Hearty chili for chilly nights

Chili Crockpot Cooking Fall Food

It’s getting to that time of year where the nights start to draw in a bit and it’s inevitably going to start getting chillier in the evenings, and what better way to counter a chill than with chili (see what I did there!). This chili is super easy to put together, as 95% of the cooking is done in your slow cooker making this the perfect prepare and forget meal.


All day Crockpot chili

To prepare, brown your mince until it forms a nice fond on your pan, you want some really good caramelization to add depth of flavor to your meat, once it’s cooked transfer to your slow cooker, then in fat from the mince cook off your chopped onion, adding your minced garlic right at the end so it doesn’t burn or get bitter.

From then on it’s just a case of chopping your chilis and peppers, and adding the remaining ingredients directly to crock pot and giving it a good stir to combine: there isn’t anything more to it than that, if you’re a compulsive like me you can stir it every hour, but assuming it’s stirred well to begin with you could honestly leave this for 6 hours untouched.

Now one thing I will say – it’s cooking in a crockpot, so it won’t thicken like it would if you were cooking it on the stove – I add the smallest amount of cornflour powder mixed with water just before I serve it to add a little bit more body just because that’s how I like it, you don’t have to: it’s all a matter of taste and mouth texture.

Serve it up over rice with nachos, guacamole, sour cream, hard cheese, spring onions and anything else you fancy, or dump it in the fridge to chill separate it into smaller portions and you’ve got one of the best toppings for a baked potato.

Serves 6 easily. Or freeze in batches for a meal for 2 or 4.

Ingredients: 

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 lbs lean ground beef
  • 1 medium onion
  • 4 cloves of garlic
  • Several dashes tabasco Sauce (to personal taste)
  • 2 cans dark red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 carton tomato pasata
  • 2 cans diced tomatoes
  • 2 peppers red and green
  • 4 chopped green chiles (you choose seeds in or out)
  • 1 cup beer 
  • 1 beef stock jelly
  • 2 tbsp chili powder
  • 1 tbsp ground cumin
  • 1 tspn salt
  • 1 tspn drinking chocolate
  • ½ tspn black pepper

Photo Credit: Neil A. Evans © 2020
Photo Location: At Home, Bankside, London, England.