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Crockpot Chili is packed with beefy flavor, tons of beans, it’s perfectly seasoned, and has just the right amount of heat. Throw it all in your slow cooker in the morning and by dinnertime you’ve got a delicious, hearty meal.
Top your crockpot chili with sour cream, cheese, and chips for the ultimate cozy dinner that everyone can agree on! Serve with some Garlic Cheese Toast, Homemade Biscuits, or Sour Cream Cornbread Muffins.
If there’s one meal that my family could eat everyday, it’s this – the best crockpot chili recipe ever! My son has been known to eat leftover chili for breakfast, he loves it that much. I have several varieties on rotation, like my White Chicken Chili, Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Chili, and my mom’s classic Chili Mac.
This easy crockpot chili recipe is super simple to make, too. Cook some ground beef and add it to your slow cooker, then add tomatoes, beans, and some spices. Seriously this easy slow cooker chili recipe is really that simple!
Whip up a batch for game day, or as a simple weeknight meal. Serve it with your favorite toppings and a side of Cheddar Jalapeno Cornbread. You could also use it for my famous 3 ingredient Chili Cheese Dip or serve it on a chili cheese dog!
Crockpot Chili Ingredients
- Ground beef – For homemade chili, I like to use an 85/15 ratio. It’s not as fatty, but has a good amount of flavor. Feel free to use ground turkey instead.
- Onion and garlic – both add a ton of flavor to the meat. I use them almost every time I make a ground beef recipe. Yellow onion or red onion works.
- Spices – 3 tablespoons chili powder, and a teaspoon each of cumin and paprika. I know, it sounds like a lot of chili powder. I’ve tested it with less and it really needs this much chili seasoning to give it that signature chili flavor.
- Fire roasted tomatoes – Any can of diced tomatoes will work, but I love the extra roasted flavor. If you don’t like tomatoes in your chili, you could pulse these in a blender or food processor.
- Tomato sauce – adds more tomato flavor without adding bulk.
- Beef stock – Just enough so as not to thin the chili, but adds a deep, rich meaty flavor and also helps cut the acidity of the tomatoes a bit.
- Beans – Chili beans, black beans, and kidney beans. Really, any combination of beans can be used as long as you have about 45 ounces, or 4-5 cups of cooked beans. Most you need to drain, except for the chili beans that are canned with a chili sauce.
- Optional – salt and pepper to taste if desired, hot sauce, or cayenne pepper for more heat.
Easy 2-Step Process
- Brown the meat. Brown the ground beef with onions and garlic in a large skillet over medium-high heat. It flavors the meat and will make your chili so much richer. You don’t even have to cook it all the way through, but as it browns, the meat releases fats and juices that create that beefy flavor. If you don’t have time or just don’t want to dirty another dish, you can omit this step or get a crockpot that browns, like this one.
- Add all of the ingredients to your slow cooker. This is where you can get creative if you want. I add beef broth, tomato sauce, diced fire roasted tomatoes, tomato sauce, and three kinds of beans. Also chili powder, cumin, and paprika. For more heat you can add a pinch of cayenne or sometimes I add a can of diced green chilis. Stir the beef mixture together, cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 4-5 hours.
The Best Chili Toppings
If you ask my son, he will say sour cream is the must-have chili topping, while my daughter will say it’s the cheese. For me, I have to have chips to add a little crunch. Here are a few of our favorite ways to top a bowl of easy chili:
- Shredded sharp cheddar cheese (fresh off the block melts best).
- Sour cream – just a dollop will do. This also helps to tone down the heat if you have someone who prefers a less spicy flavor.
- Onions – My dad always loved diced red onion on his chili, but I’m partial to milder green onions. Plus they add some nice color.
- Chips – Some prefer tortilla chips but I love Fritos corn chips in my bowl.
- Avocado will add some creaminess and texture, and also helps to tame the heat without the added fat of sour cream.
- Cilantro
Slow Cooker Chili with No Beans
Some people just aren’t a fan of beans, my husband included. While he’s forced to have to pick them out, you don’t have to include them. For a beef chili, omit the beans and add an extra pound of ground beef or a 1-2 pound chuck roast, cut into chunks. Just shred the meat when the chili is done cooking.
FAQs
Chili is one of my favorite easy recipes. Just cook up some ground beef, throw the ingredients together in a pot and simmer. The longer you let it simmer, the better the flavor which is why I have started making chili in my crockpot. As it cooks low and slow all day, the meat and the beans get super tender and the flavors are more intense and robust. Cooking chili in a slow cooker is the best way to cook chili!
Strictly speaking, you don’t have to cook ground beef before putting it in a crockpot. However, browning the meat first adds an incredible layer of flavor so I don’t recommend skipping that step unless you’re really in a rush.
Recipe Variations
- Add more veggies, like a green bell pepper or corn to the ground beef and saute with the onions and garlic.
- Add another depth of flavor with a tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce.
- Instead of beef broth, add a bottle of beer to your chili. The alcohol will cook down so it’s fine for kids to eat and it will add a whole other kind of robust flavor profile.
- Use a 28-ounce can of crushed tomatoes in place of the diced tomatoes and tomato sauce.
- Add a little sweetness to your chili by adding 2 cups of corn kernels (canned/drained, frozen, or even fresh).
Expert Tips
- Feel free to use any type of beans that you like. White beans will work, so will pinto beans. If you omit the chili beans, note that you may want to add more chili powder to balance the flavor.
- This recipe can be cooked on the stovetop instead. Cook the beef and onions, then add the remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil and simmer for 45-60 minutes.
- Storage: Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 4-5 days and reheat in the microwave. Store in the freezer for up to 6 months, thaw and reheat in the microwave, on the stovetop, or even in the crockpot.
- Make Ahead: You can cook the ground beef, onions, and garlic, then add everything to the slow cooker the night before. Cover and pop it into the fridge overnight, then set it in the slow cooker unit and set to your desired heat. Add 30 minutes of cooking time.
More Slow Cooker Recipes To Love
- Slow Cooker Mississippi Pot Roast
- Crockpot Orange Chicken
- Crockpot Ribs (Slow Cooker Baby Back Ribs)
- Perfect Slow Cooker Pot Roast
- Slow Cooker Chicken Thighs
Slow Cooker Chili
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground beef 85/15 lean
- 1 medium onion diced
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 3 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 15 ounce can fire roasted tomatoes undrained
- 15 ounce can tomato sauce
- 1 cup beef stock or water
- 15 ounce can black beans drained and rinsed
- 15 ounce cans chili beans undrained
- 15 ounce can kidney beans drained and rinsed
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- Hot sauce optional, to taste
Instructions
- Cook ground beef with diced onion and minced garlic in a large skillet over medium heat until meat is no longer pink. Drain any excess grease.
- Add cooked ground beef to the bottom of a 6-quart slow cooker. Stir in remaining ingredients.
- Cover and cook for 6-8 hours on low or 4-5 hours on high.
- Taste and add salt and pepper or hot sauce as desired.
- Divide into bowls and garnish with desired toppings, like sour cream, sliced green onions, and corn chips.
Notes
- Feel free to use any type of beans that you like. White beans will work, so will pinto beans. If you omit the chili beans, note that you may want to add more chili powder to balance the flavor.Â
- Use a 28-ounce can of crushed tomatoes in place of the diced tomatoes and tomato sauce.Â
- This recipe can be cooked on the stovetop instead. Cook the beef and onions, then add the remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil and simmer for 60-90 minutes.Â
- Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 4-5 days or freeze for up to 6 months. Reheat on the stovetop, in the microwave, or right in the slow cooker.Â
I love this chili recipe! I use chili beans & black beans because I love them 🤪
My house smells so good while this is cooking!
I have made other recipes of yours & everything I’ve tried has been delicious!! Thank you!!
You are so welcome Jennifer! Awesome feedback, thanks for stopping by.
I want to start by saying I followed this recipe to a T. It was disgusting. The garlic way over powered everything just the smell was terrible but the taste was so bad I could barely eat it. I went back to the store to double the recipe without the garlic hoping that will fix it and I can eat it tomorrow. First time making chili for myself was very disappointing as me and my girlfriend both agree it would’ve been really good without the garlic. Idk how anyone could eat/like this.
You do realize that you can critique a recipe with your own personal opinion (because that’s what it is, an opinion based on your own personal taste) without being rude about it, right? Search “chili recipe” and the first several (because those are the ones I looked at) have at least 3 cloves of garlic. If you don’t like it, you can say just that – we didn’t like it. To each their own.
This chili recipe was excellent. My go to for now on. Thanks
You are so welcome Michelle! Thanks for stopping by.
K.