Instant Pot 5 Ingredient Beef Enchiladas Casserole—in the mood for enchiladas? Try this easy way to make beef enchiladas in your Instant Pot. This casserole tastes amazing with hardly any work.
The SLOW COOKER instructions for this recipe are in the notes section of the recipe card below.

Instant Pot 5 Ingredient Beef Enchiladas Casserole
With just 5 ingredients you’re probably wondering how flavorful this casserole could be. It’s surprisingly flavorful. The enchilada sauce, green chiles and the sharp cheddar give more than enough flavor to the ground beef and the corn tortillas.
You’re really going to love this dinner. It’s easy to put together with only 5 ingredients. It cooks quickly in your Instant Pot (about 30 minutes from start to finish). It tastes amazing. The leftovers are tasty too. I was surprised at how much I loved it!
What should I serve with Instant Pot 5 Ingredient Beef Enchiladas Casserole?
- Top the enchiladas with sour cream, chopped cilantro and a squeeze of lime juice.
- Shredded lettuce and diced tomatoes taste great served with this casserole
- If you’ve got some ripe avocados whip up a batch of guacamole
Can I use flour tortillas?
I haven’t tried flour tortillas for this recipe but from what I understand they would get gummy and the texture would be off. If you don’t like yellow corn tortillas perhaps you’d like white corn tortillas. My family loves them.
Can I cook directly in the Instant Pot?
For casseroles like this one using the pot-in-pot (PIP) method is the only way to get satisfactory results. PIP allows you to pressure cook desserts, casseroles and other foods that don’t contain much liquid without them burning to the bottom. Invest in a pan that fits inside your Instant Pot like this Fat Daddios Pan* and a trivet with handles* to lift the pan in and out of the Instant Pot.
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Instant Pot 5 Ingredient Beef Enchiladas Casserole
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Description
In the mood for enchiladas? Try this easy way to make beef enchiladas in your Instant Pot. This casserole tastes amazing with hardly any work.
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef or turkey
- 1 (15 oz) can enchilada sauce of your choice (I used hatch green chile enchilada sauce)
- 1 (4.5 oz) can green chiles
- 10 (6 inch) soft corn tortillas, cut or torn into 1-inch pieces
- 1 1/2 cups grated sharp or medium cheddar
Instructions
- Turn your Instant Pot to the saute setting. When the display says hot add in the ground beef and brown it. Drain off grease from meat and place the meat in a bowl. Clean out bottom of Instant Pot.
- Stir ½ cup of enchilada sauce and the can of green chiles in with the meat. Salt and pepper to taste.
- In a pan that fits inside your Instant Pot* pour about ¼ cup of the enchilada sauce on the bottom of the pan. Then layer half of the meat, tortillas, sauce and cheese. Repeat again ending with the cheese. Cover the pan with foil.
- Pour 1 ½ cups water in the bottom of the Instant Pot liner. Then place the pan on top of a trivet with handles*. Lower the pan into the Instant Pot liner.
- Cover the Instant Pot and secure the lid. Make sure valve is set to sealing. Set the manual/pressure cook button to 20 minutes.
- When time is up release pressure by moving the valve to venting. Remove the lid. Remove the pan from the Instant Pot. Scoop onto serving plates and top with a little sour cream and cilantro and a squeeze of lime, if desired.
Notes
Make this in the 6 or 8 quart Instant Pot.
Slow Cooker Instructions: In a pan on your stove brown the ground beef. Drain off the grease. Stir in ½ cup of enchilada sauce and the can of green chiles in with the meat. Salt and pepper to taste. Pour about ¼ cup of the enchilada sauce on the bottom of the slow cooker. Then layer half of the meat, tortillas, sauce and cheese. Repeat again ending with the cheese. Cover and cook on low for 3-4 hours.
- Category: Beef
- Method: Instant Pot

*Karen Petersen is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.
I haven’t tried this yet but know it will be great. I am just curious as to why you need to tear up the tortillas.
★★★★★
I tear them up so that you can scoop up the casserole. If the tortillas were left whole it would also work but you’d need to slice into it with a knife and then scoop.
Oh! That makes sense! thanks!
2nd time making this and it’s DAD APPROVED!!!
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Nice! I love when that happens. Thanks for the 5 stars!
I’m making this tonight, except I’m using leftover shredded pork that we used for pork carnitas. I don’t have any pans that will fit into my instant pot, so I think I will just use the slow cook setting since everything is cooked and it just needs to be heated and the cheese melt. Thanks for the idea!
Yum! Sounds like a great idea to me!
How does this not burn???? I’m trying this recipe this weekend.
Because you use the pot in pot method 😊
I used ground turkey and it came out great. It was very easy to make and great tasting.
★★★★★
Thanks!
This was so good and easy recipe. I did use tortillas chips and added leftover onion. My mind is full of ideas. Thank you.
Do you have a tamales casserole recipe ?
★★★★★
I do! https://www.365daysofcrockpot.com/instant-pot-tamale-casserole/
If I use flour tortillas would that change the cooking time?
I would use the same cooking time. Let me know how they turn out.
Can I use a springform pan inside the IP? I like the way it looks when it comes out.
Yes that would be great!
Making this for our dinner tonight. Will top it with a dollop of sour cream and a squeeze of lime juice. Looks totally yummy.💖🍈🥘 Thanks for posting and sharing with us.
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You’re welcome Colleen! I love the idea of lime juice!
I’m trying this with Costco roasted chicken.
Good idea! Try this recipe: https://www.365daysofcrockpot.com/instant-pot-chicken-enchiladas-casserole/
Years ago, I discovered it was so much easier to make enchilada casserole than to make enchiladas. I layer corn tortillas, chicken, diced green chilies, corn, black beans, grated cheese and enchilada sauce. Cover tightly with foil and bake at 350 for 45 minutes. I liked your instant pot version. I will modify my next attempt. I love pot in pot cooking…so glad I purchased the 8 quart ip and use the 3 quart liner. Easier clean up and fridge storage.
The casserole really is so much easier and tastes just as good!
We don’t care for chiles. If I added taco seasoning and the enchilada sauce would I need to add anything else?
I’m sure it will be fine without
Could tortilla chips be used instead of the corn tortillas?
Yes I think that would work okay!
Could you use the Instant Pot silicone lid instead of foil if I’m using the 3-quart ceramic pot?
Yes you can.
So, I made this tonight. Three changes: I added mild taco seasoning to the beef, I baked the tortillas I the oven sprayed with Pam before assembly, and I combined sharp cheddar, mild cheddar, and Monterey Jack cheeses. My family loved it!! We have now added to our fave list.
★★★★★
Love these ideas Penny!
Anyone know what I would bake this at and for how long? I don’t have a PIP yet but want to try this anyway.
I would bake at 350 for 30 minutes.
I, as well, do not have a pip method and now I’m afraid to not use that method. Imjust checked and my Verde enchilada sauce is 24 oz and I’m adjusting with 1 and a half pounds of gb. I don’t understand how that can’t be enough fluid?
It’s because it’s not a thin enough liquid. It would cause the burn error message.
I’ve made this twice now and it’s my new favorite. I do add some taco seasoning to the ground beef, however. It’s incredibly flavorful and so easy – the whole family loves it!
★★★★★
Good idea on the taco seasoning!
Do I have to increase the time if I double the recipe?
★★★★★
Nope! https://www.365daysofcrockpot.com/how-to-double-instant-pot-recipes/
I’m terrible for not telling people what a recipe is like. This was delicious! Will definitely make it again. Thank you.
★★★★★
Glad you liked it Linda!
Rotel tomatoes with green chillies?
I just used a can of hatch green chilies. But I bet rotel would be tasty.
Fabulous and I don’t even usually like enchiladas! My husband loved it too. Easy to make thanks to your photos with each step. Thank you!
PS I didn’t have any chiles but salsa verde worked just fine. I also used vegetarian crumbles so I didn’t even dirty my instant pot liner.
★★★★★
Sounds like your version was a winner!!
If I wanted to put it together ahead of time and cook it up later in the week how much time should I add to the 20 minutes?
Hi Dani, Are you talking about making it ahead and freezing it or refrigerating it? I am not sure how much time it would add but I don’t think it would be a good idea to make this ahead of time because the corn tortillas will not hold up and the texture will be mushy.
Hi! How deep is the cake pan you use? I see the one you linked, but in some shots the one you’re using looks a lot deeper. Maybe it’s just the angle, but I dont want to buy an insert pan and have the casserole not fit! Thank you for all the great recipes!
Hi Lauren I used a 3 quart Instant Pot liner inside my 6 quart pot. https://amzn.to/3djcQ73
Could you use tortilla chips instead of tortillas?
Probably! Try it and let me know how it goes!
Did you try this recipe with the tortilla chips? I bought the 50 lb. bag (haha, jk) of tortilla strips at Costco and I’m tired of them. I could use what I have left in a recipe such as this and be done with them! Thanks!
I love this recipe. But I always like Karen’s recipes. You might want to try the Instant Pot King Ranch Chicken recipe with your chips. Another good recipe that would use your chips would be Beef or Chicken Nachos.
★★★★★
I got the stuff to make this. I know it was mentioned not to use flour tortillas as they can get gummy. My husband does not like corn tortillas at all. Wi seeing if I can Toast the flour ones so they will stand up to the liquid. Any thoughts on that?
You could try it! Honestly I’m not sure how it will taste! Let me know!
Tried this today and super easy. Good for camping. I only had 10oz can of sauce and that defiantly impacted it but taste was good. My husband can’t eat tomatoes or a lot of pepper. The lime, sour cream and avocado I used as toppers were a hit. 15 oz can of enchilada sauce are not a norm in EastTN so I will use 2 cans next time.
★★★★
Glad it worked out even with the smaller can of enchilada sauce!
I was curious why there’s such a long cook time if the beef is already cooked and it seems things are just getting heated through. What am I missing?
When cooking pot in pot it takes longer (food isn’t directly on the heating element). Since it’s a casserole it takes a while to warm through.
This is my 1st time using the instapot, can I just cook the meat in a frying pan then use the instapot without a pot that fits inside? I am lucky to have an instapot and a crackpot but not a pot to fit inside! I bought the ingredients for this recipe, now I am scared to make it!
Hi K, it won’t be able to come to pressure and you’ll get the burn message. So sorry! I would use the slow cooker directions and cook it that way instead.
More about pot in pot: For casseroles like this one using the pot-in-pot (PIP) method is the only way to get satisfactory results. PIP allows you to pressure cook desserts, casseroles and other foods that don’t contain much liquid without them burning to the bottom.
Why use a separate pot instead of just the instapot?
For casseroles like this one using the pot-in-pot (PIP) method is the only way to get satisfactory results. PIP allows you to pressure cook desserts, casseroles and other foods that don’t contain much liquid without them burning to the bottom.
If I use my slow cooker could I double this recipe?
Sure! You could also double it if you have a 3 quart instant pot liner that you use at pot in pot for your 6 or 8 quart pot.
Getting some steam out from the sides of my instant pot. It’s set to seal. Normal or no?
No it is not normal. Release the pressure and remove the lid. Make sure the seal is in correctly. This should work. 😊
Yes, what Jamie said 😊
Can you use flour tortilla?
For my family, I’ll most likely add a package of taco seasoning to the meat. But this sure beats rolling enchiladas and baking them!
Definitely! And season to taste! The enchilada sauce I used gave lots of flavor.