Rich and hearty homemade Beef Chili Recipe loaded with vegetables and beans is comfort food at its greatest! This (under 30-minute) chili recipe is going to become your go-to recipe for cooler weather.
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Beef Chili Recipe
Ground meat and beans are the basis for a classic chili recipe. You can elevate the flavors of a traditional chili by adding vegetables so for this beef chili recipe, we added carrots and green peppers.
Make this your own by adding other diced vegetables you have on hand. These can include celery, mushrooms, zucchini or red peppers and can be added with the carrots and peppers.
How to Make the Best Beef Chili?
- Brown ground meat, add diced onion and cook until onion is softened.
- Add carrots, green pepper and garlic. Cook until veggies are tender.
- Add diced tomatoes (with juice), broth, beans and ingredients for chili seasoning. Stir well. Simmer 15 min until vegetables and beans are tender.
- Turn off the heat and allow the chili to rest 5 minutes before serving.
TIP: If you don’t like chunky diced tomatoes, then finely cube or puree them before adding to the chili.
Can Beef Chili be Frozen?
Yes, chili may be frozen. Cool chili completely and store in an air-tight container up to 3 months. Thaw and reheat to enjoy!
Since reheated chili tastes just as good as fresh, Chili may also be refrigerated and enjoyed for several days.
Chili Toppings:
This chili is a mild chili with the indicated seasonings, if you want a spicier chili, add more chili powder to taste. 🙂
Serve the beef chili with your favorite toppings of sour cream, cheddar cheese, crushed tortilla chips, fresh cilantro or green onion.
Be adventurous and serve the hearty chili over a halved and pitted avocado or baked potato! So good and original.
More Cozy Cold Weather Recipes to Try:
- Slow Cooker Turkey Chili Recipe – a crowd-pleasing chili
- Potato Chicken Soup Recipe – so comforting
- Instant Pot White Chicken Chili – super fast and easy
- Creamy Tomato Basil Soup – comfort in a bowl
Beef Chili Recipe
Ingredients
Beef Chili Ingredients:
- 2 lbs ground beef
- 1 medium onion, finely cubed
- 1 large carrot, cubed
- ½ medium green bell pepper, cubed
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
- 15.5 oz can kidney beans, , drained and rinsed
- 3 cups beef broth
Chili Seasonings:
- 1 ½ tsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp granulated sugar
- 2 tsp salt
- ½ tsp ground pepper
- 2 ½ tsp chili powder
Instructions
- Brown beef in a Dutch oven over med-high heat, breaking up the meat while stirring.
- Add onion and cook until tender.
- Add diced carrot, bell pepper and minced garlic. Cook until vegetables are tender, stirring as needed. Drain excess fat.
- Pour in diced tomatoes with juice, add beans, broth and seasonings. Stir well to combine.
- Turn heat down to a gentle boil and allow chili to cook 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally (longer if meat and vegetables aren’t desired tenderness).
- Taste chili and additional seasonings if needed. Turn off heat and allow chili to rest 5 minutes.
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #natashaskitchen
Curling up with a bowl of hot chili in the winter is a real treat. What is YOUR favorite cold-weather comfort food?
Hi! I’m Natasha Kravchuk, a New York Times bestselling cookbook author, recipe developer, food photographer, and writer. Here you’ll find delicious, reliable recipes made with simple ingredients, plus easy step-by-step photos and videos to help you cook confidently at home. 
Made this chilly today and it was kind of soupy and too much meat. I did like the bell pepper flavor and not a lot of tomato in it. For next time I’ll cut the meat in half and instead add 2 cans of beans. Also I think 2 cups of broth should be enough. Also simmered it for 40 min, 15 min is defiantly not enough.
Thank you for sharing that with us, Inna!
Thick or thin, I would love it! Growing up I had Chili soup & loved it! 😋😊
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us!
Made this last night. I did some changes, I used half the amount of ground beef, and I added a can of white beans since my husband loves those, and I used less broth than called for and also added a small can of tomato juice. It was a bit too salty but that’s my fault, I should have put less salt since I was adding salty tomato sauce! It turned out quite delicious, oh and I cooked it in my instant pot 😁 thanks for the easy recipe! The flavor was very deep and rich. Our toppings included tortilla chips, sour cream, cheese, avocado, and red onions, yum!
I’m so happy you enjoyed that! Thank you for sharing that with me!
This was really tasty and super quick to put together. I added about 3T of chili powder because I like it spicy and simmered for an hour to cook down more of the liquid. Yum!
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us!
Just made this and it is PHENOMENAL. Seriously, the best chili I’ve ever made or had. My husband nearly ate the whole pot.
That’s just awesome!! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review 🙂
This felt more like a stew than a chili to me it was good but just wasn’t thick enough for me
Hi Jessie, You are more than welcome to lessen the liquid if you care for it to be less liquidy
Loved the chili. It was gone in 30 minutes! The only thing I added was a can of sweet white corn. Thanks for all your wonderful ideas!
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it!
Chili does NOT have beens. It becomes stew then.
Hi Bob, I’m curious about how you make your chili! Every chili I’ve ever tried has beans; one or several different kinds. How do you bulk up your chili?
Howdy there! I’m not Bob but chiming in anyway because I loooove chili and our families have been competing in chili cook-offs here in San Antonio for almost 30 years! I’ve done a lot of research on my favorite dish! 😁 An authentic chili con carne recipe, which originates in Mexico and came to the U.S. via Texas, does not have beans. Chili con carne is from which all “red” chili recipes are born. Beans were added in as a personal preference that later became popular in the U.S., primarily in certain regions and with Northerners. Most Texans have a fit if someone says different. I’ve heard some say “But my family has always used beans and I’m from Texas/Mexico!”…well, personal preference started in a previous generation because an authentic “bowl of red” not only doesn’t have beans, it doesn’t have any kind of tomato products in it, either! Crazy, right? 😮 😁 It was originally just local meat like beef chuck or buffalo, some type of local chili peppers, local seasonings and water. Over the years, everything else got added in as personal preferences came into play, which is what happens to practically every recipe on the planet. I am one of those people who, despite understanding about personal recipe preferences, still cringe when someone says “Chili has beans in it or it ain’t chili!”. In that case, it would be called “chili con carne y frijoles” (chili with meat and beans”). Most of the time I eat chili without beans; it depends on my craving. You asked about how do you bulk up the chili if beans aren’t used and I’m hoping you will clarify that. Do you mean like thickening it (which masa flour can be added but using chili peppers like ancho, guajillo, serrano, etc. actually achieves that) or do you mean to make it more filling (in which case you could add more meat, or add more of a different kind; I use beef chuck and ground pork both at same time)? Otherwise, I’m not sure why bulking it up would be needed. As for chili being a stew if it has beans in it, Bob: chili is a stew with or without the beans. A stew is made by very slowly cooking meat and/or vegetables in liquid.
awesome Natasha, thank you so much for all the recipes
Thank you for sharing that with us!
the above nutrition facts are for how much chili? 1 cup, 2 cups? 8oz or 12oz etc??
thanks
Hi Stas! I wish I had measured it that way. The entire recipe makes for 8 servings.
Chili was just average. I felt there was too much beef. If I make it again I would only use1-11/2 pounds of beef.
Hi Jayne, we prefer a heartier, beefier chili but you can definitely add less beef if you prefer, and be sure to season to taste.
IT was a big hit at work! So yummy! I added crimini mushrooms (because we love mushrooms) and it was extra delicious! So much yum! 🙂
That’s just awesome!! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review 🙂
Awesome Chili recipe!!..I love thinner chili and this one is the best i have had!Thank you!
Hi Debbie! I’m so glad to hear that you loved the beef chili recipe!! Thank you so much for sharing!
Made this today also the baked potato.. DELISH. Full of flavor.
Hi Wendy, I’m so happy you loved the beef chili recipe! Thank you for sharing your amazing review!
Sorry found the broth..lol
That’s so great!!
Good morning, going to make this today, I see Beef broth in the ingredients but not in the instructions am I blind? lol
Hi Wendy, we have it in step #3 🙂 “Add diced tomatoes (with juice), broth, beans and ingredients for chili seasoning. Stir well. Simmer 15 min until vegetables and beans are tender.” I hope this helps!
I need a big bowl of this today! It’s so cold and gloomy, this would definitely cheer me up!
This is so perfect for cold, wet weather!
Oh man, this looks so good! I have a great recipe for white chili, but not for beef chili. I’m going to have to give this a try!
I hope you love it, Kara! Enjoy!
This was a hit with the whole family!
I’m so happy to her that, Pam!
A big bowl of your chili on this cold evening would be just perfect!
Yes, it would! Thank you for that wonderful review!
Oh my gosh this was amazing! Thanks so much for sharing!
That’s just awesome!! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review 🙂