This is the best Crockpot Chili recipe! It’s quick and easy to prep, then simmers in your slow cooker all day. This is amazing to serve on gameday or take it with you when you go tailgating!
Chili is one of my favorite dinners to make during the fall and winter months (right alongside crockpot meatballs, oven fried chicken and meatloaf – it’s comfort food time for sure!).
I like my slow cooker chili thick, creamy and dreamy – I just stir a can of mashed kidney beans into the cooked chili and it turns out absolutely amazing!
Ingredients you’ll need
Here is a visual overview of the ingredients in the recipe. Scroll down to the recipe at the bottom for quantities.
Ingredient notes
- Beef: I used a mix of lean and extra-lean ground beef. I’m not a big fan of very oily chili, but I do like a little bit of fat in there. This mix is my favorite, but feel free to use what your family likes best!
- Beans: It’s not crucial to add the blended kidney beans, but it does make for a thicker and very creamy chili without adding any cream or cheese at all – so I’m a huge fan of that!
- Tomatoes: Feel free to use fire roasted for more flavor, or diced tomatoes with mild green chiles added.
- Peppers: We enjoy a green pepper in our chili, but I know it’s not everyone’s favorite. Feel free to substitute a different color!
- Corn: There is no chili without corn in my house, but I know it’s not to everyone’s taste. Feel free to just skip it if you don’t want any corn in your chili!
- Spices: If you don’t have the individual spices, feel free to use a packet of chili seasoning instead.
How to make chili in the crock pot
1. Start by browning the ground beef in a little olive oil in a large skillet. Season the beef with salt and pepper as it cooks, then transfer to your slow cooker. Then cook the onion and garlic in the same skillet (no need to wipe it!) until softened.
2. Next, stir the tomato paste and spices into the onion mixture and cook for 30 seconds over medium heat. Stir in the beef broth, scraping any browned bits off the bottom of the pan.
You can see how the beef broth and tomato paste thicken into a sauce in the photo above, that’s exactly what you want to happen!
3. Transfer the onion mixture to the slow cooker, then add the chili beans, diced pepper and canned diced tomatoes.
Stir well, cover with the lid and slow cook!
4. Once the cooking time is up, open the lid and stir well. Add the mashed kidney beans and corn.
Cover with the lid again and cook on high heat for another 15 minutes before serving!
Recipe tips
Browning beef and onions:
Do not skip browning the beef and sautéing the onion with the tomato paste, spices and broth. This adds so much extra flavor to the dish and only takes 10 minutes of your time. It’s worth it!
Slow cooker size:
A 4-6 quart slow cooker will do a great job for this recipe. A smaller one will have difficulty fitting all of the ingredients, a larger one may lead to food burning on the sides.
Doubling the recipe:
This recipe can easily be doubled to feed a crowd, simply adjust the size of your slow cooker accordingly.
Dutch oven instructions:
If you don’t have the time to wait for 4-8 hours, or you don’t own a slow cooker, you can also make this in a Dutch oven: Simply combine all ingredients in a large Dutch oven and simmer covered over low to medium-low heat for an hour or two.
Instant pot?
I have a wonderful recipe for instant pot chili as well!
Chili topping ideas
We love to add cilantro, sour cream (or Greek Yogurt!) and crushed tortilla chips to our chili. Avocado, shredded cheese and sliced Jalapeño are a few other favorites!
More slow cooker comfort food
Healthy Slow Cooker Chili
Recipe details
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 ½ pounds lean ground beef OR extra-lean, OR a mix of both
- salt & pepper to taste
- 1 yellow onion diced (about 1 cup)
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon chili powder or more to taste
- 1 teaspoon ground paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ cup beef broth
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 1 green bell pepper diced
- 1 (14.5 oz) can chili beans
- 1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes
- 1 (14.5 oz) can kidney beans mashed
- ½ cup sweet corn
- all your favorite chili toppings
Instructions
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the oil and brown the ground beef. Transfer to a 4-6 quart slow cooker.
- Add onions and garlic to skillet and sauté over medium heat until softened, about 3-4 minutes. Stir in tomato paste and all spices and cook for another 30 seconds, then stir in beef broth, scraping any browned bits off the bottom of the pan. Transfer to slow cooker.
- Add diced peppers, chili beans and canned diced tomatoes to slow cooker. Stir well, then cover with the lid and cook on LOW for 8 hours.
- 15 minutes before the cooking time is over, open the lid and stir well. Stir in the mashed beans and the sweet corn (if using). Check for seasoning, then coveer with the lid again and finish cooking on HIGH heat for 15 minutes.
- Serve with all your favorite chili toppings!
Notes
Ingredient notes
- Beef: I used a mix of lean and extra-lean ground beef. I’m not a big fan of very oily chili, but I do like a little bit of fat in there. This mix is my favorite, but feel free to use what your family likes best!
- Beans: It’s not crucial to add the blended kidney beans, but it does make for a thicker and very creamy chili without adding any cream or cheese at all – so I’m a huge fan of that!
- Tomatoes: Feel free to use fire roasted for more flavor, or diced tomatoes with mild green chiles added.
- Peppers: We enjoy a green pepper in our chili, but I know it’s not everyone’s favorite. Feel free to substitute a different color!
- Corn: There is no chili without corn in my house, but I know it’s not to everyone’s taste. Feel free to just skip it if you don’t want any corn in your chili!
- Spices: If you don’t have the individual spices, feel free to use a packet of chili seasoning instead. And adjust the amount of chili powder to your liking!
Recipe tips
Browning beef and onions: Do not skip browning the beef and sautéing the onion with the tomato paste, spices and broth. This adds so much extra flavor to the dish and only takes 10 minutes of your time. It’s worth it! Slow cooker size: A 4-6 quart slow cooker will do a great job for this recipe. A smaller one will have difficulty fitting all of the ingredients, a larger one may lead to food burning on the sides. Doubling the recipe: This recipe can easily be doubled to feed a crowd, simply adjust the size of your slow cooker accordingly. Dutch oven instructions: If you don’t have the time to wait for 4-8 hours, or you don’t own a slow cooker, you can also make this in a Dutch oven: Simply combine all ingredients in a large Dutch oven and simmer covered over low to medium-low heat for an hour or two. Instant pot? I have a wonderful recipe for instant pot chili as well!Nutrition
More recipe information
PS If you try this recipe, please leave a review in the comment section – I appreciate your feedback! Follow along on Pinterest, Facebook or Instagram. Sign up for my email list, too!
Recipe first published in 2014 and first updated in 2017. Updated with new photos, video and text on 02/24/2021.
Sydney says
Just came back to this recipe with the arrival of cold weather in Nebraska. My husband and I have been enjoying this since we discovered it a few years ago. I am curious if any updates were made to the recipe in the last year or so. I thought it called for stew meat and blending the pinto beans which were unique little twists we enjoyed. Thank you!
Nora says
Sydney, yes, I did make a few changes to the recipe based on the fact that pretty much nobody used to look at this recipe. You must have been one of the only ones 😉 I tracked down the original recipe for you, here it is:
Christian Delaney says
I was skeptical when I was preparing the chilli based on the ingredients. Got home from work to try it and was blown away. People are going to think I know what Im doing in the kitchen. Im excited to try more of your recipes.
Nora says
It’s always good when a recipe surprises you in a positive way 😉 I’m glad you enjoyed the chili, Christian, and thank you so much for your feedback. I hope you’ll have fun cooking more recipes!
Kristina says
Hi! Do you know if this can be made in a instapot instead of a slow cooker?
Nora says
Hi Kristina, yes you can. Please use 1 cup of water instead of 1/2 cup and make sure you stir everything very well before closing the instant pot. Cook on high pressure for 30-45 minutes. After 10 minutes of natural pressure release, manually release any remaining pressure and open the lid. Stir in the corn and the blended beans and simmer on the sauté setting, stirring often, until thickened to your liking. Hope that helps!
PATTY JACKSON says
I TRIED THIS RECIPE YESTERDAY AND AM NOW ENJOYING IT FOR THE 2ND NIGHT IN A ROW! IT IS GREAT, BUT I DO WANT TO WARN OTHER TEXANS THIS IS NOT EXACTLY WHAT WE WOULD CALL CHILI. I INVITE YOU TO COME DOWN TO TEXAS FOR A VISIT SOMETIME AND BRING AN EXTRA SUITCASE WHICH YOU CAN FILL WITH GREEN AND RED SALSA, CHILI PEPPERS, FLOUR AND CORN TORTILLAS. 🙂
Nora says
Haha your comment made me smile, Patty! Glad you enjoyed the chili despite the lack of texan flavors. Honestly, I’ve only ever been to Texas once, and that was for a 3 hour layover in Dallas. Hopefully I’ll get to see more of your beautiful state sometime, at least I thoroughly enjoyed the view while flying over it 😉
Barbara Karr says
Itś January in Wisconsin! This Chili recipe was made for here. Will be having this week. A bowl of Chili like this in the crockpot gives me time to make homemade dinner rolls. This will chase away those winter blues. Barb.
Nora says
We’ve been having freezing temperatures, too – nothing better than a pot of warming chili! What’s your favorite dinner roll recipe?
Kristine says
This chili was delicious! I’ve been using my slow cooker so much lately – it’s so nice to have dinner ready and waiting for you! This was a great new recipe to try, saved and will be making again.
Jess says
Yummy!
Helen says
Came out like the pictures, which made me very proud, lol!! We added hot sauce in the end to kick it up a notch, otherwise very delish.
Nora says
My husband always adds hot sauce to chili when I cook it 😂 glad you liked it!
Marcie says
left out corn, used only green pepper, added a lot more chili lol came out great!
Nora says
I’m so glad, Marcie!
Natalie says
We LOVE chili nd this came out amazing. Definitely adding to the regular recipe rotation.
Nora says
Ha, yes! A slow-cooking, chili-eating Switzerland would be amazing, haha! Thanks Natalie!
Christina says
came out great, made twice this month already!
Nora says
Thank you Christina!
Alessandra says
My first time making chili in the slow cooker, and it came out great! I used half ground turkey and half ground beef to make it a little lighter. Everyone loved it!
Nora says
Thank you SO much Alessandra! You’re too sweet 🙂
Gayle says
This chili was fantastic, Nora! We enjoyed it so much.
Nora says
Thank you so much Gayle!
Shinee says
Chili just might be one of the best comfort foods during cold winter days. This was delicious!
Nora says
It really is an amazing food to eat when it’s cold outside! Thanks for stopping by Shinee!