This homemade chili recipe is a contest winner, total crowd pleaser and the best chili you’ll find. It is packed with flavor, texture and color. Make it for your next gathering, large or small, and you will get rave reviews. Add jalapenos for extra spice or go mild!
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You have just found THE BEST pot of chili your lips will ever taste (that is a massive claim, I know, but you will soon agree!) and you are about to have either a very happy tummy, a very happy family, very happy guests or all of the above.
My husband and I have been making this chili recipe for years. Together we have tweaked it many many times and it is absolute comfort food perfection.
We make this recipe frequently to enjoy on cold, snowy days and we also make it for larger gatherings like Super Bowl parties or holiday feasts. We’ve never thrown a single morsel of it away because it always gets gobbled down in its entirety.
It is the most perfect consistency and the flavor is beyond explanation (gotta taste for yourself!). This is a GREAT quick and easy recipe!
HOW TO MAKE THE BEST HOMEMADE CHILI RECIPE
STEP 1
In a large pot or Dutch oven, cook ground beef over medium-high heat until it is no longer pink. Transfer the meat to a bowl. Drain the excess grease from the skillet, but do not clean it out.
STEP 2
Add the olive oil to the skillet and reduce heat to medium. Add the chopped onions and bell pepper, garlic, parsley and jalapeño peppers (if using) and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the onions are soft and fragrant (about 5 minutes).
Remove the pan from the heat and add the following to the beef onion mixture: chili powder, cumin, sugar, oregano, salt, pepper and cayenne pepper. Stir until combined.
STEP 3
If you are cooking it on the stove top, add the cooked meat back to the skillet. If you’re using a slow cooker, add the meat-veggie mixture to the slow cooker.
Add the tomato juice (replace a portion of the juice with beef broth to add a kick of flavor, if desired), diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, kidney beans and pinto beans to either the skillet or slow cooker, depending on which you are using.
On the stove top, bring to a boil, dial the heat back to medium-low and simmer for 2 hours (stir occasionally). In the slow cooker, cook on low heat for 7 to 8 hours.
RECIPE NOTES
- Serve warm with cheese and sour cream! Other great topping options include sliced green onions or minced jalapenos (give your meal a nice kick!).
- For a thicker chili, replace the diced tomatoes with crushed tomatoes and reduce the amount of tomato juice by half.
- To keep this chili on the leaner side, use ground turkey or chicken instead of beef.
- To add a delicious flavor to the recipe, replace 1 pound of ground beef with 1 pound of ground sausage.
- For a different flavor, replace some or all of the beans with black beans.
WHAT DO YOU TOP CHILI WITH?
A bowl of chili is the perfect template for delicious toppings! Consider any or all of the following:
- Shredded cheddar cheese
- Sour cream
- Sliced green onions
- Crushed saltine crackers
WHAT TO SERVE WITH THIS CHILI RECIPE
Serve chili warm with a bit of shredded cheddar cheese and a dollop of sour cream. A few good options to serve alongside it include:
HOW TO THICKEN CHILI
I’m not a huge fan of super thick chili. I like for mine to resemble soup and not a heap of meat. However! If you are in the thick chili camp, it is easy enough to transform this recipe to fit your liking. Decrease the amount of tomato used in the recipe by half (or more) and simmer for 30 additional minutes. Yum!
CAN I MAKE CHILI IN MY INSTANT POT?
Yes! This chili recipe turns out like absolute perfection when made in an Instant Pot. Head over to my Instant Pot Chili post to get the full instructions!
WHAT TO DO WITH LEFTOVER CHILI
If you have leftovers (and it’s very possible that you will because this makes a large batch), please check out these delicious recipes to help use them up:
If you absolutely cannot find a chunk of time to make this delicious recipe, consider trying my Easy 5-Ingredient Chili for a much-condensed version. ENJOY, friends!
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT THE BEST CHILI RECIPE FROM PIP AND EBBY
“I will NEVER make another chili recipe in my life again!! This is so good! I absolutely hate cooking and all the prep so the first time I made this I told myself I would never again do it. It was so good that it was worth the chopping up of a few veggies and measuring of a bunch of spices. I make it at least 2-3 times every fall/winter now!“ ~ASHLEY
“This IS THE BEST Chili! This recipe has been on rotation in my home for awhile now. Everyone raves about how it IS the BEST chili they be ever had! Thank you for sharing this with us! “ ~SARA
The Best Chili on Earth
Equipment
- Slow Cooker
Ingredients
- 2 lbs ground beef
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 1 yellow onion chopped
- 1 green bell pepper chopped
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1/4 cup flat-leaf Italian parsley finely chopped
- 2 jalapeño peppers finely chopped (optional)
- 3 tbsp chili powder
- 2 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 46 oz. tomato juice
- 28 oz. diced tomatoes
- 15 oz. tomato sauce
- 16 oz. kidney beans drained and rinsed
- 16 oz. pinto beans drained and rinsed
- Shredded cheese and sour cream for topping
Instructions
- In a large skillet, cook ground meat over medium-high heat until no longer pink. Transfer the meat to a bowl. Drain excess grease from skillet, but do not clean.
- Add the olive oil to the skillet. Add the onion, bell pepper, garlic, parsley and jalapeño peppers (if using) and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until onions are soft and fragrant (about 5 minutes). Remove from heat and add the chili powder, cumin, sugar, oregano, salt, pepper and cayenne pepper. Stir until combined.
- If cooking on the stove top, add the cooked meat back to the skillet. If using a slow cooker, add meat-veggie mixture to the slow cooker. Add the tomato juice, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, kidney beans and pinto beans to either the skillet or slow cooker, depending on which you are using. On the stove top, bring to a boil, dial back to medium-low and simmer for 2 hours (stir occasionally). In slow cooker, cook on low for 7 to 8 hours. Serve warm with cheese and sour cream.
I found your recipe about 2 years ago and have been making it ever since. MY family and friends love when I make this. I leave the jalapeños out since our kids eat this and can’t handle too much spice but love topping the chilli with jalapeños for myself and my husband. Got some chilli in the slow cooker as we speak and cant wait to have it for dinner tonight. 🙂
I love hearing this – that you all can enjoy it and tailor it to each one’s liking. Thank you so much for sharing that!
If using the slow cooker and I want to add macaroni noodles, when should I put those in? Should they be boiled first? Thank you!
If you are cooking the noodles ahead, you can add them the last hour. Thank you for asking!
Love this chili!! It’s the first thing on my list to make when the chill of fall is in the air!! I have shared your recipe many times, everyone loves it!!
Thank you so much for the love. I am glad to hear its enjoyed. Thank you for sharing!
I missed the stars and didn’t give it the 5 stars I wanted Can you post my previous comment accordingly?
Thanks!!
Best chili Ive made. Perfect spices. Perfect chili taste for me. It has been my go to for a couple years. Experiment with tomatoes, I use original Rotel instead of tomato sauce) and V8(instead of tomato juice, and less) with the diced tomato’s. I think the base of this recipe of meat (I use sausage and beef), vegetables and spices are terrific. Freezes well!! Very easy to tweak to personal preferences but know that the proportions of meat, vegetables and spices are spot on. Thank you Megan!!
I appreciate all your feedback and twists on how you enjoy it! I’m sure more people will love that feedback too. Thanks for sharing!
Hi Megan, love your recipe! I want to try it over a fire pit. Any recommendations on how long to cook the chili over a fire?
Hi Laura, I’ve never done this but if you are cooking over a fire on one of those contraptions where your pot lowers to the fire, I would bring it to a simmer and then raise it up so it doesn’t bowl and let it cook minimum 30-60 minutes at a good simmer. Let me know how it goes!
How long do you think on high in a slow cooker?
In the slow cooker, I recommend to cook on low heat for 7 to 8 hours. If you want to use high heat, 3-4 hours is enough.
Make this chili a couple times a year and it’s always a crowd pleaser!
So glad to hear! Thank you for commenting!
This really is the Best Ever Chili. Ever! My husband usually hates homemade chili but with this recipe he’s gone back for seconds and thirds! I also gave some for my mom to try (an avid chili hater) but she loves it too! This is super easy to make and so full of flavor!
That is great to hear! I love making a big batch for leftovers and to have over baked potatoes or hot dogs too.
Thanks for sharing!!
My family loves this chili, and I can make small adjustments according to my ingredients on hand. Delicioso!
Anne, agreed! I love that cooking can be versatile like that and it always is delicious. Thanks for sharing!
I thank you for sharing your recipe, and I believe it is the best ever. But I want to ask if you are cooking on stove top can you cook less of time, say about and hour instead of two hours.
Cooking the chili for a long period of time allows the flavors to blend so well together. However, you could just warm it through. I love that Chili and Spaghetti sauce tastes even better the next day!
This is seriously the best chili!! It is my go to and I have made it more times than I can count!!! I have made the stove top recipe and the crock pot way. I don’t use the full can of tomato juice, only because my husband likes it a little thicker, maybe about 3/4 of the can( maybe a little more than that)…and no jalapeño…only because my son eats the chili also. But it is soooooo good!! We have corn bread, or white rice or even chili flavored Fritos.
Thank you for a delicious recipe!!
Thank you Michele! I am glad it was enjoyed – this is a family favorite too! Thank you for sharing!
I went to Pinterest and looked up “best chili ever.” And yours popped up. I have to making this for a year and 1/2 and I love it. When I tell my grown children I am making chili, they bring containers.
That’s really cool! Thank you so much for making it and sharing it with your loved ones. I appreciate you sharing that with me!
So so good! Our family go to. We’ve used elk meat and ground turkey, both ways have turned out awesome!