and seal your Instant Pot. Cook for about 20-30 minutes on “stew/soup” mode. I usually make a double batch, which takes about 25 minutes.

And that’s it! Serve hot, store in a sealed container in the fridge, and eat off of it all day long!