Chili is one of my favorite recipes to make for the family! It is like the holy grail of nutritious and easy dinners. Made with meat, beans, vegetables, and tomatoes, this simple recipe gives your family a complete dinner that you can feel great about. Not only that, but it is so flavorful and delicious! Your family will love this easy chili recipe.
Liquid Smoke
Liquid smoke is exactly what it sounds like, the smoke that comes off of burning wood in a concentrated liquid form. It is a great way to add a unique and subtle smokey flavor to recipes, from this easy chili recipe to my Chicken Tacos. You can find it at most grocery stores near the condiments, or I linked a great brand below.
Cook the ground beef. Break up the meat as it cooks. Add the onion, bell pepper, and garlic, and cook until the onions are tender, about five to seven minutes. Add the seasonings. Season the meat with chili powder, cumin, ground chipotle, and cayenne pepper. Stir in the tomatoes, tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, liquid smoke, and kidney beans. Bring the mixture to a roaring boil. Let the soup simmer. Let the chili simmer for about 30 minutes. Taste it and add more salt and pepper as needed. Enjoy!
Make it in the Crockpot
Does anything beat coming home to a hot and ready meal and a kitchen that smells just as delicious? If you want to make this beef chili recipe in the slow cooker, I recommend following the recipe through adding the seasonings to the meat. Then add the meat mixture to your slow cooker with the rest of the ingredients. Cook on low for eight hours or on high for four hours.
Sour cream Diced red onions Shredded cheddar cheese Crackers or corn chips Cilantro
Variations and Substitutions
Use ground turkey. If your family prefers ground turkey to ground beef, you can totally use that in this recipe. Double the batch. Serving a crowd or want to guarantee leftovers? Make a double or triple batch. Just be sure to double or triple all of the ingredients evenly. Read more on freezing chili below. Change out the tomatoes. If your family doesn’t like tomato chunks, use a can of crushed tomatoes instead. Add more or less beans. If you don’t like kidney beans, swap them out for a can of black beans or pinto beans or add them in addition to the kidney beans. Be sure to thoroughly drain and rinse your beans to control the salt going into the chili.
What to Serve with Chili
Homemade Cornbread Arugula Salad Recipe Potato Skins
If you make this homemade chili recipe or any of my other recipes, I’d love to hear what you think and would appreciate it so much if you came back and told me.
To make chili less spicy: If you are sensitive to spice, I would suggest cutting the cayenne pepper and black pepper in half or eliminating them completely. You can also fully make the chili and just add pinches of each at the end. To make chili more spicy: Add more cayenne pepper along with some hot diced green chilis. To take down the heat in already made chili: If you make this recipe and it does end up being too spicy for you, add teaspoon or two of brown sugar to your bowl. It will take down the heat without making it sweet.
Another great way to use leftover chili is to make Chili Dogs! When you are ready to eat your frozen chili, allow it to thaw in the refrigerator then heat in a saucepan on the stovetop over low heat, stirring often, until heated through.
