
Hearty beef chili
It’s official friends, winter has arrived in Calgary. It has been below zero and snowing the past few days so there’s no more thinking it will melt and fall will continue. The snowy blowy weather is here to stay.
The perfect time to give you guys my chili recipe. Hearty, perfectly spiced to warm you right up it’s the perfect dish for these cold winter days.
This is a large batch, which you can easily cut in half or in thirds, but we always make a huge batch and freeze it, it makes those busy weeknight dinners a breeze .





Hearty Chili
Heart warming chili is the perfect comfort food for these cold days ahead.
Ingredients
- 3 lb ground beef*
- 2 yellow onions, diced
- 8 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1 tsp + 1 tsp seasoning salt
- 2 tbsp EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)
- 2 bell peppers, diced (I use one red and one yellow)
- 2 lb mushrooms, sliced
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp oregano
- 3 tbsp cumin
- 3 tbsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 - 2 cups beef broth
- 1 796 ml can crushed tomato
- 1 796 ml can diced tomato
- 1 540 ml can red kidney beans*
- 1 540 ml can white kidney beans*
- *Optional Garnish*
- Sour cream or greek yogurt
- grated cheddar cheese
- green onions
- cilantro or parsley
- drizzle with hot sauce
Instructions
- In a large saucepan on med/high heat, brown the onion, garlic, and peppers in the olive oil.
- Add the meat, season with 1 tsp of the seasoning salt and brown. As the meat is starting to turn brown add the mushrooms.
- Add crushed and diced tomatoes and stir until combined. Add the spices and let simmer for 10-15 minutes.
Add the red and white kidney beans and beef broth (use as much as you need to the consistency you like) and bring to a boil. Simmer half-covered for 45-60 minutes. - Season with salt and pepper, garnish as desired and serve.
Notes
* feel free to substitute ground turkey, italian sausage, ground pork or a mix for the ground beef. I use red and white kidney beans, but feel free to use whatever beans you'd like, and you don't need to use a mix.
*this is a large batch (about triple), as it freezes really well and makes those busy weeknight dinners a cinch!
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 16 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 399Total Fat: 19gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 78mgSodium: 579mgCarbohydrates: 27gFiber: 7gSugar: 6gProtein: 33g
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators and not from My Sweet Mess. Although we do attempt to provide as accurate nutritional information as possible, these figures are only estimates.
The thing I love about chili, is that you can take any good recipe and then make it yours. Don’t want beef, use Italian sausage or ground turkey. Want to make it vegan, add more beans or lentils and sub out veggie stock. Like it spicy, add chili peppers, or jalapeños. Want to get fancy, try using elk or bison and sprinkles of goat cheese. There are just so many ways to take my recipe and make it your family recipe. To me that’s what recipes are – a creative guide to make a dish yours!
Hope you enjoy this meal. If you make it, please let me know what you think, comment here or post your picture on Instagram and tag me @mysweetmess and hashtag #mysweetmess.
And if you like this recipe, here are a few other hearty winter dishes you may enjoy:
Corn chowder with fennel and crispy bacon
Deliciously rich french onion soup
Sweet potato and tomatillo soup
Till the next recipe,
Kristen xo
15 Comments
ragnarsbhut
This does look tasty.
kmysweetmess
Thank you, it is a great hearty dish for these chilly winter nights.
I hope you enjoy it!
ragnarsbhut
I do.
kmysweetmess
Great to hear, thanks so much for commenting.
ragnarsbhut
Feel free to look at my blog also.
cookingwithshy
Wonderful bowl of chili and perfect for fall! In fact just made some with corn bread last week:))
kmysweetmess
Ah that’s wonderful, it is the perfect cozy dish isn’t it.
cookingwithshy
Thanks yes…great for this cold weather right?
kmysweetmess
You got it!
wavc2017
Your chili looks fantastic! The cholula sauce addition – I have a feeling I’m gonna love it! Thank you so much for the idea and sharing such a versatile recipe!
kmysweetmess
Thank you so much, I hope you love it!!! The cholula is an awesome addition in my opinion and works great when you have kids that don’t like spice, you can add it to your own bowl after and not worry about your kids not eating it.
thefoodblognet
Chili is such a personal dish, everyone has their recipe. Yours looks delicious and the cinnamon is an interesting addition!
kmysweetmess
Thank you so much, and I agree definitely a personal thing. I love trying new recipes though. The cinnamon is a nice touch.
chef mimi
This looks fabulous! I never had chili until I moved to Texas in 1978. Then I learned quickly! They wouldn’t approve of the Cholula hot sauce, but who cares. The recipe is wonderful!
kmysweetmess
Really? So fun when you move somewhere with food, culture and traditions that are different. I always love learning more. Haha, I bet, the Cholula is definitely a personal choice. Thank you so much, so glad you like it 🙂