Classic Chili with beef and beans is one of our go-to comfort foods. Cumin, plus ancho and chipotle chiles lend a deep and smoky flavor to the beef while cinnamon and a little dark chocolate give it just the right balance. This chili is great served with sliced jalapeno, sour cream, and diced white onion. But truth be told, it has so much flavor, you don’t even need any toppings!
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I’ve been making classic beef and bean chili in our home for years now and every time I make it a little differently.
Sometimes I’ll add a little cinnamon, other times a little extra heat; sometimes I’ll use ground turkey, or even cubed chuck for a Chili Colorado.
So this recipe for classic chili with ground beef is based on hundreds of runs with chili culminating in a perfect recipe that I know you will love.
And if you’re looking for a lighter chili, check out our white chicken chili with roasted poblano peppers.
Recipe ingredients
All ingredients for this recipe are shown in the pic below and special notes are made in this bulleted list to assist you.
- Ground beef. I prefer to use 80/20 ground chuck for the best possible flavor.
- Chiles. Since the flavor in chili relies heavily on the blend of spices used, we believe that going the extra step of freshly grinding whole-dried chiles is the best way to achieve maximum flavor. Here I’m using a combination of ancho and chipotle chiles and find that blend gives us the perfect rich and smoky flavor we always crave in a chili. If you can’t find whole dried peppers, you can always use store-bought ground chili powder or buy them through Amazon.
- Beans. Kidney beans are a great addition to chili and allow the dish to stretch even further. Alternatively, you can use pinto or black beans for this recipe.
- Beef stock. Use low-sodium beef base or homemade beef stock.
- Guinness. This is a wonderful addition to chili but you could also use other types of stout, dark beer, or ale. If you can’t have alcohol, you can omit it and use extra beef stock.
- Cinnamon and chocolate. These two ingredients enhance the flavor and depth of this chili.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to make it
Each number corresponds to the numbered written steps below.
- Remove the stems and seeds from 2 dried ancho chiles and 2 dried chipotle chiles. (Photo #1)
- In a pan over medium heat, toast the chiles for 30-40 seconds on each side until fragrant. Remove the chiles from the heat and set aside. (Photo #2)
- To the same pan, add 2 tablespoons of chili powder, 2 tablespoons of ground cumin, and 2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon and toast for 1 minute stirring frequently. Note: If you opt to not use dried whole chiles, increase the amount of chili powder to 5 tablespoons. (Photo #3)
- Add the toasted spices along with the dried peppers and a 1/4 cup of tortilla chips to a food processor or coffee grinder and blend until a fine powder is formed, then set aside. (Photo #4)
- Dice one large onion and preheat the oven to 300f, placing a rack in the middle. Heat a large Dutch oven to medium heat and saute the onion in 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil for about 5 minutes or until soft. Add 2 pounds of ground beef chuck and saute until browned while breaking it up with a wooden spoon, about 7-10 minutes. (Photo #5)
- While the beef is cooking, bloom the spice mixture by heating a pan to medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil along with the spices. Cook for 1-2 minutes or until very fragrant. Once fragrant, add 1/4 cup of water to the pan. Note: You can scoop some of the beef fat out of the pot and use that instead of the vegetable oil for this step. (Photo #6)
- Once the beef is cooked, add the bloomed spice mixture to the beef and continue to cook for another minute while stirring to incorporate. (Photo #7)
- Add 6 ounces of tomato paste to the beef and cook for 3 minutes while stirring to combine. Then add 2 teaspoons of salt, 2 tablespoons of sugar, and 1 tablespoon of garlic powder and mix well. (Photo #8)
- Add one 12-ounce bottle of Guinness or other dark beer, along with 2 cups of low-sodium beef stock, and 3 16-ounce cans of drained kidney beans. Bring the mixture to a boil. (Photo #9)
- Once boiling, give it a stir, then turn the heat off. Place a lid on the Dutch oven and move to the oven for 75 minutes. (Photo #10)
- After 75 minutes, remove the lid and return to the oven for another 45-60 minutes or until the chili has thickened substantially. Note: If the chili has thickened, feel free to remove the pot early or if needed add a touch of water. Most likely though, the chili will be on the more liquid side and will need to be thickened with the extra cooking time. (Photo #11)
- For a thicker chili, cook uncovered for another 30 minutes. Alternatively, place the pot on a burner and cook over medium heat until thickened to your liking. Remove the pot from the oven and add 1 1/2 ounces of 70% dark chocolate, stirring to combine. Taste test the chili and adjust salt and spice levels to taste. If more spice is desired, add cayenne powder to taste. Serve in bowls and offer toppings such as sour cream, diced raw onion, cheddar cheese, cilantro, sliced jalapenos, or any other toppings you’d like. Enjoy! (Photo #12)
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Top tips
- Cooking the chili. This chili is great when slow-cooked in the oven, but you can still achieve great results on a stovetop. The idea is to cook the high-fat ground chuck in a low and slow manner until the desired thickness is achieved.
- Better the next day. As with any soup or stew, chili is better the next day. If you’re able to plan ahead, allow your chili to chill in the fridge overnight, then reheat the next day. If you have leftovers, feel free to use it to make some chili mac and cheese!
- Condiments and sides. We all have our favorite condiments for chili so be as creative as you’d like. Must-have condiments for our family include sour cream, diced white onion, sliced jalapenos, cilantro, and cheddar cheese. While we usually add Tabasco or other hot sauces to our chili, we found that this particular version did not need any hot sauce as it was perfectly seasoned and flavored. We also usually serve chili with rice or cornbread which allows you to stretch the meal even further.
More beef recipes you’ll love
If you’re looking for more ways to use up your ground beef, give these recipes a try!
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Classic Chili
Classic chili with ground beef and beans flavored with smoky chipotle and ancho chiles, cumin, and cinnamon.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup (60ml) vegetable oil divided
- 1 large onion diced
- 2 pounds (908g) ground chuck
- 1 6-ounce can tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons fine sea salt
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 2 tablespoons (26g) granulated sugar
- 3 16-ounce cans kidney beans drained
- 1 12-ounce bottle Guinness
- 2 cups (480ml) low sodium beef stock
- 1 1/2 ounces (42g) 70% dark chocolate
- cayenne pepper to taste, see notes below
For the ground spice mixture
- 2 dried ancho chiles stems and seeds removed
- 2 dried chipotle chiles stems and seeds removed
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 2 tablespoons (16g) chili powder note: if not using whole dried chiles increase to 5 tablespoons
- 2 tablespoons (14g) ground cumin
- 1/4 cup (30g) crushed tortilla chips
Instructions
For the ground spice mixture
- Remove the stems and seeds from the dried ancho and chipotle peppers. Toast the chiles in a dry pan over medium heat for 30 seconds per side or until fragrant. Remove chiles from the heat to a plate then add the chili powder, cumin, and cinnamon to the pan and toast for 1 minute stirring frequently.
- Place the peppers along with the chili powder, cumin, cinnamon, and tortilla chips into a food processor. Blend until a fine powder is formed.
For the chili
- Preheat oven to 300f and set the rack to the middle level.
- Heat a large Dutch oven to medium heat and saute the onion in 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil until soft (about 5 minutes).
- Add the ground beef and saute until browned while breaking it up with a wooden spoon (about 7 minutes).
- While the beef is cooking bloom the spice mixture. Heat a pan to medium heat and add the remaining 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil along with the prepared spice mixture. Cook for 1-2 minutes or until very fragrant. Once fragrant add a 1/4 cup of water to the pan.
- Once the beef is browned add the bloomed spice mix to the beef and continue to cook for another 1 minute stirring to incorporate.
- Add the tomato paste to the beef and cook for 3 minutes stirring well to combine. Next, add the salt, sugar, and garlic powder and mix well.
- Add the Guinness, low-sodium beef stock, and kidney beans, and bring to a boil. Once boiling, give it all a stir then turn the heat off and cover. Place the Dutch oven in the oven for 75 minutes.
- After 75 minutes remove the lid and return to the oven for another 30-45 minutes or until the chili has thickened. For a thicker chili, cook uncovered for another 30 minutes. Alternatively, place the pot on a burner and cook over medium heat until thickened to your liking.
- Remove the pot from the oven and add the chocolate, stirring to combine. Taste test the chili and adjust salt and spice levels to taste. An easy way to bring up the spice level quickly is with cayenne powder to taste. Serve in bowls topped with sour cream, diced raw onion, cheddar cheese, or whatever you like. Enjoy!
Notes
- The single most important thing you can do to improve your chili is to make it one day in advance and refrigerate overnight! The flavors will be so much better.
- The amount of cayenne or omitting completely will depend on the spice level of the dried chilis and commercial chili powder you use. For this reason, it’s recommended to wait until the end before adding the cayenne.
- Anaheim, Pasilla, or Guajillo can be substituted for the Ancho chiles.
- 2 dried ancho chiles equal approximately 2 tablespoons of chili powder and 2 dried chipotles equal approximately 1 tablespoon of chili powder. If using just ground chili powder increase from 2 to 5 tablespoons total.
- Leftovers can be saved for up to 3 days and can be reheated on the stovetop or in the microwave.
Nutrition
Calories: 768kcal | Carbohydrates: 75.3g | Protein: 45.6g | Fat: 30.4g | Saturated Fat: 10.3g | Cholesterol: 81mg | Sodium: 814mg | Potassium: 1620mg | Fiber: 17.3g | Sugar: 9g | Calcium: 121mg | Iron: 9mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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This recipe is on my list to make. Yum! I am replacing the chipotle with guajillo chilies because I’m not a big fan of smokey flavors. I found an online store called ‘Rico Rico’ to buy chilies, which is a GREAT option when you don’t have access to Mexican food ingredients. Free shipping over $15. And it’s fast. I’m trying to stay off Amazon as much as possible, ordering directly from the businesses themselves when I can.
Anyway, yes, I can’t wait to try this. I never miss your recipe videos, and even signed up to your Patreon! 😁 I really enjoy watching your family interact- and The Taste Tester is absolutely adorable and so smart! 😊
Hi Patti, thanks for the comment and we really hope you enjoy the chili! We really appreciate the comment, as well as your support on Patreon. Thank you!
James, for years I detested this style of chili for one reason, kidney beans. These days I use a combo of black beans and pinto, 100% improvement. Look up Chez Piggie’s 10th Anniversary Chili, truly epic chili. For a more authentic Texas chili, check out the Homesick Texan’s 7 chili chili, outstanding. Love your YouTube channel, and you website. I recommend you guys to all my friends.
I made this Chili.. It was so flavorful and hit the spot when our outside temperature was only 19! This is a keeper in our house for sure. The spices came together perfectly and I used the 5 tablespoons of dry chili powder.
I am a patron and love your family and their tasting reviews!
We’re so happy to hear that, Jan, and grateful for your support as a Patron – thank you!
5 stars!! So much flavor. A little spicy for me but my family loved it!
We’re so happy you enjoyed, Denise!
Double the salt.
Heaping tablespoon of Mexican Oregano.
Teaspoon of apple cider vinegar.
Cayenne to taste.
Bulls Eye.
We’re happy you enjoyed, Dean.
Too salty. All your recipes are too salty
Hi Christian, we only add 2 teaspoons of salt to the recipe and do recommend using a low-sodium beef stock. If you used regular beef stock, it would certainly be on the saltier side. As always, we recommend tasting before adding any additional salt to any dish.
So where is the chocolate in the ingredients list???
It’s just above cayenne pepper. Please see the ingredients list in the recipe card.
This is the best ground beef chili I have ever made! It’s not a super simple chili to make but it’s not difficult either, and it’s totally worth it. Thank you for this delicious recipe.
We’re so happy you enjoyed!
I have never eaten a classic chili bean recipe made this way before. An excellent recipe indeed in my opinion. I can’t hardly wait to try it. I will ask my wife to make it and make sure to get all the ingredients together. Thank you for sharing this recipe with everyone.
Hi Timothy, we hope you love it when you try it!
Absolutely amazing. We skip the chocolate but it’s still the best Chili ever. So deep rich and complex. My only complaint is that it gets eaten so fast. Not much of an opportunity for leftovers.
So happy you enjoyed, Arthur!
Hey James, this looks great! Planning on doing a slight variation of this this week using smoked chuck roast and black beans.
Question about the dark chocolate addition, I’m assuming this is an unsweetened dark chocolate cocoa powder?
Hi Karl, we hope you love it. The chocolate we used was bar chocolate – 70% cacao by Ghirardelli.
James & Family,
I have been enjoying very much your recipes and presentations. Also the warmth of the Family in your videos! Your show is comparable to Lidia’s and then some….great job with a lot of passion. Please publish a cookbook of these delicious recipes soon.
Thank you from a fellow Long Islander(Sea Cliff-Glen Cove).
Hi Walt, thanks for the comment! We are so happy you’re enjoying the recipes. We are working on a cookbook and will share updates as soon as we can. Thanks for following along with us!
Made this several times and my friends agree it’s the best chili they’ve ever had. Thank you. Making it again tomorrow for the Super Bowl.
Best chili ever. I made it for the big game tomorrow! I’m sure everyone will love it!
So happy you enjoyed it, Susan!
Can I make this in the crockpot?
Hi Shelly, yes, you can for most of the recipe, although prepping and toasting the dried chiles (steps 1-4) should be done as indicated in the recipe.