Hearty Texas chili is a comforting meal that’s packed with lots of tender meat and spicy chiles and topped with all your favorites! This bean-less chili is super easy to prepare and makes the coziest dinner ever! Serve it with cheese, sour cream, and crackers for the most satisfying and delicious meal!
Best Texas Chili
Sometimes, I like to switch up the basic red bean chili with delicious Texas chili! There isn’t a bean in sight – this “bowl of red” is all about the meat!
My take on Texas chili is made easy with my delicious homemade chili seasoning blend and canned chipotle peppers! If you’re serving meat lovers, they’re especially going to adore this meaty chili!
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🥘 Texas Chili Ingredients, Notes, & Substitutions
Hearty, easy Texas chili is a breeze to whip up! Just make sure you don’t use beans for this chili – Texas chili is all about the meat!
- Olive Oil - 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil.
- Onion - ½ cup of diced onion. I like white onion for its sweetness, but you can also use white onion.
- Garlic - 1 teaspoon of minced garlic. It’s equal to about 2 small cloves or one large clove.
- Ground Beef - 1 pound of ground beef. I prefer to use 80/20 ground chuck for this recipe! It’s mostly lean but still cooks up moist and tender.
- Salt - ½ teaspoon of Kosher salt (to taste).
- Chili Seasoning - 2 tablespoons of chili seasoning. You can use my easy, flavor-packed seasoning recipe or use your favorite blend.
- Light Brown Sugar - ½ tablespoon of packed light brown sugar.
- Diced Tomatoes - 15.5-ounce can of diced tomatoes, undrained.
- Tomato Paste - 3 ounces of tomato paste to thicken the chili and add a deeper level of flavor.
- Chipotle Peppers - 3 ounces of chipotle peppers. Use a can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce for this recipe! (*See Tips & Recipe Notes)
- Beef Broth - 2 cups of beef broth. Use boxed beef broth or beef bouillon mixed with hot water if you don’t have homemade.
*Be sure to see the free printable recipe card below for ingredients, exact amounts & instructions with tips!*
🔪 How To Make Texas Chili
Texas chili can easily be made in a pot or Dutch oven on the stove (*check out my tips & recipe notes for instructions on making it in your crockpot)! You're going to need your measuring utensils, a large stockpot or Dutch oven, and a spatula or wooden spoon to get started.
This makes 4 hearty servings of chili.
Saute Veggies and Brown Beef
Step 1: Sauté the onion & garlic. Start the chili by bringing a large stock pot or Dutch oven to medium-high heat with 1 tablespoon (14.79 milliliters) of olive oil. Once the oil is beginning to shimmer with heat and start smoking, add ½ cup (80 grams) of yellow onion. Sauté the onion until translucent, fragrant, and tender – about 4 to 5 minutes. Then, add 1 teaspoon (3 grams) of minced garlic and continue to sauté for an additional 30 seconds to a minute.
Step 2: Brown & season the ground beef. To the sautéed onion and garlic, add 1 pound (453.59 grams) of ground beef. Then, break apart the beef as it cooks until you no longer have any signs of pink. Once the ground beef is cooked through, add ½ teaspoon (3 grams) of Kosher salt, 2 tablespoons (14 grams) of chili seasoning, and ½ tablespoon (6 grams) of light brown sugar, then stir to mix well.
Add Tomatoes, Peppers & Simmer
Step 3: Add the rest of the ingredients. Next, add the rest of the ingredients: 15.5 ounces (439.42 grams) of diced tomatoes with juice, 3 ounces (85.05 grams) of tomato paste, and 3 ounces (85.05 grams) of diced chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. Stir to combine, and once mixed well, pour in 2 cups (417.18 milliliters) of beef broth and bring to a rolling boil.
Step 4: Simmer and serve. Reduce the heat of the chili and simmer uncovered for 1 hour, stirring every 10 to 15 minutes while cooking, until thickened to your preference. Once done, remove from the heat and serve chili immediately.
🍽️ What To Serve With Texas Chili
Hearty, spicy Texas chili is such a warm and comforting dinner! I love to serve it up, garnished with everyone’s favorite chili toppings and a side of fluffy jasmine rice and my moist and delicious jalapeño cornbread.
Looking for more great sides for chili? Check out my list to get your menu planning done! Enjoy!
💭 Angela's Pro Tips & Recipe Notes
- This chili takes just over one hour to make, but you can easily make it earlier in the day and let it simmer for as long as you want!
- Serve Texas chili with a bar of your favorite toppings, like sour cream, corn chips, shredded cheddar cheese, lime wedges, sliced avocado, sliced green onion, or chopped cilantro!
- The spice level of cans of chipotle peppers can vary wildly! I recommend taste testing your can first, then adding as much as suits your spice preference.
- Want to slow-cook this delicious chili? Simply brown the onions, garlic, and beef according to the instructions, then add them along with the rest of the ingredients to your slow cooker. Then, cook on low for 6 hours, and it’s ready to serve!
🥄 Make Ahead Options
Texas chili reheats beautifully and tastes even better after the flavors have had time to meld! It will last in the fridge for 3-4 days, or you can freeze it so you can have a warm and comforting dinner in a flash!
Cool your chili completely, then store it in airtight freezer storage containers. Chili freezes well for up to 6 months but is best used within the first 3 months.
🥡 Storing & Reheating
Store this delectable Texas chili refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 4 days! Make sure to cool your chili fully before storing it for the best quality.
The leftovers make for some super-tasty chili dogs the next day!
Reheating Texas Chili
I love to simply reheat chili in the microwave! Scoop servings into bowls and cover with a paper towel or cover to prevent splatter. Then, microwave on high power for 1-minute intervals, stirring in between, until the chili is steaming and thoroughly heated through.
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❓ Recipe FAQs
Texas chili is all about the meat – no beans allowed! Texas chili is also referred to as chile con carne, which is just pure chiles with meat! Some say that beans disrupt the pure, meaty flavor of the chili. The recipes vary by household, but one thing is for certain – Texas chili is absolutely delicious!
Definitely! My recipe is a simplified version, using chili seasoning mix and canned chipotle peppers. If desired, you can soak a few dried guajillo, ancho, pasilla, and/or California chiles in hot water for 15 minutes and blend into a paste before adding the tomatoes.
Texas chili can vary in spiciness, but it's generally known for its heat. This recipe has a kick from the canned chipotle peppers in adobo, but it is balanced nicely with brown sugar. You can add more or less peppers to adjust the heat level to your preference!
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📖 Recipe Card
Texas Chili (without beans)
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil (extra virgin)
- ½ cup yellow onion (diced - or white onion)
- 1 teaspoon garlic (minced)
- 1 lb ground beef (80/20 chuck or lean ground beef)
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoon chili seasoning (see recipe or use your favorite brand)
- ½ tablespoon light brown sugar (packed)
- 15.5 oz diced tomatoes (1 15-ounce can - do not drain)
- 3 oz tomato paste
- 3 oz chipotle peppers (chopped chipotle peppers in adobo sauce)
- 2 cups beef broth
(Note: 2x or 3x only changes the ingredient list)
Instructions
- Bring a large stock pot or Dutch oven to medium-high heat with the olive oil until the oil begins to shimmer and is just about to start smoking. Add the onion and saute until opague, fragrant, and tender or about 4-5 minutes. Add the minced garlic and continue to saute for an additional 30 seconds to a minute.
- Brown the ground beef with the sauteed onion and garlic, breaking apart the beef as it cooks until you no longer have any signs of pink.
- Once the beef is cooked through, add the kosher salt, chili seasoning, and light brown sugar then stir to mix well.
- Add the diced tomatoes, tomato paste, and chipotle peppers then stir again to combine. Once mixed well, pour in the beef broth and bring to a rolling boil.
- Reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 1 hour, stirring every 10-15 minutes while cooking, until thickened to your preference.
- Remove from heat and serve immediately when done.
Sam says
The fourth step ends by saying to bring it to a roiling boil, and the fifth step says to bring it down to a simmer. How long should it boil?
Angela @ BakeItWithLove.com says
Once it reaches a full rolling boil, reduce the heat. You don't have to allow x amount of time at a boil. Thanks for asking!
Mary says
Absolutely love. Easy and lots of flavors. Perfect for us since we are not bean lovers.
b says
So good! This is my new go to chili recipe. thanks for sharing 🙂