Instant Pot Southwestern Stew with Pork, Bacon, Peppers, and Sweet Potatoes

Here’s a delicious Southwestern Pork Stew made in the Instant Pot! We added sweet potatoes for texture and flavor, but if you prefer a low-carb version just double the peppers and skip the sweet potatoes! Use the Diet-Type Index to find more recipes like this one.

Click to PIN Instant Pot Southwestern Stew with Pork, Bacon, Peppers, and Sweet Potatoes!

Have you joined the Instant Pot craze yet? At my house we’ve been having fun experimenting with at least one Instant Pot recipe nearly every time I cook something with Jake and Kara, and although I’m far from an expert, I’m getting comfortable enough with the Instant Pot to start experimenting. So this Instant Pot Southwestern Stew with Pork, Bacon, Peppers, and Sweet Potatoes is one of those recipes where we added a little of this and a little of that until we had one we thought was a winner!

It did take us two tries to come up with this combination, (which uses one of those inexpensive pork sirloin tip roasts from Costco for the pork), and we loved it with some cheese and sour cream on top when we tested the recipe, but if you skip that this tasty recipe can be Paleo. And if you’d like a low-carb version of this Instant Pot pork stew, just skip the sweet potatoes and add another red pepper. The sweet potatoes do add some thickening to the stew, so you might need to simmer in the Instant Pot a bit to reduce if you go for the low-carb option.

And back to the Instant Pot; I knew that Instant Pots were really a thing when my brother Dave called to ask me an Instant Pot question, and he raved about how he had made a roast in the Instant Pot and how good it was. We’re getting a good collection of Instant Pot Recipes on Kalyn’s Kitchen, and you can also find some great Instant Pot recipes from other blogs at the Instant Pot Index Page on my Slow Cooker or Pressure Cooker site. My most popular Instant Pot recipe to date is definitely this Instant Pot Low-Carb Loaded Cauliflower Soup, so if you happen to find an Instant Pot under the Christmas tree, be sure to try that one! And if you like pork and Southwestern flavors, be sure to try this Instant Pot Southwestern Pork Stew as well!

Cook bacon strips it in the instant pot on SAUTE, high heat. Then remove bacon with a slotted spoon. Remove some of the bacon fat if needed, then cook the pork pieces until they’re nicely browned. You might need to do this in two batches to be sure the pork browns well, or cook the pork in a big pan on the stove if you prefer. While pork browns, chop the onion and the Poblano chili pepper.

Remove the browned pork and add the onions and chopped Poblano to the Instant Pot with a little more bacon fat or olive oil if needed and cook 2-3 minutes; then add the ground cumin and Mexican oregano and cook 1-2 minutes more. Add the browned pork, bacon, canned green chiles, and chicken stock to the Instant Pot, lock the lid, and set to HIGH PRESSURE for 20 minutes, using NATURAL RELEASE to release the pressure. While the pork cooks, chop the sweet potatoes and red pepper (or two red peppers if you’re making the low-carb version). Add those to the Instant Pot after the pressure has released.

Lock the lid on the Instant Pot again and set to HIGH PRESSURE, 8 minutes. When the time is up use NATURAL RELEASE for 5 minutes, then release the rest of the pressure quickly, being careful to stay away from the steam. If you didn’t add the sweet potatoes you may want to simmer the stew in the Instant Pot for a few minutes to thicken it. Then add the lime juice, chopped cilantro, and salt and fresh ground pepper to taste.

Serve hot, with grated cheese and sour cream to add at the table if desired.

More Pork in the Instant Pot:

Instant Pot (or Slow Cooker) Low-Carb Greek Pork Tacos ~ Kalyn’s Kitchen
Pressure Cooker Kalua Pork ~ Pressure Cooking Today
Instant Pot (or Slow Cooker) Low-Carb Green Chile Pork Taco Bowl ~ Kalyn’s Kitchen
Sweet and Tangy Pulled Pork (Instant Pot or Slow Cooker) ~ Barefeet in the Kitchen
Low-Carb Slow Cooker (or Pressure Cooker) Pork Roast with Spicy Peanut Sauce ~ Kalyn’s Kitchen
Pork Carnitas (Instant Pot or Slow Cooker) ~ Your HomeBased Mom

Weekend Food Prep:

This recipe has been added to a new category called Weekend Food Prep  to help you find recipes you can prep or cook on the weekend and eat during the week!

Print Recipe

Instant Pot Southwestern Stew with Pork, Bacon, Peppers, and Sweet Potatoes

Yield: 6-8 servings

Total Time: 38 minutes, plus time to come to pressure and release pressure

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 28 minutes

Ingredients:

• 4 slices thick-cut bacon, cut crosswise into short strips
• 2 lb. Pork Sirloin Tip Roast, trimmed and cut into cubes 1 – 1 1/2 inch square
• 2 tsp olive oil (if needed)
• 1 onion, chopped small
• 1 large Poblano chile, chopped small (sometimes called Pasilla chiles in U.S. grocery stores)
• 1 T ground cumin
• 1 tsp. oregano, preferably Mexican oregano
• 1 can (4 oz.) diced green chiles with juice
• 3 cups chicken stock or canned chicken broth
• 2 medium-sized sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4 inch cubes
• 1 large red bell pepper, cut into 3/4 inch pieces
• 1 T lime juice, or more (I use my fresh-frozen lime juice)
• 3 T finely chopped cilantro (optional)
• salt and fresh-ground black pepper to taste
• grated Mexican blend cheese and sour cream for serving (optional)

Directions:

1. Cut bacon into short strips, then cook in the Instant Pot using SAUTE and HIGH HEAT until the bacon is crisp. Remove bacon to paper towels with a slotted spoon. (If there seems like too much bacon fat, remove some with a spoon.)
2. While bacon cooks, trim fat from the pork roast and cut in cubes 1 inch to 1 1/2 inch square. Brown the pork cubes in the Instant Pot, letting them getting nicely browned. You might need to do this in two batches so the Instant Pot isn’t too crowded, or brown the pork in some olive oil or bacon fat in a pan on the stove if you prefer. Remove pork to a plate.
3. While pork browns, chop the onion and the Poblano (or Pasilla) chile into very small dice. When pork is done, add the chopped onions and chiles to the Instant Pot (adding a little more olive oil or bacon fat if needed), reduce heat to MEDIUM and cook 2-3 minutes. Then add the ground cumin and oregano and cook 1-2 minutes more.
4. Put the browned pork back into the Instant Pot with the crisp bacon, canned green chiles, and chicken stock. Lock lid on the Instant Pot and cook at HIGH PRESSURE for 20 minutes; then use NATURAL RELEASE to release the pressure.
5. While the stew cooks, peel the sweet potatoes and chop into 3/4 inch pieces. Cut stem out and remove seeds from the red bell pepper and chop into 3/4 inch pieces.
6. When pressure has released, add the chopped sweet potatoes and red bell pepper to the Instant Pot, lock lid, and cook on HIGH PRESSURE for 8 minutes. Use NATURAL RELEASE for 5 minutes, then QUICK RELEASE to release the rest of the pressure.
7. Check to see if you want to simmer to thicken the stew, especially if you didn’t use the sweet potatoes. If so, simmer on SAUTE, low heat until some of the liquid has evaporated and the stew has thickened to your liking.
8. Stir in the lime juice and chopped cilantro (if using) and season the stew with salt and fresh-ground black pepper.
9. Serve hot, with grated Mexican blend cheese and sour cream to add at the table if desired.

Notes:

I used a 6 Quart Instant Pot for this recipe.

Recipe created by Kalyn, with help from Jake and Kara.

All images and text ©Kalyn Denny for Kalyn's Kitchen.

Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
This is a great dish for any low-glycemic diet, including Phase 2 or 3 of the South Beach Diet. To make this suitable for a traditional low-carb diet plan, just skip the sweet potatoes and replace with another chopped red bell pepper.

Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use the Diet Type Index to find recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You can also Follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.

Nutritional Information?
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