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    You are here: Home / Recipes / Instant Pot

    Instant Pot Chili Mac (no beans)

    Published: Nov 29, 2021 · Modified: Feb 25, 2022 by Susie Weinrich · This post may contain affiliate links. Leave a Comment

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    Pinterest image for chili mac in the Instant Pot

    This Instant Pot Chili Mac Recipe is a great dinner for busy weeknights. It cooks up really quick in one pot and is a family favorite. Macaroni noodles are cooked with ground beef, bell peppers, onions, tomatoes, and spices and finish with melty shredded cheddar cheese. It is sure to become one of your favorite comfort food recipes.

    instant pot chili mac in a bowl topped with shredded cheese

    Some other excellent Instant Pot Pasta Dishes are Instant Pot Spaghetti, Instant Pot Chicken Alfredo, and Instant Pot Sausage Rigatoni.

    Table of Contents hide
    1 Why It’s So Good
    2 Instant Pot
    3 Ingredients
    4 Beans
    5 Step by Step Picture Instructions
    6 Serving
    7 Storing
    8 More Excellent Instant Pot Recipes
    9 Did you make this recipe?!
    10 Instant Pot Chili Mac Recipe

    Why It’s So Good

    • The pot is only set for 1 minute! That is a short cook time.
    • Super easy clean up, only one pot!
    • It’s a very easy recipe with simple ingredients.
    • It’s not totally a pasta dish, it’s not totally a chili dish. It’s the perfect combination of the two.
    • The cheese stirred in at the end adds the perfect amount of creaminess.
    • Make it for dinner tonight!

    Instant Pot

    An Instant Pot, also called an Electric Pressure Cooker, is a great way to make easy weeknight dinners! I use the 6qt 9-in1 Duo Plus (affiliate link), which means that it is 6 quart in size, a great size for a family of 4-5, and has 9 functions in one pot.

    Ingredients

    Pictured are the items that you need to make this easy weeknight meal, plus some tips on a few ingredients:

    ingredients for chili mac with text label

    Ground Beef- For this recipe you will want to use a 85/15 or 90/10 lean ground beef. It is lean enough so your chili mac doesn’t turn out greasy, but has enough fat to be flavorful.

    Cheese- I always recommend that you use fresh shredded cheese (and believe me, nobody hates shredding cheese more than me!!). The pre-shredded cheese is coated anti-clumping powders that prevent it from melting creamy.

    Beans

    This recipe for Instant Pot Chili Mac does not use beans. However, if you really want to use beans you can add a can of drained black beans or kidney beans when you add the diced tomatoes.

    Step by Step Picture Instructions

    • Start by browning and crumbling the ground beef in oil.
    • If there is excess grease, drain that as best you can.
    • Add the onion and bell pepper and sauté for 2 mins.
    Instant Pot with ground beef, onions and bell peppers.
    • Now add the seasonings, vinegar, pour in the tomatoes, tomato sauce, and water.
    • Add the macaroni noodles to the top, making sure they all touch the liquid.
    • Instant Pot with ground beef, onions, bell peppers, and tomatoes
    • macaroni noodles added to the instant pot
    • Set the pot to cook for 1 minute.
    • Do a 5 minute natural release, then quick release.
    • Add the cheese and stir it in.
    • Chili Mac cooked in the Instant Pot
    • cheese on top of chili mac in the instant Pot
    • Chili mac ready to serve from the Instant Pot

    Serving

    Serve your Instant Pot Chili Mac topped with extra cheese. You can also add some green onions, jalapenos, or sour cream on top. Add some garlic bread and a green salad on the side and you have a really hearty meal the whole family will love.

    a bowl of chili mac

    Storing

    Just like chili, it is even better the next day. You may need to add a little water or beef broth to reconstitute it when reheating.

    Keep it covered in the fridge for up to 4 days.

    More Excellent Instant Pot Recipes

    • 30 Minute Instant Pot Chicken Chili
    • Instant Pot Beef Ramen
    • Instant Pot Pork Roast with Vegetables & Gravy
    • Instant Pot Boneless Pork Ribs

    Susie Weinrich washing produce

    Did you make this recipe?!

    If you make this recipe I would love to hear your review. Pop down to the comment section and connect with me.

    Then sign up for our Weekly Newsletter so you never miss a new recipe!

    Rate This Recipe

    Instant Pot Chili Mac Recipe

    Instant Pot Chili Mac is a great dinner for busy weeknights, one pot and one minute cook time! Macaroni noodles are cooked with ground beef, tomatoes, and spices and finish with melty shredded cheddar cheese.
    5 from 2 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Prep Time: 10 minutes
    Cook Time: 1 minute
    Pressure and Release Time: 20 minutes
    Total Time: 31 minutes
    Servings: 6 people
    Calories: 517kcal
    Author: Susie Weinrich

    Equipment

    • Instant Pot or Electric Pressure Cooker

    Ingredients

    • 1 lb. 85/15 ground beef
    • 2 tablespoon oil
    • 1 medium yellow or white onion chopped
    • 1 red bell pepper chopped- (other color bell peppers work fine too!)
    • 2 garlic cloves minced
    • 2 tablespoon chili powder
    • 1 tablespoon cumin
    • pinch of all spice
    • 1 tablespoon sugar
    • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
    • ½ teaspoon pepper
    • 1 teaspoon white vinegar
    • 16 oz. tomato sauce
    • 14.5 oz. can of diced tomatoes
    • 2 cups water
    • 1 ½ cups macaroni noodles
    • 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
    Prevent your screen from going dark while you are cooking!

    Instructions

    • Start with the Instant Pot on sauté mode. Add the oil then crumble/brown the beef until it is mostly cooked through, about 5 minutes.
    • If there is a lot of excess grease drain some before moving on.
    • Add the bell pepper and onion and sauté for 2 minutes. Then turn off sauté mode.
    • Add the garlic, chili powder, cumin, all spice, sugar, vinegar, salt, pepper, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes with juices, and the water.
      Give everything a good stir!
    • Now add the macaroni to the pot and VERY lightly** stir so that the macaroni is in the liquid, but not all at the bottom of the pot.
      **You just want to incorporate the pasta into the liquid at the top of the pot, if it is all at the bottom you risk the burn warning and the pasta sticking to the bottom of the pot.
    • Lock the lid in place and turn the pressure valve to "sealing". Set the Instant Pot to cook on manual mode, high pressure for 1 minute.
    • Do a 5 minute natural release at the end of the cooking time. Then finish with a quick release of remaining pressure.
    • Add the shredded cheese and stir it into the Chili Mac so that it melts.
    • Serve while it is hot/warm!

    Serving

    • Serve your chili mac in bowls topped with extra cheese.
      Other topping options: sour cream, green onions, or jalapenos.
    • Goes great with a side of garlic bread and a green salad.

    Storing

    • Keep leftovers in the fridge, covered, for up to 4 days.
    • You may need to add a little water or broth when reheating. It will thicken in the fridge.

    Notes:

    Beans: This Chili Mac recipe does not use beans. However if you want to add beans make sure you drain and rinse them and then add them with the garlic/spices/tomatoes. 
    Black beans, pinto beans or kidney beans would work great. 
    Variation: Can also use ground turkey. Make sure you use 93/7 ground turkey!
    Did you try this recipe? Connect with me & let me know how it turned out by commenting below!
    Jump to Comments
    Serving: 1serving | Calories: 517kcal | Carbohydrates: 34g | Protein: 29g | Fat: 30g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 12g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 91mg | Sodium: 1218mg | Potassium: 842mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 2211IU | Vitamin C: 39mg | Calcium: 348mg | Iron: 5mg

    If nutrition facts are provided they are calculated as an estimate to the best of our knowledge.

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    About Susie Weinrich

    Susie Weinrich is the recipe developer, food photographer, and content creator behind Mom's Dinner. She has over 20 years experience in the food industry. Currently, Susie shares all her recipes and food knowledge on Mom's Dinner. You will find her recipes are easy to follow and full of tips and tricks to make sure the recipe you are making turns out perfect!

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