Cozy up with a bowl of the Best Homemade Chili with the perfect blend of warm spices, beans and fire roasted tomatoes. It's the quintessential comfort food your whole family will love.

Jump to:

• ❤️ Why You'll Love This Chili Recipe
• 🛒 Ingredients for Homemade Chili
• 🔪 How to Make the Best Chili from Scratch
• ☑️ Storage Instructions
• 🍴 Delicious Ways to Serve Homemade Chili
• 🔄 Substitutions and Additions
• What is the Secret to Making Good Chili?
• What's the Difference in Chili and Stew?
• Can I Use a Slow Cooker to Make this Chili?
• How do I Thin or Thicken Chili?
• 🍽️ More Stew, Soup and Chili Recipes

❤️ Why You'll Love This Chili Recipe

• Classic homemade chili loaded with robust flavor
• Fire-roasted tomatoes for a slight smokiness
• Blend of dark and light kidney beans
• Perfect blend of warm spices
• Cooked low and slow

If you're craving the warm, comforting, and classic flavors of homemade chili, this recipe has you covered. It's loaded with hearty kidney beans, perfectly seasoned ground beef, tender peppers and onions.

What makes this recipe so tasty is that it simmers low and slow with a blend of spices that adds wonderful, robust flavor. Whether you're hosting a game-day gathering or simply craving a cozy family meal, this homemade chili will become your favorite go-to dish.

Because this chili includes veggies and beef, it's a complete meal in a bowl. But chili is always better when you serve it with cornbread. For healthy versions, try this Gluten-free Cornbread or this Keto Cheddar Jalapeno Cornbread.

🛒 Ingredients for Homemade Chili

• Ground beef
• Beef broth
• Tomato sauce
• Dark red kidney beans
• Light red kidney beans
• Fire roasted diced tomatoes
• Jalapeño pepper
• Yellow onion
• Garlic
• Chili powder
• Olive oil
• Brown sugar
• Smoked paprika
• Worcestershire sauce
• Ground cumin
• Salt
• Ground black pepper

*Exact measurements are listed in the recipe card below.

🥣 Recommended Tools

• Dutch oven or large pot

🔪 How to Make the Best Chili from Scratch

Heat a Dutch oven or large pot to medium and add in the ground beef, half the salt, and pepper.

Brown the ground beef, then remove and set aside.

Add in the olive oil, onions, and the remaining salt and pepper.

Sauté for a few minutes, then add in the jalapeño pepper.  Sauté for another 1-2 minutes, then add in the garlic and continue cooking for another 15 seconds, making sure not to brown it or it will become bitter.

Add in the ground cumin, smoked paprika and chili powder and allow to toast for 10 seconds. Don't skip this step, it really helps activate the spices and gives the chili great flavor.

Add the Worcestershire sauce and brown sugar, then stir to dissolve. 

Pour in the beef broth, then add the ground beef back in and the remaining ingredients.

Stir until well combined, reduce the heat to low, cover with the lid slightly cracked, and simmer for 2 hours.

Serve with your favorite toppings.

☑️ Storage Instructions

Fridge: To store leftover chili in the fridge, allow it to cool to room temperature before transferring it to an airtight container. Chili can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days.

Freezer: Freezing chili is a great option. Let the chili cool completely, then portion it into airtight freezer-safe containers. Leave a little room for expansion as it freezes. Label the containers with the date you made it. Chili can be stored in the freezer for up to 2-3 months.

🍴 Delicious Ways to Serve Homemade Chili

• Stuffed bell peppers: Cut the tops off bell peppers, remove the seeds, and stuff them with your chili. Bake until the peppers are tender for a nutritious and flavorful meal.

• Tacos: Use your chili as a filling for these soft Homemade Tortillas. Load them up with fresh vegetables like lettuce, tomatoes, and avocado.

• Salad: Serve your chili over a bed of leafy greens. Topped with sour cream or a little of this Chipotle Ranch Dressing.

• Chili omelet: Make a chili omelet by folding a scoop of chili into your beaten eggs before cooking. It's a great way to start your day with a lot of protein.

• Baked potato: Top an Air Fryer Baked Sweet Potato or regular Baked Potato with your chili. Add some sour cream, cheese and a sprinkle of chives.

• Stuffed zucchini boats: Halve the zucchini, scoop out the center, and fill them with chili and top with cheese. Bake them until the zucchini is tender.

• Chili power bowl: Create a chili bowl by serving it over brown rice, quinoa, or cauliflower rice. Top with your favorite healthy toppings like avocado, plain Greek yogurt, and fresh cilantro.

🔄 Substitutions and Additions

• Beans: Experiment with different types of beans like black beans, pinto beans, cannellini beans,or even chickpeas for added texture.

• Meat: Instead of beef, you can use ground turkey, chicken, pork, or a combination of meats to create a unique flavor profile. You can also make it chunky Texas style with stew meat.

• Spice level: Adjust the heat to your preference by using either more or less jalapeño peppers. You can also add red pepper flakes, cayenne pepper or other fresh peppers like habaneros for extra heat.

• Vegetables: Consider adding vegetables like corn or diced carrots. They not only contribute to flavor but also provide extra color.

• Ground cinnamon: Turn your batch of chili into Cincinnati chili with a dash of ground cinnamon.

• Coffee: Add a splash of strong, black coffee. While it doesn't make your chili taste like coffee, it does add a unique depth of flavor.

If you like using your slow cooker for chili, try this slow cooker beef chilli recipe!

What is the Secret to Making Good Chili?

There are a couple of top secrets to making excellent chili. The first one is to use the right balance of seasoning. Some recipes have an overpowering chili taste that is just too strong. This recipe takes care of that for you by giving you the recommended measurements.

Allowing the spices to toast in the pot really helps bring out their flavors and provides the perfect base for your chili. This is a step you don't want to skip.

The other thing that really brings out the flavors is simmering it low and slow. This allows all the seasoned juices time to soak into the beans and meat.

What's the Difference in Chili and Stew?

Chili typically has a thicker consistency, with most of the focus on the robustly flavored chili sauce and meat. Chili stew, on the other hand, is often a hearty-style soup with added vegetables and sometimes rice or pasta.

Can I Use a Slow Cooker to Make this Chili?

You sure can. Just brown the meat and sauté the vegetables first, then transfer everything to the slow cooker and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

How do I Thin or Thicken Chili?

To thin your chili, add more broth, water, or tomato sauce. To thicken it, simmer it with the lid off to allow excess moisture to evaporate.

🍽️ More Stew, Soup and Chili Recipes

• Chili with Butternut Squash
• White Chicken Chili
• Jalapeño Popper Chicken Soup
• Cream of Asparagus Soup
• Roasted Beetroot and Butterbean Soup
• Italian Wedding Soup
• Cream of Wild Mushroom Soup
• Thai Coconut Curry Chicken Soup