Chipotle Instant Pot Turkey Chili (Whole30, Paleo)
Cozy up to a bowl of this amazing and easy Chipotle Instant Pot Turkey Chili! This recipe contains no beans for a Whole30 compliant and/or healthy paleo meal. Thanks to fast pressure cooking, your delicious turkey chili is ready in a flash. It’s like a hug in a bowl!
Love the taste of a pot of chili that has simmered all day, but want to cut the cook time down to only 8 minutes?
Yeah, you do!!
This Whole30/Paleo turkey chili can be made in the Instant Pot before you can say “wow its so fast to make this chili and daaaaaaamn Sarah’s hair looks pretty today and holy cow why is she so flipping pale” 13 times.
Ahem, it’s called sunscreen and sun protection people. Look into it.
One of the best parts of this Instant Pot turkey chili is all the hidden veggies you’re shoving into it. Shoving. If you have veggie-haters in your household they won’t even be able to tell how healthy this is! #Suckers
Instead of tomato sauce or diced tomatoes, you’re going to use a veggie juice blend. And then to top that off you’re shoving a butt ton of butternut squash in there!
Within 10 minutes of opening the Instant Pot, the butternut squash will just melt away to create the base, so even the pickiest of McPicky Pants won’t notice it.
If you are new to owning an Instant Pot, check out these 21 Easy Instant Pot Recipes for Beginners. Not only will you get more inspiration for other delicious meals, but I have a handy guide for getting started with your Instant Pot as well as a glossary of common Instant Pot terms.
Soup is pretty much my favorite thing. Whole30 soups are so delicious, comforting, and healthy that I actually put together a guide on 15 Whole30 Soups to keep you warm and cozy.
What Ingredients are in Instant Pot Turkey Chili?
- Ground turkey (tell me you saw that coming)
- Bacon (you can use turkey bacon if you don’t eat pork)
- Onion
- Garlic
- Storebought vegetable juice (see notes below)
- Chili powder
- Smoked Paprika (the magical unicorn tears of spices)
- Chipotle in Adobo (see notes below)
- Cumin
- Green pepper
- Butternut squash (Frozen! Because sometimes it’s nice to be lazy)
I always get asked about my spice tins. You can find them on Amazon and yes they come with those labels. And yes, that gives me an organizing lady boner!
They rule because you can buy spices in the bulk section of the grocery store for dirt cheap and refill your own. And that is a sustainable way to decrease your kitchen trash output.
If you don’t want to make your own homemade bone broth, check out this post on where to buy bone broth. In a very dorky move on my part, I’ve created a free download where you can compare protein and sodium content as well as the price per ounce for various brands. #nerdalert
WHERE DO YOU GET WHOLE30 COMPLIANT BACON?
I’m blessed that we have a local butcher for buying organic meat, but we also have a monthly Butcher Box subscription. Butcher Box sources only organic and free-range meat for their customers and ships them to your home once a month. The Whole30/sugar-free bacon rules.
If you need more compliant bacon options, check out this post on Whole30 Bacon Brands.
Can I Freeze Instant Pot Turkey Chili?
Heck yes, you can. And you should!
When freezing soup, I like to use pint wide mouth canning jars for individual grab and go servings, and quart wide mouth jars for family-sized servings. Make sure the chili has cooled before placing it in the freezer.
When freezing in canning jars, just make sure you don’t fill the jar too full. Keep 1 inch of space between the top of the food and the top of the jar (referred to as “headspace”). This allows the food to expand while it freezes and keeps jars from cracking.
It is recommended you only freeze in wide mouth jars to prevent breaking.
Can I Double the Recipe?
You bet, as long as you have a 6 quart or 8 quart Instant Pot. I would not recommend attempting to double it in a 3 quart.
Can I Make Instant Pot Chili in the Slow Cooker? On the Stove Top?
Sure thing! One of my goals with my Instant Pot Recipes is to always include alternative cooking options for those sans pressure cooker. Check the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post for slow cooker and stove top directions.
How to Make Instant Pot Turkey Chili
*Printable and detailed recipe card available at the bottom of the post.
Press “Saute” on your Instant Pot and allow it to heat up for a few minutes. Add the chopped bacon and cook until mostly browned. Add the turkey and saute until cooked through. Pro tip: ground turkey cooks insanely fast so watch it closely and stir often!
Add in the vegetable juice and deglaze (fancy term for “scrape”) the bottom of the Instant Pot to remove any stuck on bits of bacon or turkey. Pro tip: this wonderful little silicone spatula/scraper works great for the Instant Pot, but I also use it every day in my kitchen.
Add the remainder of the ingredients. Stir.
Lock the lid into place and set the steam release handle (valve on top) to “Sealing”. Press Manual>High Pressure>8 minutes. Now walk away and pat yourself on the back for kicking dinner’s ass.
When the Instant Pot is done cooking, allow for a natural release for 10 minutes, and then use a clean kitchen towel and flip the steam release handle to “venting” to remove any additional pressure. Pro tip: steam may be released during this process so watch your hands!
Unlock the Instant Pot lid, top your chili with toppings of choice, and enjoy!
Pro Tips/Recipe Notes
- If you are unable to find chipotle in adobo sauce without added sugars and seed oils, try this recipe to make your own. Pro tip: since you only need a tiny bit of the whole can, freeze the rest of the chipotle sauce for future recipes. Alternatively, you can sub in 1/4-1/2 tsp of chipotle powder depending on how spicy you like your food.
- For the vegetable juice blend, you can use compliant brands like R.W. Knudsen or Trader Joe’s Garden Patch. Both add delicious extra veggies and flavor. Use the leftover vegetable juice for Whole30 Beef Stew! You may also sub in 2 cups of tomato sauce but the flavor profile will change.
- The chili will thicken the longer it sits, but if you’d like a super thick chili you can reduce the vegetable juice by 1/2 cup. Or, you may mix 2 tbsp of arrowroot powder (or cornstarch if you’re not doing Whole30/paleo) with 1.5 tbsp of water, add to the Instant Pot and stir.
More Recipes Like This
- 21 Easy Instant Pot Recipes for Beginners
- Whole30 Beef Stew
- 21 Whole30 Dinners You’ll Actually Want to Eat
- Instant Pot Orange Chicken (Whole30, Paleo)
- 18 Incredible Whole30 Breakfast Ideas
- Creamy Whole30 Mashed Potatoes
Doing a Whole30 round and need help getting started off on the right foot? Download my totally free Trader Joe’s Whole30 Shopping List and Whole30 Costco Shopping List. I have done all the work for you with checking ingredients and figuring out safe foods.
Happy shopping!
Making this recipe or others?
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Cozy up to a bowl of this amazing and easy Chipotle Instant Pot Turkey Chili! This recipe contains no beans for a Whole30 compliant and/or healthy paleo meal.
- 8 oz bacon chopped
- 2 lbs ground turkey
- 2 cups vegetable juice blend
- 1 cup beef broth
- 2 cups butternut squash cubed
- 1 green pepper diced
- 1 onion diced
- 4 cloves garlic diced
- 2 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp chipotle in adobo sauce
- 1 tsp cumin
Press "Saute" on your Instant Pot and allow it to heat up for a few minutes. Add the chopped bacon and cook until mostly browned (about 5 minutes). Add the turkey and saute until cooked through. (about 3 minutes). Pro tip: ground turkey cooks insanely fast so watch it closely and stir often!
Add in the vegetable juice and deglaze (fancy term for "scrape") the bottom of the Instant Pot to remove any stuck on bits of bacon or turkey.
Add the remainder of the ingredients. Stir.
Lock the lid into place and set the steam release handle (valve on top) to "Sealing". Press Manual>High Pressure>8 minutes.
When the Instant Pot is done cooking, allow for a natural release for 10 minutes, and then use a clean kitchen towel and flip the steam release handle to "venting" to remove any additional pressure. Pro tip: steam may be released during this process so watch your hands!
Unlock the Instant Pot lid, top your chili with toppings of choice, and enjoy!
In a skillet cook the chopped bacon on medium heat. Cook until mostly browned. Add the turkey and saute until cooked through. Pro tip: ground turkey cooks insanely fast so watch it closely and stir often!
Add the bacon/turkey mixture to your slow cooker. Cover with the rest of the ingredients and cook on low for 6 hours or high for 4 hours.
In a heavy-bottomed saucepan cook the chopped bacon on medium heat. Cook until mostly browned. Add the turkey and saute until cooked through. Pro tip: ground turkey cooks insanely fast so watch it closely and stir often!
Add the rest of the ingredients and cook with the lid on over low heat for 90 minutes, stirring occasionally
If you are unable to find chipotle in adobo sauce without added sugars and seed oils, try this recipe to make your own. Alternatively, you can sub in 1/4-1/2 tsp of chipotle powder depending on how spicy you like your food.
You may also sub in 2 cups of tomato sauce but the flavor profile will change.
The chili will thicken the longer it sits, but if you'd like a super thick chili you can reduce the vegetable juice by 1/2 cup. Or, you may mix 2 tbsp of arrowroot powder (or cornstarch if you're not doing Whole30/paleo) with 1.5 tbsp of water, add to the Instant Pot and stir.
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