An easy slow cooker chili recipe with Ground Beef, beans, tomato sauce, and the best homemade chili seasoning. It putters away in the slow cooker for the juiciest beef and rich flavor.
Thank you to on behalf of the Beef Checkoff for sponsoring this Slow Cooker Chili recipe. I received compensation, but all opinions are my own.
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
The Best Way to Cook Chili:
Slow Cooking chili is a classic way to cook chili. It’s the easiest chili because you can set it and forget it and this is how the award-winning chilis are achieved. The low and slow cooking process melds the flavors of the chili seasoning into every bite and the beef becomes so tender, juicy, and irresistible. You can slow cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high heat for 3-4 hours.
Ingredients for Slow Cooker Chili:
- Ground Beef – no other protein does it quite like beef and tastes amazing. We use lean (90/10 or 93/7) to eliminate the need to spoon out excess fat. If yours has a higher fat content, you can spoon out the excess fat when it renders in the skillet.
- Onion – we love a generous amount of onion because it adds amazing sweet notes to the chili and disappears into the chili as it slow cooks.
- Beans – you can change up the beans based on what you have on hand, but the classic beans for chili are kidney beans (we love dark red), and black beans. Be sure to rinse and drain the beans in a colander for the best chili consistency and color.
- Tomatoes & Tomato Sauce – We love the combination of canned diced tomatoes (with their juice) as well as tomato sauce to give the chili a saucy consistency with great texture. For added flavor, we add a can of diced tomatoes and green chilis.
- Chili Seasoning – we make a simple homemade blend with chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, oregano, salt, and pepper.
Do you Prefer a Spicy Chili?
To keep it kid-friendly, this classic chili is mild and not spicy. If you prefer a spicy chili, you can either add hot sauce to your bowl when serving or if you want the entire batch to be spicier, add an extra tablespoon of Chili Powder and 1/4 to 1/2 tsp of Cayenne Pepper to give it a spicy kick.
How to Make Slow Cooker Chili:
Making chili in the slow cooker doesn’t get any easier. It’s as simple as browning the beef and onions then adding all of the canned ingredients to the slow cooker and turning it on. If you have a multicooker with a slow cooker function, you can saute and slow cook all in the same pot.
- SAUTE the beef and onions in a skillet then add garlic and seasonings to the pan.
- TRANSFER the beef mixture to a 6 Qt Slow Cooker.
- ADD REMAINING INGREDIENTS – rinsed and drained beans, diced tomatoes with their juice and tomato sauce.
- SLOW COOK – cover and set slow cooker on low 6-8 hours or on high 3-4 hours then season more to taste if needed.
Our Favorite Chili Toppings:
We love to serve this family-style where everyone can build their own chili bowls with the toppings they love. Toppings can vary based on what we have in the fridge, but these are our favorite toppings for chili –
- Cheese – mild cheddar is the classic choice, but Mexican shredded cheese works equally well
- Onion – chopped green or red onion adds a fresh pop of color and flavor
- Avocado – because we can’t help putting avocado on everything, especially chili.
- Cilantro – for garnish and adding fresh flavor
- Sour cream – balances the dish (especially great when chili is served over a baked potato)
- Sliced jalapenos – you can use any hot pepper for a spicy kick
How to Serve Chili:
Chili keeps really well in the refrigerator so we love to get creative with leftovers. There are so many ways to serve classic chili and really it can be served almost any time of day. Some of our favorites include:
- Chili Cheese Dip – Sprinkle chili with cheddar cheese and serve as an appetizer with tortilla chips.
- Chili Dogs – Top a hot dog with chili and shredded cheese to transform it into a chili cheese dog.
- Chili Stuffed Baked Potatoes – topping a baked potato with hot chili is a delicious gluten-free option and fun way to serve a crowd.
- In a Bowl – loaded with all of the toppings and tortilla chips or pita chips on the side (this is our family favorite)!
Why We Love This Family Friendly Dinner:
With so many families staying home together now, juggling homeschool, and cooking more than ever, it’s a great time to get kids in the kitchen and teach them through cooking. This slow cooker beef chili is a great way to teach your children cooking skills. Children can learn:
- Food safety tips like washing hands after handling raw meat
- The importance of using separate plates and utensils for raw and ready to eat foods to prevent cross-contamination
- How to measure spices and weigh ingredients
If you let kids help with preparing the meal, they are more likely to enjoy eating it. It also makes for a memorable photo-op moment!
More Beef Recipes You Will Love:
- Juicy Burgers – the secret to perfect burgers
- Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry – with the best sauce
- Quick Beef Chili – an easy 30-minute recipe
- Beef Stroganoff – classic and packed with flavor
- Beef Tenderloin – incredibly juicy and tender
- Easy Meatloaf – with the best glaze
Get the print-friendly recipe below for this Classic Slow Cooker Beef Chili.
Classic Slow Cooker Chili Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 lb lean Ground Beef, (90/10 or 93/7)
- 1 large onion, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tsp cumin powder
- 2 Tbsp chili powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 1/2 tsp salt, or to taste
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 15 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 30 oz kidney beans, two 15oz cans, drained and rinsed
- 30 oz diced tomatoes, with their juice
- 10 oz diced tomatoes and green chilis, with their juice
- 30 oz tomato sauce
Instructions
- Place a large skillet over medium-high heat and sauté beef until it releases fat (4-5 minutes), breaking it up with a spatula.
- Add onion to the skillet and sauté until tender (4-5 minutes). Add minced garlic and seasonings: cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, dried oregano, salt and pepper. Cook another 30 seconds stirring constantly. Transfer to a 6 Qt slow cooker.
- Add remaining ingredients into the slow cooker: rinsed and drained beans, diced tomatoes with their juice, diced tomatoes and green chilis with juice and tomato sauce. Stir to combine and cook on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 6-8 hours. Season to taste if desired and serve warm.
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
SO easy to make and results looked exactly like the pictures. My family serves chili with cheddar cheese & fritos on top and a little bit of hot sauce to taste. It was absolutely delicious.
I’ll definitely be making this often. Thank you!
That is the best when the family loves what we make. That’s so great!
Wow! What an amazing recipe! The flavor is great, I made it today and it was amazing my husband loves it ! We been looking for a Chili recipe and this one is by far our favorite ! We will try to do nachos with the left over ! Thank you Natasha all you food is delicious.
You’re very welcome! So glad you loved it.
This will be my first time trying to cook chili thanks for this. Do you recommend cooking on low if time permits?
Hi Christopher! This can be cooked on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 6-8 hours. I hope you love the recipe!
I’ve put this recipe in my bookmarks and I make it quite often. It’s easy to make and is absolutely delicious.
That’s great that you found another go-to recipe!
I would love to try this recipe. I will be making it for 2 people. Can I make it successfully by using 1 lb of hamburg and a can each of the beans etc.?? Thank you.
Hi Sue! I have not tested that specifically but if you reduce the number of servings at the top of the recipe card to “five” it will convert the ingredients list for you to use 1 lb of ground beef. Hover your cursor over the number of servings in red and slide to the left to decrease.
Amazing recipe!! I ended up adding four jalapeños, half a Serano, and a small container of chipotle peppers in adobo. Came out so good and had that kick!
Sounds great! Thank you for sharing your experience trying out this recipe!
Really wonderful! I’ve never used black beans or cumin in my chili but I could taste the delicious difference.
Glad you enjoyed this recipe!
I decided to make this last week and I’m making it again this week. Wonderful easy recipe. High recommended.
Thank you, Eddy! I’m glad you enjoyed it.
Made this for first time. Very easy and it was a hit! Will be making again soon.
I’m glad you loved it, Ray! Thank you.
Delicious! I didn’t have any tomatoes with chili’s on hand, so I added a can of chipotles in adobo sauce as well as an extra can of tomatoes. It came out perfect! lots of flavor, a little bit of heat.
Hi Stephnie, good to know that the substitution that you used worked well in this recipe! Thanks for sharing.
I love chili, but honestly none of the crockpot recipes I’ve tried ever turn out quite right. Well this one was so easy, and it was a crowd pleaser at a family birthday party. It’s definitely going in the regular rotation!
I’m so glad that it turned out, Christa! Thank you for trying my recipe.
Does this freeze well? If so, How long can it be in the freezer.
Hi Catherine! I haven’t tried freezing it to advise. One of my readers reported good results freezing it.
How big is the serving?? I’ve made this recipe many times and I love this recipe.
Hi Eli, the whole recipe serves 10 people. You can divide this whole recipe into 10 to get the accurate per serving size.
Can I skip adding the black beans? Not really a fan…Thanks! making tonite!
Hi Linda, I think that’s alright. I saw others share that they used cannellini beans instead.
Honestly, this is a GREAT recipe. Cooking it tonight for the wife to enjoy!
Thank you, Joey. I hope your wife will love this recipe too!
Do you drain the grease from teh ground beef before putting it in the crock pot?
No, I do not. But you can if you’d like to.
made this tonight. Excactly as per the recipie. It was fantastic. So flavourful and so easy.
Hi Doug, good to know that you liked it!
I’m planning to make this for tturkey super bowl. Can I substitute ground for beef?
Thank you!
Yes, you can! You may also reference this recipe for my turkey chili HERE.
Hi. I’ve made this a few times and love it. I usually add frozen corn and/or or frozen green beans. Dumb question…since using already cooked canned kidney and black beans, the only reason to cook so long is to marry the flavors. Is that correct?
Hi Michelle! Thank you, I’m glad you love my recipe. Yes, basically, and it’s just very simple to brown the beef and onions then add all of the canned ingredients to the slow cooker and turn it on.
Just wondering what I can substitute for the cumin, if anything? I don’t have any on hand and the local store doesn’t either! Want to make this for tonight but don’t want to ruin the recipe, please help?!
Hi Terra! You should be able to just leave it out. Add some more of the other spices if needed for more flavor. I hope you love this recipe.
I made this chili yesterday, using everything except the tomatoes with peppers and black bean ( did not have either) and it was delicious. My husband said it was the best he had ever eaten. This will definitely become my go to recipe for chili.
That’s wonderful, Marsha! Thank you for sharing.
Going to make this tonight! My kids don’t like tomatoes in their chilli. How much sauce do you recommend if just using tomato sauce? Thank you.
Hi Melissa! I have not tested this recipe with just tomato sauce to advise on the exact quantity. You’d have to experiment with it. You could also blend the diced tomatoes with their juice to get rid of the chunky pieces of tomatoes.