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.
I never go through the trouble to rate a recipe online, I more of a try it, and save it without commenting but this is amazing!
This recipe is perfect in its simplicity. Sometimes chili recipes get too complicated and there are so many ingredients that it feels more like a competition how many ingredients can be thrown in a pot instead of creating a simple flavorful recipe. If anything this is an amazing base for someone to throw maybe one or two flavors in for heat if needed otherwise this is perfect standalone.
This recipe is easy and has come out perfect after multiple tries and is a hit. I have always been nervous to make chili since everyone seems to have “award winning” recipes but this is a simple, flavorful but not overpowering recipe I am not shy to make for guests.
Great recipe, easy to follow. I doubled the batch and added chopped bell pepper and a chopped jalapeño, as well as fresh garlic instead of powdered. It was a bit! Will use again for sure 🙂
Chili was super good but the only change I would make would be using 1 teaspoon of ground cumin instead of 2 tablespoons, if you use the full amount it ends up testing kind of like taco chili
Some of the best chili I’ve ever had! Love how simple the recipe is and it has just the right amount of heat. Now I understand all the 5 star reviews. Thank you for sharing!
Read the comments before I made this chili. I cur the cumin and sugar in half and I also use 2 pounds of beef as well as add celery, green pepper and mushrooms. I add a little cornstarch to thicken. Great recipe! Its hard to find one that has a classic chili taste.
Great recipe!! Thanks!!!!
I Substitute:
*organic ground turkey for the ground beef
* 1can of stewed tomatoes for the diced tomatoes
Serve with a hunk of good rye bread or if gluten free—serve over GF elbow macaroni
My husband and neighbor love this chili.
I made this vegan by replacing the 1lb of beef with 2 1/2 cups of TVP soaked in a soy sauce and mushroom broth and using a vegan beef broth substitute for the beef broth in the recipe. Allowing the finished recipe to sit for several hours before eating gives time for the tvp to soak up all the flavors of the chili giving no hint that it’s not ground beef!
Excellent recipe. Thank you.
We tried it out and it s spectacular, excellent for first time chili chefs!
Great base for chili. I added green peppers, garlic, a splash of vinegar, and a pinch of nutmeg. I reduced the sugar and cumin as others suggested.
I follow this recipe to a T and it is the best chili I’ve ever had! Thanks for sharing!
Absolutely delicious, best I ever made.
This is now my Go To Chili recipe. I did reduce the Cumin to 1 tablespoon and it is perfect for our family.
Definitely recommend this recipe !
It turned out great! We added a little more tomatoe sauce instead if the broth and a little BBQ sauce.
I’ve tried this recipe before and loved it. I made it again today but didn’t realise that I didn’t have broth so I used a cup of red wine instead. Delicious!!!
I added 4 chopped chilli pepers to the chopped onion and cooked them in vegetable oil until the onions were teanslucent. Then I added ground moose meat. Then I followed the rest of the directions to make a great chilli.
Thank you!
Great taste, and really easy; I will never buy canned again! I substituted with ground turkey (3/4 lb, I like a little more liquid) and chicken broth, did half white/red kidney beans for color, and added 1/2 can of black beans too. Rave reviews from all!
The best chilli ever! Just enough spice, flavour galore and smells divine! 5 Stars from me!⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Best chili ever!!! It’s a keeper. 🥰
This is a staple go-to at home when we have ground beef. This is so easy and low-effort to make and I absolutely love it. Sometimes I’ll throw in a serrano pepper if I want an extra kick (we have too many serannos at home).