The Best Classic Chili is a traditional chili recipe just like mom used to make with ground beef, beans, and a simple homemade blend of chili seasonings.
This classic chili is perfect for a weeknight meal because it can be made in minutes. The only thing to chop is an onion.
I’ve been playing around with this recipe for the past few months, making it many times. My family didn’t mind the repetition at all because I really do believe that I ended up with the best chili ever!
How To Make Homemade Chili
Note: This is a summary. The full printable recipe and step by step video are located at the bottom of this post.
- Heat olive in a large soup pot.
- Add chopped onion and cook for 5 minutes.
- Add ground beef and break it apart with a wooden spoon.
- Cook for 6-7 minutes.
- Add chili powder, cumin, sugar, tomato paste, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and optional cayenne.
- Stir until well combined.
- Add diced tomatoes, kidney beans, beef broth, and tomato sauce.
- Stir well.
- Simmer for 20-25 minutes.
- Let it rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.
What do you top chili with?
In addition to the chili ingredients listed in this recipe, you may also want to have these things as toppings.
- shredded cheddar cheese
- sour cream
- sliced green onions
- saltine crackers or oyster crackers
- diced avocado
How To Store
Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to five days. Or, store in the freezer for up to three months. Transfer the container to the refrigerator to thaw the day before you want to reheat it.
Pro Tip – Is It Too Spicy?
The brand of chili powder you use will have a huge difference in how spicy your chili will be. Different brands of chili powder have VERY different levels of spiciness.
I always use McCormick Chili Powder (No affiliation) because it is flavorful without being spicy.
More Great Chili Recipes
Find more of my recipes on TikTok
The Best Classic Chili Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion -diced
- 1 pound 90% lean ground beef
- 2 1/2 tablespoons chili powder*
- 2 tablespoons ground cumin
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper** -optional
- 1 1/2 cups beef broth
- 1 (15 oz.) can petite diced tomatoes
- 1 (16 oz.) can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce
Instructions
- Add the olive oil to a large soup pot and place it over medium-high heat for two minutes. Add the onion. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add the ground beef to the pot. Break it apart with a wooden spoon. Cook for 6-7 minutes, until the beef is browned, stirring occasionally.
- Add the chili powder, cumin, sugar, tomato paste, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and optional cayenne. Stir until well combined.
- Add the broth, diced tomatoes (with their juice), drained beans, and tomato sauce. Stir well.
- Bring the liquid to a low boil. Then, reduce the heat (low to medium-low) to gently simmer the chili, uncovered, for 20-25 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Remove the pot from the heat. Let the chili rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Check out all of my great ground beef recipes.
Excellent!!! Great taste super easy to make. Thank You!! ❤️
I hate people who comment (“it’s great, BUT…”) I’m not one of those (lol) BUT I did make 2 changes. 1) used ground turkey instead of beef (hubby can’t process beef,) and 2) doubled up on the spices for a bit more kick. Excellent award winner!
This is by far the best chili recipe I’ve ever found. I’ve made this so many times I know it by heart! The only thing I’ve ever added is extra cayenne (I like it *spicy*), and a healthy splash of vinegar (I like it *tangy*). About to make it for the 95683rd time and eat it every day for a week…
Delicious and easy!
This is by far the best chilli recipe that I have ever tasted in my life
This chili was delicious! Seriously, it was amazing!! I cut the sugar in half and added an extra can of kidney beans. Next time, I will double the recipe. Thank you so much for the recipe.
my husband says it is the best chili I have ever made!
Great recipe! I double the beans and add a little more tomato paste than the recipe calls for…
Great recipe, I made it today. I did follow the suggestion in the comments and reduced the sugar to 1/2 a Tbsp and I added diced green pepper. Everyone loved it and said this is our go to recipe for chili moving forward!
Seriously the ONLY chili recipe I use! Everyone loves it. It takes no time but tastes like you spent all day making it. 100% recommend!!
I used organic ground turkey and 1 big zucchini cut in small pieces sear in olive oil then add at the end, was very tasty. I made it because didn’t know what to do with old huge zucchini and was a hit.
I’ve been making vegetarian chili for years and I love it – one particular recipe calls for 4 cans of beans. But we decided to make beef chili this time and this recipe is positively delicious, fast and easy.
Amazing thanks soooooooooo much it was a success!!!!
LOVE this recipe! I’ve made it 3 times now – I double it each time and freeze it in portions. I cook the ground beef & onion, then dump everything together in the slow cooker for the day. PERFECT!
Very delicious! I made this for a church event and got tons of compliments. Follow the directions exactly and wouldn’t change a thing.
Good starting point for chili. I made a few slight changes. The only noteworthy one – I cover mine. I disagree with cooking it uncovered but who am I to say it’s wrong. Just not my way of doing it. Other than that it’s just minor variations to the amounts of the dry ingredients.
This was super good for a quick and easy chili.
The cumin made all the difference-I highly recommend this recipe for a quick and delicious dinner this fall!
We paired it with a cornbread recipe from B. Dylan Hollis, which is one box jiffy mix, 2 eggs and half a jar of cheese whiz(sounds awful but is really yummy) – this all went well together 🙂
Delicious 😋
Thank you for an easy and tasty chilli and i love your directions they were clear and easy to follow
Best homemade chili recipe ever!
Thanks, Scott