Classic Slow Cooker Chili
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil or avocado oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced small
- 1 medium red bell pepper, diced small
- 4 medium garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika, optional, but delicious
- 1 pound lean ground beef or ground turkey (see note)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
- 1 (16-ounce) can tomato sauce
- 2 cans (15-ounces each) light or dark kidney beans, rinsed and drained (see note)
For serving:
- Shredded cheddar cheese
- Sour cream
Instructions
- In a large, 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat the oil over medium heat and add the onions, bell peppers and garlic. Cook, stirring often, for 2-3 minutes. Add the chili powder, cumin, and smoked paprika and stir to combine. Cook for another minute or so.
- Add the ground beef or turkey, salt and pepper to the skillet and cook, breaking up the meat into small pieces, until the ground beef or turkey is no longer pink, 5-6 minutes. Drain any excess grease.
- Scoop the mixture into a round 6-quart (or similar size) slow cooker. Stir in the brown sugar, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, and beans.
- Cover and cook 8-9 hours on low or 5-6 hours on high. (The chili will thicken slightly the longer it stands after cooking.) Add additional salt and pepper to taste if needed.
- Serve with shredded cheddar cheese, sour cream and any other chili toppings you like.
Notes
Beef: this chili is also delicious with beef cubes (a chuck roast cut into 1-inch pieces or prepackaged stew meat). If doing so, you don't need to cook it in the skillet first.
Heat: also, if you want to increase the heat (as is, the chili isn't overly spicy), consider adding chopped jalapeños (fresh or from the jar) or additional chili powder.
Beans: you can sub in just about any other kind of canned bean that you like (black, pinto, etc)