This crockpot chili recipe is cozy, hands-off comfort with bold, hearty flavor. It slow-cooks ground beef, tomatoes, and beans in a rich, seasoned broth until everything is tender and full of flavor.
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Holly’s Recipe Highlights
- Flavor: This hearty meal has a balanced flavor with a rich tomato base, and all the cozy chili goodness you expect.
- Recommended Tools: Just a 6-quart slow cooker and a frying pan!
- Prep Note: Great for big gatherings or planned leftovers, this recipe makes a big batch.
- Serving Suggestions: Serve this with cornbread to soak up every last spoonful.
Ingredients
- Meat: Ground beef is ideal for this recipe; use lean ground beef (80/20) with just a bit of fat for flavor. Ground turkey or chicken work well, too.
- Veggies: This recipe keeps the veggies simple. Onion and bell pepper add flavor; try adding in extra vegetables like mushrooms, corn, or shredded zucchini.
- Beans: I love kidney beans as they hold up well in the crock pot. You can replace kidney beans with black beans, pinto beans, garbanzo beans, or white beans. Rinse canned beans in cold water before using.
- Sauce: Canned tomatoes and tomato sauce give this recipe just the right texture and consistency. A little bit of beer is one of my secret ingredients. It doesn’t make the chili taste like beer, but adds rich, savory flavor. The alcohol cooks off as it simmers, but you can easily swap in beef broth or an alcohol-free beer.
- Seasoning: This chili is well seasoned with chili powder, cumin, and smoked paprika for a deep, savory flavor. The seasoning mix is doubled, and some is added to the meat before cooking. Spice it up a bit with jalapenos, extra chili powder, or a pinch of cayenne pepper.
How to Make Crock Pot Chili
- Brown seasoned beef with onions and garlic in a skillet (full recipe below).
- Drain excess grease, add beer, and simmer until almost evaporated.
- Place cooked beef and all remaining ingredients in a slow cooker and cook.
Add your favorite toppings, like shredded cheddar cheese, crushed tortilla chips, avocado, sour cream, fresh cilantro, or green onion, and serve.
Storing Leftovers
Keep leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Freeze portions in zippered bags with the date labeled on them for up to 4 months.
Reheat on the stove top or in the microwave. To stretch leftovers even further, spoon them over a baked potato or hot dog to make chili dogs.
More Chili Favorites
Did you make this Crockpot Chili? Be sure to leave a rating and comment below!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 pounds lean ground beef *see note
- 2 medium yellow onions diced, ½-inch
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 12 ounces light beer about 1 can or bottle
- 1 (28 ounce) can canned whole tomatoes with juice
- 1 (14 ounces) can canned diced tomatoes with juice
- 1 medium green bell pepper diced, optional
- 14 ounces tomato sauce
- 2 (15 ounce each) cans canned red kidney beans drained and rinsed
Seasoning Mixture
- 4 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 2 teaspoons dried parsley
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
Instructions
- Combine half the seasoning mixture with ground beef and mix until well combined.
- Brown ground beef*, onions, and garlic until no pink remains. Drain any fat. Add beer and simmer until most of the liquid has evaporated.
- Combine beef mixture and tomatoes, green bell pepper, tomato sauce, and kidney beans in the slow cooker. Add the remaining seasoning. If desired, slightly mash the whole tomatoes.
- Cook on high for 4 hours or low 7-8 hours. Once cooked, remove the lid and let cool slightly before serving.
Video
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Beef, Dinner, Main Course, Slow Cooker
Cuisine American, Tex Mex© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Hi! If I am going to double this recipe, how large of a crockpot would you recommend? Thanks!
This recipe is made in a 6qt slow cooker. I am not sure how big of a crockpot a double recipe would need, but you will want to make sure it doesn’t fill more than ⅔ of the way up.
We love this recipe. Love it with cornbread and cheese. Don’t forget the cheese!
I add a bit of cocoa powder and a can of corn to stretch even farther
Great recipe made just as with one exception
Touch of habanera pepper for the heat!
Made this recipe for Super bowl. I had leftover trip tip so used it instead of hamburger. and tried the chili beans as noted rather than kidney beans. came out perfect an will be a big hit today!
I don’t understand. There is an asterisk next to 3 lbs of beef. Then, next to the asterisk it states “*This recipe can be made with 2lbs of ground beef if desired and the beans can be doubled. ”
So, is 3 lbs of beef in the original recipe supposed to be one 1 lb? Why would you double the beans if you are using a pound less meat? Please clarify. Thank you.
Hi Kathy, we use 3 lbs of beef for this recipe. If you would prefer to reduce the ground beef to 2 lbs we recommend doubling the beans so it is still as hearty and filling.
This chili was delicious! I did not add any beans to it because my husband does not like them. I did add two finely diced jalapeño’s, but whoa, that was a lot of heat. The next time I make this I will just use one jalapeño. This is by far the best chili recipe I’ve ever come across. Thank you, Holly!
Yum Great Recipe!
This has a very good flavor and if very easy to make. Personally, I prefer a little more heat. But I will be making this again.
I made this chili yesterday and used your homemade chili powder. Both recipes were great. I hate the bitterness of store brand chili powders. Both recipes had a smooth spicey taste. FYI the chili is better today than yesterday. Made a cake of cornbread and it was a kick rear supper here in the south. Everyone has their opinion on chili, bottom line as always eat what you like. My family loved it and it goes in the book to be cooked again.
I realy enjoy your recipes.
This is a stupid question but it says 10 servings but not the amount of the servings, do I have to measure it out and divide by 10.
Thank you
You can if you prefer. Or a serving is approximately 1½ cups.
Recipe looks very tasty & I want to make it. I didn’t see what size the crock pot needs to be. Thanks.
We make this recipe in a 6QT slow cooker.
Hi. I am about to make your recipe for Crock Pot Chili. Do you recommend large diced or petite diced tomatoes. Thanks!
Either will work in this recipe, I most often use the larger chunks because I like a little more texture.
i am only serving 4 people
If only serving 4 people, this makes great leftovers and freezes very well!
OMG!!! This chili came out great!!! My family loved this chili. Thanks :)
why the need for a separate crock pot recipe instead of the stovetop? what do you think if I made your stove top one in the crock pot?
The difference between the two is due to the amount of evaporation. I have only tried this recipes as written Kirsten.
Loved this recipe it turned out great. I did use diced Rotel tomatoes with Chile’s instead of plain diced tomatoes.
Good chili! I just started cooking and I used this recipe and won 2nd place in a chili contest! Also it’s good for meal prep if you are brave enough to eat beans everyday.
i really do not like chili, i went back twice for more, sooo good. tyvm for this recipe. yummy!!