While I have several chili recipes on the website already, this Classic Homemade Beef Chili recipe is my absolute favorite. Like, it’s so good that I can’t stop going back for spoonfuls. Not only is this classic chili recipe super flavorful and easy, but it can be customized in a number of ways to make it your very own. With over 150 five-star reviews, this recipe has been a favorite among my readers for over 10 years, and with good reason. It’s a truly classic recipe that I still make all the time.
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“I’ve tried a lot of chili recipes, but I always return to this one! The flavors are so good and meld so well. 10/10 recipe for me!”
Amity
best ever chili
You can never go wrong with a hearty, warming bowl of chili! My recipe is just as good as it gets, and it’s made with simple ingredients such as ground beef, two types of beans, canned diced tomatoes, and chili seasoning. So delicious, yet so easy!
Topping and Ingredient Tips from Our Readers
Customizing my bowl of chili is my favorite part. I can eat the chili all week and no two bowls will be the same! Here are some ideas from myself and our readers on what to put in and on top of a bowl of chili:
- Use a different protein: Vegan meat crumbles, cooked lentils, more beans, chorizo, ground pork, ground bison, ground chicken, or ground turkey would all be delicious.
- Add other liquids: Instead of using water to make the gravy, try using vegetable juice (like V8), dark beer, or beef broth for even more flavor. Add a dash of soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, red wine, hot sauce, apple cider vinegar, or chipotle chilis in adobo sauce to amp things up.
- Customize the spices: Try using chipotle powder or smoked paprika for a smokier flavor. Add a little cocoa or some instant coffee crystals for a richer, earthier flavor, or a dash of cinnamon for warmth. For a change of pace, try a little tarragon or some curry powder.
- Add extra veggies: If you’re looking to add more flavor, color, and nutrients, try adding zucchini, bell pepper, poblano peppers, jalapeños, mushrooms, corn, sweet potato, or butternut squash.
- Get creative with toppings: Browse your pantry, fridge, or freezer for any fun toppings you might have, like:
- Cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese
- Sour Cream or cottage cheese
- Green onions, cilantro, or diced red onion
- Diced avocado
- Crushed tortilla chips or Saltine crackers
- Pickled Jalapeños
Homemade Chili Recipe
Servings 6 1 cup eachIngredients
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.32)
- 1 yellow onion ($0.49)
- 2 cloves garlic ($0.32)
- 1 lb. ground beef* ($4.79)
- 1 15oz. can kidney beans ($1.09)
- 1 15oz. can black beans ($0.89)
- 1 15oz. can diced tomatoes, with juices** ($0.50)
- 1 6oz. can tomato paste ($0.55)
- 1 cup water ($0.00)
Chili Seasoning
- 1 Tbsp chili powder*** ($0.30)
- 1 tsp ground cumin ($0.10)
- 1/4 tsp cayenne powder ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder ($0.02)
- 1/2 tsp onion powder ($0.03)
- 1/2 Tbsp brown sugar ($0.02)
- 1 tsp salt ($0.05)
- 1/2 tsp Freshly cracked black pepper ($0.03)
Instructions
- Dice the onion and mince the garlic. Add both to a large pot with the olive oil and cook over medium heat until they are soft and translucent.
- Add the ground beef to the pot and continue to sauté until the beef is fully browned.
- Drain the beans and add them to the pot along with the diced tomatoes, tomato paste, 1 cup water, and all of the ingredients for the chili seasoning. Stir until well combined.
- Place a lid on the pot and allow it to simmer over a low flame for at least 30 minutes, stirring occasionally (the flavor gets better the longer it simmers).
- Give the chili one final taste, adjust the salt or seasonings if needed, then serve hot with your favorite toppings.
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Notes
Nutrition
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How to Make Homemade Chili Step-by-Step Photos
Dice onions and garlic: Start by dicing one onion and mincing two cloves of garlic. Cook the onions and garlic with 2 Tbsp of olive oil in a large pot over medium heat until they are soft and transparent.
Add one pound of ground beef and continue to cook until it is fully browned.
Add beans: Drain a 15oz. can each of black beans and kidney beans and add them to the pot along with a 15oz. can diced tomatoes, a 6oz. can of tomato paste, and one cup of water.
Stir that all together until the tomato paste is well incorporated. Doesn’t look like much yet, but just wait…
Add the chili spices to the pot of chili: I used my recipe for Homemade Chili Seasoning, plus a little brown sugar. 1 Tbsp chili powder, 1 tsp cumin, 1/4 tsp cayenne, 1/4 tsp garlic powder, 1/2 tsp onion powder, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, and 1/2 Tbsp brown sugar. If you don’t have all the ingredients to make your own chili seasoning, you can add a store bought packet of chili seasoning at this point.
Simmer chili: Let the pot simmer for at least 30 minutes over low heat with a lid on top to allow the flavors to blend and for the natural sugars in the tomatoes to caramelize, which reduces the acidity. If you have time, let it simmer longer. Now your “basic” chili is done!
Chili is one of those dishes that tastes better the longer it cooks (to a point). You’ll want to let this chili simmer for a minimum of 30 minutes, but it’s something that you can leave simmering gently for up to a couple of hours. If you do plan to let your chili simmer for a longer period of time, make sure to put a lid on it so it doesn’t dry out. Check it occasionally to see if it is becoming dry, and if so, add a little water.
How easy was that? Now go crazy with the toppings. Look in your fridge for leftovers and see what fun things you can use to top your basic chili to make it not so basic anymore.
Serving Suggestions
My favorite thing to serve with this homemade chili is my jalapeño cheddar cornbread. If that sounds too spicy, try this homestyle cornbread or some beer bread instead. A few readers have mentioned that they love this recipe with cheddar drop biscuits, too. Any way you slice it, I highly recommend making something to wipe out your bowl with.
Storage Instructions
Chili is the ultimate meal prep food because the recipe makes a big batch, the leftovers taste better the next day, and it’s extremely freezer-friendly! I recommend dividing the chili into single-serving portions before refrigerating or freezing to make easy grab-and-go reheatable meals for the rest of the week.
Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or, after chilling overnight, in the freezer for up to 3 months. Reheat in the microwave in one-minute intervals, stirring between each, until heated through. You can also reheat this chili on the stovetop over medium-low heat, stirring often. You may need to add a little water when reheating on the stovetop if it gets too thick.
More Delicious Chili Recipes
Our Classic Homemade Chili recipe was originally published 12/23/13. It was retested, reworked, and republished to be better than ever 3/23/25.
I did steps 1& 2 on the stove top then moved it to the crock pot and added the remaining of the ingredients (including a small diced sweet potato). Left it on low for 3 hours and it was perfect.
THe last 5 minutes I added some frozen corn, was delicious!
I love this recipe! It’s so, so easy– for some reason I had it in my head that chili would be difficult to make, but it’s mostly just adding things to a pot and letting it simmer. It tastes exactly how I wanted it to.
I don’t like huge chunks of diced tomato, so I tried to sub it with crushed tomatoes like it said in the notes. But personally, I would not suggest this because it makes the overall texture of the chili sauce very thick and (of course) tomato-heavy. It still tasted good, but it bothered me that it looked “weird” for classic chili lol. The second time I made it I just used half as many diced tomatoes as the recipe called for and that worked out a lot better. I didn’t even really notice they were in there, especially because I also added extra beans.
Soooooo good. It’s my favorite chili ever
I make chili with this amazing recipe almost every week. My family loves it!
I did this with pinto and black beans because that is what I had in the pantry, left out the sugar without sacrificing any flavor at all delicious easy and cheap
This chili is a hit every time I make it. I don’t always put the black beans in, just as good without them.
Very easy and it has well balanced flavors. I keep coming back to this one.
I have been making this chili recipe for so many years and it never disappoints. For some reason I was always overwhelmed at the idea of making a really good chili, but this recipe is simple, fast, and everyone loves it!
One of our favorites–a good balance of a little extra effort (and no “spice envelope”) without being too fussy.
Do I add the liquid in the bean cans? Or drain the beans?
We drain the beans for this one!
If you drain and rinse the beans gently in cold water you will get rid of the gas.
This recipe is delicious! I upped the spice level with a 1/4 tsp more cayenne and a tsp of ancho chili powder. Plus I cut up 3/4 a yellow bell pepper and cooked with the onions/garlic. It came together quickly and I let it simmer for an hour. Perfect for this January weather.
The ingredients are inexpensive, the recipe is incredibly tasty & as she mentioned, try to let it simmer for an hour – it’ll taste even better!
This is, by far, the best chili I’ve ever made, with very few variations. I sweated the onions with sliced celery and did not add the garlic until I put in the ground beef- garlic can burn so easy. I also cooked it for about 3 hours and only added a small amount of water and chili powder, and cumin to bump up the flavor! This chili is spot on!!
I make this all the time. It’s easy enough for a quick weeknight meal and very tasty. It’s also easy to customize it to your liking
We have made this recipe more times than I can count! We always follow these basic steps and proportions, but since making this often enough I now add a can of diced green chilies to the pot. If I can, I bloom the spices in oil and brown the tomato paste before adding the rest of the ingredients, but sometimes I just make it as is. Always a lovely recipe–never EVER disappoints.