This Instant Pot Vegetarian Chili is an easy, comforting weeknight dinner for those cold rainy, or snowy days. Made with black beans, quinoa, and veggies, it is healthy with lots of protein and fiber. The best part is the dump-and-go recipe that can be made in minutes in the pressure cooker!
A one-pot healthy Vegetarian Chili
What’s not to love about this Vegetarian Chili –
- easy one-pot recipe
- dump-and-go with no need to sauté any ingredients
- has healthy, wholesome ingredients
- rich in protein and fiber
- vegetarian and gluten-free. Skip a few toppings to make it vegan.
- Can feed the whole family!
I am totally in love with this easy recipe, just like my vegetarian taco soup. It is hearty and filling on its own and also very nutritious. This makes it a wonderful dinner for those busy weeknights!
My whole family enjoyed this chili. Even the toddler loved it topped with yogurt (adjust the spice down for kids).
How to make Vegetarian Quinoa Chili?
Ingredients
This Vegetarian Chili has fresh ingredients such as onions, bell peppers, jalapeños, and garlic. And pantry staple ingredients such as fire-roasted diced tomatoes, black beans, quinoa, and spices.
Onions: I typically prefer to use yellow onions for cooking.
Garlic: I used fresh garlic and minced it.
Bell Peppers: I used red bell pepper, but any color peppers work.
Tomatoes: I used fire-roasted diced tomatoes from a can. Any diced tomatoes work. Choose no added salt tomatoes or adjust the salt in the recipe.
Quinoa: For this vegetarian chili, add quinoa to make it filling and thick.
Beans: I used black beans. You can use a blend of black beans and kidney beans too. You can also use white beans or pinto beans if you prefer. If you want to cook black beans at home, here is my easy instant pot black beans recipe. You can skip the seasonings and just cook the black beans in water to add to this recipe.
Spices: I used a mixture of chili powder, ground cumin, paprika, and salt. You can also add oregano, which adds a wonderful flavor. Adjust or skip paprika to taste.
Broth: I used vegetable broth for the liquid to make this a vegetarian chili. I like to use Better than Bouillon to make broth. Chicken broth will also work if you aren’t concerned with it being strictly vegetarian or vegan.
Toppings – avocado, cheese, cilantro leaves, sour cream, jalapeños, lemon wedges, and tortilla chips. If you are vegan, skip the cheese and sour cream or use vegan options.
Instant Pot Method
Now comes the best part. The dump-and-go method to make this vegan chili.
No need to cook or saute the ingredients. Just add all the ingredients in the pot in the order listed.
Then pressure cook for 6 minutes. Allow a natural pressure release.
Look at that amazing hearty chili!
Who’s ready for a big bowl of this easy and insanely delicious vegetarian chili?
My favorite part of chili is the toppings. Add as many as you like. For me, a sprinkle of lemon juice is a must!
Enjoy this vegan chili with a green salad or slaw on the side. Dip in some crusty bread and enjoy the chili.
Slow Cooker Method
Place everything into a slow cooker, cover, and cook on LOW for 6 hours or HIGH for 3 hours. Stir it and serve!
Stovetop Method
- For the stovetop add a tablespoon of oil (I prefer avocado or olive oil). If you are on a no-oil diet, then you can sauté in water.
- Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onions, bell peppers, and jalapeños and cook until tender for about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic, chili powder, paprika, cumin, and salt, and cook for a minute.
- Add the diced tomato and cook, stirring constantly, for a minute.
- Add the quinoa, beans, and vegetable broth, and stir to combine.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 45-50 minutes, stirring occasionally. Simmer longer if you would prefer the chili to be thicker.
Common Questions
This Quinoa Chili will last for about 4 days in the refrigerator. Allow it to cool and store in airtight containers.
You can freeze chili in small portions in airtight containers for up to 3 months. Let thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
When ready to eat, reheat in the microwave or on the stove. Add some water or broth to get the desired consistency if the chili is too thick.
Enjoy this easy vegetarian quinoa chili.
Here are more instant pot vegetarian recipes you might enjoy –
- Butternut Squash Curry with Spinach
- Mushroom Wild Rice Soup
- Vegetable Lo Mein
- Fajita Pasta
- Quinoa Khichdi
Instant Pot Vegetarian Chili with Quinoa
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup Yellow onion, diced
- 1 cup Green Bell Pepper, diced
- 1/2 Jalapeno, finely diced
- 3 cloves Garlic , minced
- 1/3 cup Quinoa, washed
- 1 can Fire-roasted diced Tomatoes, 14.5oz
- 1 can Black beans, rinsed and drained, about 1.25 cups
- 1 cup Corn, frozen
- 3/4 tablespoon Chili powder
- 1/2 tablespoon Paprika
- 1 teaspoon Ground Cumin (Jeera powder)
- 1 teaspoon Salt , adjust to taste
- 2 cup Vegetable Broth
Optional Toppings
- Cilantro leaves, chopped, to garnish
- Cheddar Cheese, shredded (skip for vegan or use vegan cheese)
- Jalapeno, sliced
- Lemon wedges
- Avocado, sliced or cut into small pieces
- Red onion , diced
- Sour cream, (skip for vegan or use vegan greek yogurt)
- Tortilla chips , (skip for gluten-free)
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients to your instant pot in the order listed.
- Close lid with vent in sealing position. Set on pressure cook mode for 6 minutes at high pressure.
- When the pressure cooker beeps, let the pressure release naturally (NPR). Open the lid. Taste and adjust salt if needed. Garnish with cilantro leaves.
- Serve with any of the optional toppings you like!
Video
Notes
- For stovetop add, a tablespoon of oil (I prefer avocado or olive oil). If you are on an no-oil diet, then you can sauté in water.
- Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onions, bell peppers, jalapeños and cook until tender for about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic, chili powder, paprika, cumin, and salt and cook for a minute.
- Add the diced tomato and cook, stirring constantly, for a minute.
- Add the quinoa, beans, vegetable broth, and stir to combine.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 45-50 minutes, stirring occasionally. Simmer longer if you would prefer the chili to be thicker.
One of my go-to recipes!! Hit with the kid. I have made it multiple times now 😃
Hi Sheena – That’s fantastic to hear! A go-to recipe that’s a hit with the family, especially with the kids, is always a win.
I guess I messed up an mixed things together in the pot first. After the burn error notice I gave up and pot it all in a stock pot on the stove. Didn’t help I’m sure that I start using a different recipe on accident and sauté onions garlic etc first. Sometimes the order you put things in the pot is a pretty big deal.
Hi Tim – That is right. In this case, as we have canned tomatoes in the recipe, it is important to put the ingredients in the right order. I hope you enjoyed the chili.
That was really delicious, easy, and filling! I’d never cooked with quinoa before, and it was a pleasant surprise. I used the stovetop method for my first try because quite a number of my Instant Pot dishes end up getting the dreaded burn warning (in my 6-qt. Instant Pot).
I used tri-color quinoa just because it looked more interesting (and I increased the cooking time by about 5 or 10 minutes because I’d read that red and black quinoa take a bit longer to cook). For toppings, I used cilantro, cheddar cheese, sour cream, and tortilla chips in varying combinations.
One thing that wasn’t mentioned in the Stovetop directions though was when to add the frozen corn. I assumed that it should be added at the same time as the quinoa, beans, and broth—so right before turning the burner to low, covering, and simmering.
Hi Donald – So happy to hear that you enjoyed the chili. Thank you for sharing your experience cooking the chili on the stovetop 😀
This was my first time using an instant pot. I didn’t get the crumbly chili texture shown in your photo but the flavor was definitely there. As it was “soupy” I decided to blend half the soup to thicken it. It became a delicious Mexican chili chowder. Now I’m off to source more instant pot recipes on your blog. Thanks so much.
Hi Debbie – Happy to hear you enjoyed the chili. I hope you enjoy more recipes!
Thank you for the recipe. Do you add water for making broth to Better Than Bouillon before adding to instant pot?
Hi Reshu – Yes, mix better than bouillon with hot water to make broth as suggested on the container. Then use in the recipe. Hope you enjoy the chili!
After the 6 minutes are up, you said do a natural release. How many minutes do you let it go before releasing the remaining pressure? Or do you just do a quick release when the time is up ?
Hello Stephanie – I usually let the pressure release naturally for about 15 minutes. Most likely the pin will drop by then. But if not, it is okay to release the pressure manually. Hope you enjoy the quinoa chili.