Instant Pot Chili Verde - Savory Tooth (2025)

Updated Published Jun 5, 2018 By Julia 80 CommentsThis post may contain affiliate links.

Summary:

Hearty and zesty, Chili Verde is a saucy green stew with juicy and tender chicken -- one of the most popular low carb, keto, and paleo Instant Pot dinners on the site. Peppers and onions add bulk and help thicken the stew, giving a refreshing aroma to the whole dish. The cumin, cilantro, and lime juice give the stew a decidedly Mexican flavor.

Instant Pot Chili Verde - Savory Tooth (1)

Instant Pot Chili Verde

5 from 49 votes

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Prep: 15 minutes mins

Cook: 25 minutes mins

Pressurize: 15 minutes mins

Yield: 4 servings

INGREDIENTS

  • 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs (Note 1)
  • 7 medium tomatillos, stemmed, husked, quartered (Note 2)
  • 2 medium poblano peppers, stemmed, seeded, chopped
  • 2 medium jalapeño peppers, stemmed, seeded, chopped
  • 1/2 yellow onion, peeled, chopped
  • 1/4 cup water (Note 3)
  • 5 cloves garlic, peeled
  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 1.5 teaspoons table salt

For Finishing:

  • 1/3 cup chopped cilantro leaves, plus more for garnish
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

INSTRUCTIONS

  • Pressure Cook: Add tomatillos, poblanos, jalapeños, onions, and water to the pressure cooker. Distribute garlic, cumin, and salt on top. Lastly, add chicken thighs. Secure and seal the lid. Cook at high pressure for 15 minutes, followed by a quick pressure release. (Note 4)

  • Cut Chicken: Uncover. Transfer only chicken to a cutting board, and cut it into bite-sized pieces or shred. Set aside.

  • Thicken Stew: Add cilantro and lime juice to the pressure cooker. Use an immersion blender to puree the mixture in place, or transfer to a countertop blender. With the blended mixture in the pressure cooker, select the saute mode for medium heat. Return chicken to the mixture. Boil until stew is thickened, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes.

  • Serve: Divide into bowls, and garnish with additional cilantro. Let stand until cool enough to eat, about 10 minutes. Serve hot (Note 5).

NUTRITION

Makes 4 Servings
Amount Per Serving (1.5 cups):
Calories 310 (42% from fat)
Total Fat 15g22%
Saturated Fat 0g0%
Cholesterol 182mg61%
Sodium 1200mg50%
Net Carb 6g
Total Carb 10g3%
Dietary Fiber 4g15%
Sugars 4.5g
Protein 37g

Vitamin A 7% · Vitamin C 64% · Calcium 2% · Iron 24%

PHOTOS

Instant Pot Chili Verde - Savory Tooth (2)

Instant Pot Chili Verde - Savory Tooth (3)

Instant Pot Chili Verde - Savory Tooth (4)

Instant Pot Chili Verde - Savory Tooth (5)


NOTES & TIPS

(1) Chicken. I use fresh; if yours is frozen, thaw overnight in the fridge. Two pounds is about 8 chicken thighs. If you don’t mind the chicken being slightly less tender, you can use chicken breasts instead. Use the same weight, and cut each chicken breast into 2 to 3 smaller pieces so that they’re about the same size as thighs. You can also substitute with chopped pork shoulder.

(2) Tomatillos. Same as 12 ounces in total weight. Tomatillos are small green fruits with husks. Since they vary a lot in size, for best results measure them out by weight using a scale at your grocery store’s produce section. If you can’t find fresh tomatillos, look for canned tomatillos or prepared salsa verde.

(3) Water. Just a small amount of water is added (1/4 cup) because the ingredients themselves have a lot of water content that will be released as they start cooking. There shouldn’t be any iissue getting enough liquid to pressurize the pot.

(4) Pressure Cooking. I use a 6-quart Instant Pot. Before cooking, remember to seal the pressure cooker by turning the pressure knob from “venting” to “sealing.” After cooking, to perform a quick pressure release, turn the knob back to “venting” and wait for the pressure pin to drop before uncovering. If you scale the ingredients up or down to accommodate a different number of servings, the pressure cooking time remains the same.

(5) Serving. Serve chili verde with sides like cauliflower rice, or with toppings like chopped avocado, Mexican cheese, and sour cream. If you have leftovers, store covered in the refrigerator for up to a few days. Reheat using the microwave or on the stovetop until heated through.

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About Julia

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Julia is a recipe developer and the founder of Savory Tooth, and lives in Boston, Massachusetts. Since 2015, she has been sharing simple recipes for tasty dishes in a user-friendly format. She typically prefers savory foods over sweet, hence the name of the site. Contact her at julia@savorytooth.null.com.

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newest oldest most voted

Brian

This is a regular in our rotation now, and even my picky processed-food obsessed kids request it weekly. I now add in 1-2 avocados at the immersion blending stage to get more fat, and this actually thickens and smoothes it out a bit, meaning no additional cook-down time. We usually double the recipe and sometimes grill the thighs prior to adding them. We’ll also tend to add additional hot peppers of assorted types based on what we find at the farmers market or local hispanic grocery after the base of poblanos and jalapeños, and the kids insist on splashing Cholula on this, which does add a nice tang.

Gary’s Anejo tequila idea sounds excellent; before going full keto I also like masa as a thickener for the same earthy quality. Now I might have to sacrifice some good tequila for this.

I do occasionally get the burn alarm on the Instant Pot due to not enough liquid to start. I usually use 1 cup of onion, garlic or cilantro bouillon.

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5 years ago

Rhonda Trathen

It was a big hit with my boyfriend. I crumbled a little fresh Mexican cheese and diced avocado on ours and served with a low carb tortilla. Yummers!

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4 years ago

Dan

Love this recipe. Super easy to make and tastes great!

I made twice and the second time I modified slightly. I sautéd the poblano peppers and the chicken first in garlic and used broth instead of water. This gave it a bit more flavor but it tastes great either way.

Also, if on a low carb diet, sautéd rice cauliflower makes a great side / base to serve over.

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4 years ago

Abby

Can you make this in a regular crockpot instead of an instant cooker?

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5 years ago

Julia

Yes, that would work. You would need to transfer everything to a pot on the stovetop for the boiling step.

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5 years ago

Rhonda

Used leftovers for breakfast over chicharrones with diced avocado, crumbled Mexican white cheese, and a fried egg. Delish!

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4 years ago

Tracey

I absolutely love this recipe, and make it whenever fresh tomatillos are available, but to me, chili has beans. Am I the only person adding beans to this dish? I cooked up some dried great northern beans, (white navy or Cannellini would also work) and added them back with the chicken. Served with tortilla scoops and cotija cheese. Would also go well with cilantro lime rice.

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22 days ago

M Marilyn

Made this tonight and it was amazing!! Thank you for sharing this!! I made it exactly as directed too!!

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9 months ago

Krista

This is one of my favorite recipes and is a regular rotation during tomatillo season! Can this be frozen?

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1 year ago

Gretchen

My family loves this. It’s a regular dish for us. We use breasts instead of thighs. Also like to use Hatch Green chilis.

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1 year ago

Eric

Delicious. Takes some time to prep (as expected). We used it in burritos.

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1 year ago

Thom

Definitely has become a household treat. Great flavor. I’ve made it many times

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2 years ago

Ramon

This sounds good and I would like to try it, but where is 1200 mg of salt coming from, 1.5 tsp of salt added?

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2 years ago

Julia

Yes, that’s correct. The salt can be adjusted for your preferences.

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2 years ago

Momoftwo

This one’s a keeper. Soo full of flavor.

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3 years ago

April

Excellent!!! Quick, easy and delicious.

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3 years ago

Juliette

Couldn’t love this dish more… it was easy, fast and cheap to prepare and BIG on flavor. I used a jar of Fronterra tomatillo salsa in place of the fresh tomatillos, added in a tsp of smoked paprika per another reviewer’s suggestion and served with sour cream, queso fresca, and avocado. Fresh sliced radish would have been a nice topping as well. Thanks for sharing the recipe!

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3 years ago

Kristin

I’m going to try fresh tomatillos, but I do LOVE that Frontera Tomatillo Salsa. Always keep it on hand! Love your topping suggestions.

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1 year ago

Steph

Can you blend the sauce before adding it to IP?

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3 years ago

Julia

I don’t think that would work as well, since the ingredients will be raw and won’t blend as smoothly.

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3 years ago

gbm

I’ve been looking for a recipe like this for months. This was a great base. I added a few drops of green Tabasco and it put it over the top. Simple and tasty.

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4 years ago

Roberta Aguirre

OMG! So delicious, worth trying! I felt I was back in Mexico.
Can we freeze it?

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4 years ago

Lori Barlow

This was RAVE worthy!!!! My hubs and I absolutely loved it and added it to our all star recipes list!!!

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4 years ago

James G Sisco

Stuck to the recipe, but used pork instead of chicken. This came out fantastic! Thanks for the recipe.

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4 years ago

Jenn

OMG! This recipe is incredible! I couldn’t find Tomatillos at our grocery store so I did a quick google on what to replace it with. It suggested either Verde green salsa or green peppers. I added three medium green peppers and a bottle of green salsa instead of water. Leftovers were even better! This is my next go to meal!

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4 years ago

Kim J

Hi Julia! I love your recipes! If we can’t find tomatillos, can we used something jarred?

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4 years ago

Julia

Thanks Kim! I think a jarred substitute would also work for this recipe. Check the ingredients label on the jar. If it comes with its own seasonings, you may want to cut down on the cumin and salt in this recipe. Hope that helps, and please let me know how it turns out for you.

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4 years ago

Rika

Turned out awesome! I did add a little liquid smoke, paprika and chili powder to add more spice and body. But overall, very good basis, we served it over rice!

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4 years ago

Gina

I’ve made it countless times since I came across it this fall. I switch back and forth from making it just as the recipe calls for and then sometimes adding in smoked paprika. All in all, I love this recipe.

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4 years ago

suzanne

I added a bit of smoked sausage and sour cream on my bowl of the deliciousness! Otherwise, I stuck close to the recipe and it is fantastic.

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4 years ago

Instant Pot Chili Verde - Savory Tooth (2025)
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