The Juventus star, who underwent surgery in early May, came on in the 77th minute at the Estadio Elias Figueroa Brander in Chile's final friendly before their FIFA World Cup campaign begins.
Alexis Sanchez also came off the bench and set up both goals as substitutes Eduardo Vargas and Mauricio Pinilla netted late on after Jorge Sampaoli's men looked short of ideas until their introductions.
The win was Chile's 10th straight at home and extended Northern Ireland's winless run to eight matches.
Mauricio Isla, Marcelo Diaz and Gary Medel were the only players to keep their spots in Chile's starting XI which claimed a come-from-behind win over Egypt.
It was the latter who fired the game's first shot, testing second-choice Mexico goalkeeper Johnny Herrera from range.
Chile were the dominant side in terms of possession, pushing Michael O'Neill's men deep, but they lacked creativity.
Herrera was forced into a diving save to his right in the 21st minute, punching away Conor McLaughlin's header from a Shane Ferguson set-piece.
A frustrated Chile lost patience and started trying their luck from range as Jorge Valdivia, Fabian Orellana and Diaz had efforts, with only the latter needing Roy Carroll's intervention.
Yet as Chile struggled to test Carroll, Herrera was called into action again six minutes before half-time to save Oliver Norwood's 30-yard free-kick.
Valdivia's attempted cross was headed for the top corner, but a scrambling Carroll tipped the effort around his post.
Medel's header from a corner found Valdivia at the back post, but the Palmeiras midfielder could only nod his effort against the woodwork.
Vidal was introduced to a huge cheer and involved in the game's first goal in the 79th minute.
He found Sanchez with a short pass and the Barcelona attacker's delightful chipped ball was headed in by Vargas, who appeared to be in an offside position as he netted his third goal in two games.
Sanchez made it five assists in two games, turning his man before feeding through Pinilla to finish neatly through Carroll's legs just three minutes later.
The result will give Sampaoli's men confidence ahead of their clash against Australia on June 13.
