Hearty Slow Cooker Chili (Printable)

Hearty chili with ground beef, beans, tomatoes, and spices. Simple dump-and-go preparation in your slow cooker.

# What You'll Need:

→ Meats

01 - 1 pound ground beef

→ Vegetables

02 - 1 medium onion, diced
03 - 2 cloves garlic, minced
04 - 1 red bell pepper, diced

→ Beans & Legumes

05 - 1 can (15 ounces) kidney beans, drained and rinsed
06 - 1 can (15 ounces) black beans, drained and rinsed

→ Tomatoes & Liquids

07 - 1 can (28 ounces) crushed tomatoes
08 - 1 can (15 ounces) diced tomatoes
09 - 1 cup beef broth

→ Spices & Seasonings

10 - 2 tablespoons chili powder
11 - 1 teaspoon ground cumin
12 - 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
13 - 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
14 - 1/2 teaspoon salt
15 - 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
16 - 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional

# How-To Steps:

01 - Heat a large skillet over medium heat and brown the ground beef until no longer pink, approximately 8 minutes. Drain excess fat. This step is optional for a true dump-and-go approach, but browning develops deeper flavor.
02 - Transfer the cooked beef to the slow cooker. Add the diced onion, minced garlic, diced bell pepper, drained kidney beans, drained black beans, crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, and beef broth.
03 - Sprinkle the chili powder, ground cumin, smoked paprika, dried oregano, salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper into the slow cooker.
04 - Stir all ingredients thoroughly to ensure even distribution of seasonings. Cover the slow cooker and cook on low setting for 6 to 8 hours, or on high setting for 3 to 4 hours.
05 - Taste the chili and adjust salt, pepper, or spices as needed. Ladle into bowls and serve hot, optionally garnished with shredded cheese, sour cream, chopped green onions, or fresh cilantro.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • It actually tastes like you spent hours in the kitchen, but your only real work happens in about ten minutes.
  • The spice blend is perfectly balanced—warm and savory without being aggressive, so even people who claim they don't like spicy food ask for seconds.
  • Leftovers taste even better the next day, and it freezes beautifully, turning this into a make-ahead superpower.
02 -
  • Rinsing your canned beans isn't just a suggestion—it removes the starchy liquid that can make your chili gloppy and heavy, so don't skip this step even when you're tempted.
  • If you're torn about whether to brown the meat, know that browning adds a caramelized depth that makes all the difference, but the dump-and-go method still produces delicious results if you're truly pressed for time.
03 -
  • If your slow cooker runs hot, check the chili at the five-hour mark so it doesn't overcook—every appliance has its own personality.
  • Make a double batch and freeze half—this dish is so forgiving that multiplying the recipe doesn't change the cooking time, and future you will be incredibly grateful for the shortcut.
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