Slow-Cooker Chili Con Carne

Why To Love This Slow Cooker Chili Con Carne

There are many reasons why you should give this recipe a try:

1. This recipe is very easy – just brown the meat, add vegetables, and the rest of the ingredients and leave it to cook slowly for a few hours. Your slow cooker (crock pot) will do all the hard work for you! Taco Tuesdays don’t get easier than this!
2. This chili with meat is comforting, hearty and warming – ideal for a cosy night in!
3. The recipe is perfect for batch cooking and making ahead – just adjust the quantities of ingredients as needed, and you serve it to your party guests or freeze it for later!
4. This recipe is super versatile and can be served in many different ways – the meaty sauce can be served with rice, tortillas, or pour it over nachos.
5. Lastly, classic pantry ingredients such as canned kidney beans, chopped tomatoes and tomato passata are used to make a delicious sauce, saving you time pre-soaking dry beans, or chopping fresh tomatoes.

Key Ingredients for Slow-Cooked Chili Con Carne

As mentioned before, this chili with minced beef recipe is big on taste and small on prep. It combines fresh, canned and dry ingredients, that together create a wonderfully balanced flavor. Here is what you need to make it:

• Ground beef –a source of protein, and important vitamins (B12, B3, B1, B2, B5, B6), and minerals (iron, phosphorus, zinc). Use lean (low-fat) minced beef if you can. If using 10-20% fat beef, then do not add any rapeseed oil - there will be enough fat in the meat that will be enough for browning it.
• A brown onion adds texture and flavor of the sauce, just like chopped garlic.
• Canned chopped tomatoes and tomato passata give the sauce the typical red color and beautiful rich tomato taste. Choose a sweeter variety of canned tomatoes if you can, and if they aren’t sweet enough, add a small amount of sugar (½ – 1 tsp) or sweetener to the sauce.
• Bell peppers add a sweet flavour, a bit of a crunch and color to the dish. Fresh or frozen red, green, yellow or orange bell peppers will all work in the recipe – use what you have on hand.
• Red kidney beans add extra fiber, vitamins and minerals (iron, manganese, folate, phosphorus, B1) that are important for a balanced meal. Use canned kidney beans to shorten cooking time, ad add them just towards the end to prevent overcooking (splitting).
• The sauce is seasoned with ground paprika, chili flakes, chopped coriander, salt and pepper.
• Add a wedge of fresh lime and some chopped coriander (cilantro) just before serving to elevate the flavours of the sauce even more.

For exact measurements and detailed instructions, please find the recipe card below this article.

Substitutes & Variations

Don’t worry if you need to swap some of the items in this recipe. Here are my suggestions on what the best substitutes are:

• Minced meat – this recipe will work with minced pork and beef mix, minced pork or with minced turkey. Remember to add cooking oil if your chosen meat is low on fat and skip the oil if the ground meat contains more than 10% fat.
• Tomato passata can be replaced by a tin of chopped or plum tomatoes (400g), or by fresh tomatoes (in season) with a spoonful of tomato puree.
• Red kidney beans - use tinned cannellini beans, black beans, or sweet corn (all drained and rinsed).
• Coriander (cilantro) – if you run out of fresh one, use dried coriander (cilantro) leaves, or frozen coriander.

For swap ratios see the recipe card below this post.

Recipe Instructions

Before you start cooking, prepare all ingredients and the slow cooker.

1. Brown the meat. Add spices, chopped onion and garlic.
2. Add chopped tomatoes, tomato passata, water and chopped coriander (cilantro).
3. Cook for 2 hours on high settings.
4. Add sliced peppers and cook for 1 hour.
5. Add kidney beans and cook for another 30 minutes.
6. Serve with coriander, and a wedge of lime.

For a more detailed recipe and ingredient list, see the recipe card at the end of this article.

Top Tips

See my recommendations on how to make this meal perfectly each time:

• Cook low and slow for a richer flavor of the dish. Your slow cooker will do all the hard work in the background, whilst you can get on with your day. If you have the time, then start cooking early and enjoy the most delicious chili at the end of your day.
• Brown the meat first. Again, if you have the time in the morning, take the extra five minutes to sear the meat on the hob. This will lock in the flavours and juices of the meat that will be a good base for the sauce. If you’re in rush, you can cook the meat directly in the slow cooker – just break it up with a wooden spoon before adding spices and other ingredients.
• To save time prepping, cook with frozen vegetables – frozen onion, garlic, and peppers will cook well in the slow cooker. But all of these will cool the slow cooker down, so you will need to add another hour of cooking time.

Having some passata left? Bag it and freeze it for later, or refrigerate and consume within a week from opening.

Storage & Reheating

You can make this recipe a few days in advance and store it for later. If that’s the case, don’t add any toppings or garnishes before refrigerating the meaty sauce. Instead, add them just before serving. This chili with ground beef will keep covered in the fridge for up to 3 days.

This chili can be also stored frozen. Let it cool down, place it into a freezer-safe container, seal and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge or reheat straight from frozen (instructions below).

Reheating

Refrigerated beef chili can be easily reheated in the microwave or on the stove. Choose a method that suits you best, follow these instructions and always ensure the food is hot before serving:

In a microwave – transfer the meaty sauce with veggies onto a microwave-safe plate or a bowl. Place into a microwave for 4-7 minutes depending on the power of your appliance (less powerful microwave ovens will need more time to warm up the food, and the other way around). Stir the contents of the bowl halfway through. This method is great for reheating individual portions, and for reheating defrosted chili con carne.

On the hob – place the chili mix into a saucepan and set on medium-high heat. Bring to a simmer and cook gently for at least 5-7 minutes. Stir regularly to help it stop burning from the bottom of the pan. This works well for reheating several portions at a time. Use this way of reheating for reheating the chili from frozen – it will take 7-10 minutes or until piping hot.

What To Serve With Chili Con Carne

This Tex-Mex stew is beautiful for its flavour and versatility. You can serve it with a variety of side dishes, each of them suiting many different occasions:

• Long grain rice,
• Tortillas,
• Over nachos (fried tortilla chips).

Don’t forget to add juicy toppings such as coriander (cilantro), limes, avocado (guacamole), soured cream, grated cheese (cheddar), and jalapeno peppers or fresh chilies – they will make the plates (or the whole table spread) more colorful and the meal even more delicious!

And, of course, it will go well with a glass of frozen margarita!

More Slow Cooker (Crockpot) Recipes

• Slow cooker sausage casserole with pearl barley
• Beef brisket stew with carrots and potatoes
• Pulled pork burgers
• Slow cooker red cabbage
• Crockpot leek and potato soup