Cincinnati Chili Recipe (Instant Pot) - a taste of the queen city from your pressure cooker in about an hour.
I'm an Ohio boy, but I've never been to Cincinnati. I don't care. I love Cincinnati chili, and I had to figure out how to make it at home.
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What is Cincinnati Chili
Cincinnati chili is very a very saucy chili, made with ground beef and warm spices, some of which are not traditional chili spices. While it has chili powder and cumin, it also has cinnamon, cloves, allspice, and my favorite bit, a little cocoa powder. Think of Cincinnati chili as a thick, meaty sauce for pasta, closer to spaghetti sauce than a bowl of Texas red. That's because it served on top of spaghetti, topped with a pile of shredded cheese, and (optionally) beans and onions. (Or it's used as chili for coney dogs, which is also fantastic.)
Ingredients
Soaked Kidney Beans
- 1 pound dried red kidney beans, sorted and rinsed
- 2 quarts water
- 2 teaspoons fine sea salt (or 1 tablespoon kosher salt)
Chili
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 2 medium onions, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed through a garlic press
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ¼ cup chili powder
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon ground coriander
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 ½ pounds ground beef
- 4 cups water
- 1 bay leaf
- 14- to 16-ounce can crushed tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- ½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
Other ingredients and condiments
- 1 pound dried spaghetti, cooked according to package directions in salted water
- 8 ounces (4 cups) shredded cheddar cheese
- Minced onions
- Oyster crackers
- Hot sauce (I use Frank's red hot, but it's milder than what they serve at Skyline.)
How to Make Cincinnati Chili in an Instant Pot
Sort and rinse the kidney beans
Sort the kidney beans, discarding any stones, dirt, or broken beans. Rinse the beans, then do an overnight or a quick soak.
Overnight soak
Cover the kidney beans with 8 cups of water, and sprinkle with 2 teaspoons of salt. Leave the beans to soak at least 8 hours, or overnight. Drain and discard the soaking liquid.
OR: Pressure Quick Soak for 1 minute with a 30 minute rest
Put the kidney beans and 8 cups of water in an Instant Pot or other pressure cooker. Sprinkle with 2 teaspoons of salt. Pressure cook at high pressure for 1 minute (“Manual”, “Pressure Cook”, or "Pressure Cook - Custom" mode in an Instant Pot). Let the beans soak in the pot for 30 minutes, then quick release any remaining pressure. Drain the beans and discard the soaking liquid.
Sauté the aromatics
Heat the vegetable oil until shimmering in an Instant Pot set to Sauté mode - High. (Use medium-high heat for a stovetop PC.) Add the onions, garlic, and ½ teaspoon salt to the pressure cooker. Sauté until the the onions and garlic soften, about 5 minutes.
Toast the spices and cook the beef
Make a hole in the center of the onions and add the chili powder, cumin, coriander, cocoa powder, allspice, cinnamon, and cloves. Let sit for 30 seconds to toast the spices, then stir them into the onions. Add the ground beef and cook until the beef just loses its pink color, stirring and breaking up the beef, and scraping the bottom of the pot to make sure none of the spices are sticking.
Everything in the pot
Stir the drained and rinsed kidney beans into the pot, coating them with the spices. Pour in the water, add the bay leaf, and then add the crushed tomatoes on top. (Do not stir; the tomatoes may burn if they get to the bottom of the pot.)
Pressure Cook for 20 minutes with a Natural Release
Lock the lid on the pressure cooker. and bring the cooker up to high pressure. (Read your fine pressure cooker manual for how to do this). Cook at high pressure for 20 minutes in an electric PC, 15 minutes in a stovetop PC. Let the pressure come down naturally, about 20 minutes. (You can quick release any remaining pressure after 15 minutes.)
Season and Serve
Unlock the lid and fish out the bay leaf. Stir in the cider vinegar, brown sugar, 1 teaspoon fine sea salt and fresh ground black pepper. To serve, put a layer of spaghetti on a plate, top with a generous layer of chili, sprinkle on the minced onions, then heap on the cheese. Pass the oyster crackers and hot sauce at the table. Enjoy!
How to Serve Cincinnati Chili (All 5 Ways)
Cincinnati chili is served in five different "ways", depending on the toppings you want. The ingredients, listed from bottom to top:
- One way - chili (usually called "a bowl of chili")
- Two way - spaghetti topped with chili
- Three way - spaghetti, chili, cheese
- Four way - spaghetti, chili, onions, cheese
- Five way - spaghetti, chili, beans, onions, cheese
I like to cook the beans in the chili. My favorite Cincinnati Way is 5-way chili, so why cook the beans separately when I can cook them with the spices, and add to the flavor? This makes me a Cincinnati chili heretic, of course. In Cincinnati, the beans are kept separate until someone orders a 5-way. (Watch out for the angry mob coming up I-71, straight towards my house.)
Equipment
A 6-quart instant pot (or other 6-quart pressure cooker)
Notes
- No pressure cooker? No worries: Cook the recipe in a dutch oven, following the instructions. In step 3, instead of pressure cooking on high, bring all the ingredients to a boil, cover the pot and move it to a 350°F oven for 2 hours, or until the beans are tender. Remove from the oven, and season to taste.
- Canned Beans for even quicker pressure cooker chili: If you have canned or pre-cooked beans, you can use them instead of dry beans. If you have pre-cooked beans, don't cook them with the chili; rinse and reheat them (I use the microwave), and cut the water in the recipe from 4 cups to 2 cups. (And, obviously, skip the "Brine the Beans" step.) When you are making plates of chili, add the beans right before you add the cheese.
Storing Leftovers
Leftover chili will last for a few days in the refrigerator, or for months in the freezer. I just freeze the chili, not the cooked spaghetti. I make fresh pasta when I want to serve it again.
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Cincinnati Chili (Instant Pot) Recipe
- Total Time: 8 hours 45 minutes
- Yield: 6-8 1x
Description
Cincinnati Chili Recipe (Instant Pot) - a taste of the queen city from your pressure cooker in about an hour.
Ingredients
Soaked Kidney Beans
- 1 pound dry red kidney beans, sorted and rinsed
- 2 quarts water
- 2 teaspoons fine sea salt (or 1 tablespoon kosher salt)
Cincinnati Chili
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 2 medium onions, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed through a garlic press
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ¼ cup chili powder
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon ground coriander
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 ½ pounds ground beef (85/15 or leaner)
- 4 cups water
- 1 bay leaf
- 14- to 16-ounce can crushed tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- ½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
Other ingredients and toppings
- 1 pound dry spaghetti, cooked according to package directions in salted water
- 8 ounces (4 cups) finely shredded cheddar cheese
- Minced onions
- Oyster crackers
- Hot sauce (I use Frank's red hot, but it's milder than what they serve at Skyline.)
Instructions
- Sort and rinse the kidney beans: Sort the kidney beans, discarding any stones, dirt, or broken beans. Rinse the beans, then do an overnight or a quick soak.
- Overnight soak: Cover the kidney beans with 8 cups of water, and sprinkle with 2 teaspoons of salt. Leave the beans to soak at least 8 hours, or overnight. Drain and discard the soaking liquid.
- OR: Pressure Quick Soak for 1 minute with a 30 minute rest: Put the kidney beans and 8 cups of water in an Instant Pot or other pressure cooker. Sprinkle with 2 teaspoons of salt. Pressure cook at high pressure for 1 minute (“Manual”, “Pressure Cook”, or "Pressure Cook - Custom" mode in an Instant Pot). Let the beans soak in the pot for 30 minutes, then quick release any remaining pressure. Drain the beans and discard the soaking liquid.
- Sauté the aromatics: Heat the vegetable oil until shimmering in an Instant Pot set to Sauté mode - High. (Use medium-high heat for a stovetop PC.) Add the onions, garlic, and ½ teaspoon salt to the pressure cooker. Sauté until the the onions and garlic soften, about 5 minutes.
- Toast the spices and cook the beef: Make a hole in the center of the onions and add the chili powder, cumin, coriander, cocoa powder, allspice, cinnamon, and cloves. Let sit for 30 seconds to toast the spices, then stir them into the onions. Add the ground beef and cook until the beef just loses its pink color, stirring and breaking up the beef, and scraping the bottom of the pot to make sure none of the spices are sticking.
- Everything in the pot: Stir the drained and rinsed kidney beans into the pot, coating them with the spices. Pour in the water, add the bay leaf, and then add the crushed tomatoes on top. (Do not stir; the tomatoes may burn if they get to the bottom of the pot.)
- Pressure Cook for 20 minutes with a Natural Release: Lock the lid on the pressure cooker. and bring the cooker up to high pressure. (Read your fine pressure cooker manual for how to do this). Cook at high pressure for 20 minutes in an electric PC, 15 minutes in a stovetop PC. Let the pressure come down naturally, about 20 minutes. (You can quick release any remaining pressure after 15 minutes.)
- Season and Serve: Unlock the lid and fish out the bay leaf. Stir in the cider vinegar, brown sugar, 1 teaspoon fine sea salt and fresh ground black pepper. To serve, put a layer of spaghetti on a plate, top with a generous layer of chili, sprinkle on the minced onions, then heap on the cheese. Pass the oyster crackers and hot sauce at the table. Enjoy!
Equipment
Buy Now → - Prep Time: 8 hours
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Category: Pressure Cooker
- Cuisine: American
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Mike says
You know what Ron White say's about Cincinnati chili.
Seriously, this stuff is good. Thanks for the recipe.
Mike Vrobel says
Ha! You’re welcome, glad you like it!
Karina Sigler says
Hello, my husband is questioning the amount of chili powder in the recipe. Does it really call for 1/4 cup. He was raised in Ohio and thinks it will make it too spicy. Please advise.
Mike Vrobel says
Yes, 1/4 cup is correct. And I live in Ohio. 🙂
Karina Sigler says
Thank you.
Mike says
I noticed you aren't draining the beef at all. What type of ground beef are you using? I would think standard 80/20 would come out pretty greasy. I guess since you sauteed in the spices in the meat the only thing you could do would be to chill the chili after cooking and then skim the fat off the top? Or maybe taking the fat out of the chili is considered sacrilege?
Mike V says
I use 80/20, and it works out fine for me. If you want to go with less fat, go ahead.
Kali says
I grew up in central Kentucky, and left when I joined the military. I always get the craving for a 5 way and cheese coney when I've been away from home too long, and they don't have anything like skyline/gold star in Southern California. I made this for my family today, and we really enjoyed it. I tweaked it just a little by leaving out the water and instead using 2 cups of sweet red wine, and an extra can of tomatoes. It turned out a little too thin and didn't quite have the taste that I remember so next time I will just use 1 cup of dry red wine. Thanks for posting.
Renee says
My husband hates beans. If I want to skip them entirely, do I just cook at pressure for 5 minutes?
Mike V says
Follow the technique I have here: https://www.dadcooksdinner.com/pressure-cooker-walking-tacos/
Tiffany says
Wow!! You nailed the recipe!! We just finished eating and it was a delicious blast from the past. I lived in Cincinnati for years, and I loved eating at Skyline!! It been 15-20 years since I enjoyed a 5 way!! Thank you for sharing, this will definitely be a family winter favorite from here on out in our family.
Mike V says
You're welcome!
Mike V @ DadCooksDinner says
Skyliners! I forgot to mention that's another great use for leftovers - thanks for mentioning it.
Dan McGrew says
Hope you make extra to put on a hotdog bun and top with mustard, onions and cheese.
Mike V @ DadCooksDinner says
You're right. Cut and paste will be the death of me. 1.5 pounds ground beef.
cj says
love your site! i assume its 1.5 lbs of grd beef and not 3 right? you have it listed twice.
Mike V @ DadCooksDinner says
Thank you! And the midwest says it missses you too...especially during a snowstorm in the middle of February. 🙂
willbakefortattoos.com says
Ok. So I love the recipes I try from your site. This one makes me miss the midwest. I can't wait to try it. I love my pressure cooker.
David Froula says
oh yes gonna make this soon as it cools off a little more. My college roommate was from Cincy and we used to try and make the 5 way back in the day.
Doug Reichard says
yum