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Home » Recipes » Instant Pot Chili Mac and Cheese

Instant Pot Chili Mac and Cheese

12/10/19

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This Instant Pot Chili Mac and Cheese is a delicious, cheesy one pot pasta recipe and the ultimate comfort food that's filled with hearty flavours! #instantpot #chilimac

This Instant Pot Chili Mac and Cheese is a delicious, cheesy one pot pasta recipe and the ultimate comfort food that's filled with hearty flavours!  

Instant Pot Chili Mac and Cheese

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Ingredients in Instant Pot chili mac

Most of these ingredients are actually pantry staples so you shouldn't be running to the store for too many things. If you're like me and have a well-stocked fridge, you should already have celery on hand so from there it's just about making sure you have a well-stocked freezer with some ground beef.

If you've ever made chili before then you'll be familiar with most of the ingredients that go into this Instant Pot Chili Mac and Cheese:

  • ground beef
  • onions
  • celery
  • garlic
  • chili powder
  • cumin
  • kidney beans
  • diced tomatoes
  • beef broth
  • macaroni
  • cheddar cheese

Instant Pot Chili Mac and Cheese

How to make Instant Pot chili mac

This Instant Pot Chili Mac is pretty much what you've been dreaming of your whole life when it comes to wholesome, hearty comfort food.

Come on, chili AND mac and cheese all in one? It really is like a dream come true!

Whether you're gonna make it as a last-minute weeknight dinner or you're meal prepping it for the work week, guaranteed you are going to love all the flavours and you'll definitely also appreciate how quick and easy it is to put together! And as if that's not enough, you should know that this is inspired by my mom's very own chili mac recipe – I miss it so much and she never makes it anymore!!! Here's how to make it step by step:

  1. Add olive oil to Instant Pot and select saute mode. Saute ground beef for 4-5 minutes until lightly browned.
  2. Turn off saute mode and add onion, celery, garlic, chili powder, cumin, salt & pepper, kidney beans, diced tomatoes, broth and pasta in that order.
  3. Cook on high pressure for 4 minutes then do a quick release of pressure.
  4. Remove lid and stir in green pepper and 1 cup of cheese.
  5. Serve in large bowls and top each serving with remaining cheese and garnish with fresh parsley if desired. Serve and enjoy!

Instant Pot Chili Mac and Cheese

Chili Mac: Stovetop Version

This Instant Pot Chili Mac and Cheese is super similar to this Homemade Hamburger Helper recipe actually, and you can totally use the method listed on the Hamburger Helper recipe if you want to try the one pot stovetop version of this chili mac.

Here's how to make this recipe on the stovetop:

  1. Sautee the ground beef first just as you'll do with the Instant Pot version, then add in all the other ingredients (except for green peppers and cheese)
  2. Bring to a boil and cook over medium heat for 15-20 minutes until the pasta is cooked through.
  3. Stir in the green peppers and cheese last, cooking another minute or so.
  4. Serve and enjoy!

Instant Pot Chili Mac and Cheese

Ingredient substitutions

You can easily switch up this recipe to suit your tastes! Use ground turkey or ground chicken to lighten things up.

Beef – Instead of ground beef, you can use ground turkey, pork or chicken. Any type of ground meat will work here!

Pasta – You will want to use pasta for this recipe – unfortunately you can't sub in any other type of grain or gluten free pasta. But you can change up the pasta shape if you'd like! Try rotini, shells or scoobi do instead of macaroni.

Cheese – Cheddar cheese is the best in this recipe, but you can use any type of cheese you have on hand to get the gooey texture.

Veggies – I've used onions, celery and green pepper in this recipe but you can add in more veggies if you'd like. Throwing in some carrots and peas at the beginning is a great way to get some extra veggies in. You can also stir spinach in at the end.

Instant Pot Chili Mac and Cheese

Can you double this recipe?

Unfortunately you can't double this recipe or it will go past the fill line for most Instant Pots. However, the great news is that this recipe already makes 8 servings so there should be more than enough to feed a crowd and have leftovers!

Can you make it in a slow cooker?

You can, but I honestly wouldn't recommend it as you would have to perform a lot more steps and wait for it to finish cooking. For instance, you would have to brown the ground beef in a separate pan, which wouldn't make this a one pot recipe anymore. However, you can try the slow cooker method. Here are the instructions:

  1. Brown the ground beef in a frying pan, then add to slow cooker.
  2. Add all other ingredients except for pasta and cheese, then cook on high for 4 hours.
  3. Add pasta in the last half hour of cook time.
  4. Stir in cheese, then serve and enjoy!

Instant Pot Chili Mac and Cheese

Storing and reheating

You can store the leftover chili mac up to 5 days in the fridge. Sprinkle some water overtop and reheat for 2-3 minutes in the microwave, stirring halfway through.

Freezing chili mac

You can also freeze this chili mac! Freeze in glass bowls with lids, then you can reheat from frozen! Just sprinkle some water overtop then reheat for 6-7 minutes, stirring halfway through. This makes the best freezer meal! You can also freeze in aluminum containers and reheat in a 375 F oven for 30-40 minutes.

Instant Pot Chili Mac and Cheese

Meal prep tools for this recipe

  • Grab some glass meal prep bowls if you plan on packing this Instant Pot Chili Mac in the freezer and defrosting in the microwave.
  • Freeze this recipe in glass microwave-safe bowls up to 3 months
  • Or these aluminum foil containers are perfect for re-heating straight from the freezer to oven.
  • And of course I get all my grass-fed beef from Butcher Box!

 

Instant Pot Chili Mac and Cheese

Instant Pot Chili Mac and Cheese

This Instant Pot Chili Mac and Cheese is a delicious, cheesy one pot pasta recipe and the ultimate comfort food that's filled with hearty flavours!
4.83 from 23 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Pasta
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 486kcal
Author: Taylor Stinson

Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 lb extra-lean ground beef
  • 1 yellow onion, diced
  • 4 celery stalks, chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 tbsp chili powder
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1/2 tsp each salt & pepper
  • 1 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 (796mL) can Diced tomatoes
  • 3 cups beef broth
  • 1 lb dried macaroni pasta
  • 1 green pepper, diced
  • 2 cups grated cheddar cheese, divided
  • Fresh chopped parsley (optional garnish)

Instructions

  • Add olive oil to Instant Pot and select saute mode. Saute ground beef for 4-5 minutes until lightly browned. Turn off saute mode and add onion, celery, garlic, chili powder, cumin, salt & pepper, kidney beans, diced tomatoes, broth and pasta in that order.
  • Cook on high pressure for 4 minutes then do a quick release of pressure. Remove lid and stir in green pepper and 1 cup of cheese.
  • Serve in large bowls and top each serving with remaining cheese and garnish with fresh parsley if desired. Serve and enjoy!

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 486kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 33g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Cholesterol: 87mg | Sodium: 1052mg | Potassium: 740mg | Fiber: 8g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 400IU | Vitamin C: 24.8mg | Calcium: 300mg | Iron: 4.5mg
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This Instant Pot Chili Mac and Cheese is a delicious, cheesy one pot pasta recipe and the ultimate comfort food that's filled with hearty flavours! #instantpot #chilimac This Instant Pot Chili Mac and Cheese is a delicious, cheesy one pot pasta recipe and the ultimate comfort food that's filled with hearty flavours! #instantpot #chilimac This Instant Pot Chili Mac and Cheese is a delicious, cheesy one pot pasta recipe and the ultimate comfort food that's filled with hearty flavours! #instantpot #chilimac This Instant Pot Chili Mac and Cheese is a delicious, cheesy one pot pasta recipe and the ultimate comfort food that's filled with hearty flavours! #instantpot #chilimac

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About Taylor Stinson

Hey there, my name's Taylor! I’m the founder of The Girl on Bloor, a food blog where I share healthy meal prep recipes for busy people. I'm a busy city girl living in downtown Toronto on (you guessed it!) Bloor Street. I've got 10 years experience meal prepping, along with a Master's degree in journalism, and you can find my work across the internet featured on publications such as Buzzfeed, HuffPost, Women's Health, Reader's Digest and more. I also run the awesome 5-Day Meal Prep Challenge, which is a free email course and Facebook group where I share my meal planning strategies and easy meal prep tips and recipes. Be sure to check out my free beginner’s guide to meal prep and follow me on Facebook, YouTube and Instagram to get my latest recipes and meal prep tips!

Comments

  1. WMoore says

    March 9, 2021 at 12:33

    5 stars
    This dish is amazing! I could eat the whole pot it is that good. I substituted the celery for mushrooms because I did not have celery. I omitted the oil and just dumped everything in except the peppers and cheese and cooked it for 6 minutes. It was perfect!

    I used gluten free pasta and the 6 minutes was perfect timing for the past.

    Reply
    • Taylor Stinson says

      March 9, 2021 at 15:40

      I’m so happy you enjoyed! And great to know gluten free pasta can be used too!

      Reply
  2. Brianna Brent says

    January 12, 2021 at 14:21

    I have no idea what I did wrong, but when I did the quick release and opened the pot there was barely any liquid at all and the pasta noodles were still dry and uncooked..? I then added 2 more cups of broth and cooked another 4 minutes high pressure. Pasta was still not completely cooked?

    Reply
    • Taylor Stinson says

      January 13, 2021 at 08:02

      Hi Brianna – hmm, that seems very strange. Wondering if perhaps you maybe omitted the diced tomatoes or forgot any other ingredients? With 5 cups of broth (if you added two more) the pasta should definitely be cooked. Did you use a larger pasta shape? Just trying to troubleshoot as something seems off.

      Reply
  3. Julie J says

    January 10, 2021 at 15:00

    5 stars
    I made this recipe in an 8 qt instant pot. I accidentally threw the green peppers in with everything else but it was fine. Came out PERFECT. I added hot sauce to our family’s liking and it got a thumbs up from everyone.

    Reply
  4. Angela Davies says

    December 13, 2020 at 15:33

    5 stars
    Oh my Goodness! My daughter said his recipe is the Bomb. So Good! Good thing to take to a potluck. Thank you!

    Reply
    • Taylor Stinson says

      December 14, 2020 at 07:37

      So happy you guys enjoyed, Angela 🙂

      Reply
  5. Sherrill says

    October 22, 2020 at 21:52

    5 stars
    I made it tonight for dinner and used Ground veggie round , 2 packs and rotini noodles and my family loved it – definitely recommend it, super easy and will make it again soon!

    Reply
    • Taylor Stinson says

      October 23, 2020 at 07:44

      I’m so happy you enjoyed 🙂

      Reply
  6. Theresa says

    October 14, 2020 at 20:05

    Hi! I am SO excited to try this recipe!! I have been following your page for a long time now and your recipes inspired me to get an Instantpot! I’ve been nagging my husband for months and he finally caved on PrimeDay! Quick question – the pasta is uncooked when you put it in, correct?

    Reply
    • Taylor Stinson says

      October 15, 2020 at 08:15

      Hey Theresa – yes it is uncooked when you put it in! So happy you enjoy my recipes, thank you 🙂

      Reply
  7. Meghan says

    June 22, 2020 at 07:50

    5 stars
    Just made this and LOVED it. I used frozen vegetarian mince and didn’t even sautee – omitted the oil and just dumped it in the bottom of the instant pot. Also used extra peppers as I didn’t have celery, whole wheat penne instead of elbows as that’s what I had on hand, and vegetable broth to keep it vegetarian. So easy and really delicious!

    Reply
    • Taylor Stinson says

      June 22, 2020 at 08:52

      I’m so happy you enjoyed 🙂

      Reply
  8. Michele says

    June 20, 2020 at 09:50

    hi there! simple question, i hope! in the ingredients list, you list diced tomatoes, but in your video they look like crushed tomatoes. which do you recommend? thanks!.

    Reply
    • Taylor Stinson says

      June 21, 2020 at 12:48

      Hi Michelle – they are diced tomatoes, they are just more finely diced than usual. Some brands come like this, but you can achieve a finer dice if you decide by pulsing the tomatoes gently with an immersion blender. I do recommend diced tomatoes in their juices here in any case.

      Reply
  9. Jackie says

    February 22, 2020 at 19:49

    I made this for dinner tonight. It is soooooo good! I will definitely be making it again and again! Thanks for the recipe!

    Reply
    • Taylor Stinson says

      February 23, 2020 at 12:00

      I’m so happy you enjoyed Jackie! 🙂

      Reply
  10. Chuck says

    January 28, 2020 at 12:28

    The cheese tends to be a bit sticky, so I tried adding 8 oz cream cheese on top of the pasta before cooking. Once it was done I added 8 oz shredded cheese, and it came out amazing. The cream cheese causes the other cheese to remain silky smooth, and thickens the overall sauce.

    Reply
    • Taylor Stinson says

      January 28, 2020 at 12:29

      Thanks for the tip Chuck! That sounds delicious 🙂

      Reply
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Taylor Stinson

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I'm Taylor Stinson, a busy city girl living in downtown Toronto. Looking to switch up your weekly meal prep routine? I've got you covered with healthy recipes and meal planning resources. Join 1.5 million other monthly readers and dive in! MORE ABOUT ME..

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