Chili Con Carne
A hearty, budget-friendly chili made with ground beef, onion, tomatoes, beans, tomato juice, and pantry spices. Easy to customize and suitable for stovetop or slow cooker cooking.
This recipe is Mexican style, dinner, scaled for 8 servings, with 15 min prep and 60 min cook.
Prep: 15 min · Cook: 60 min · Total: 75 min · Serves: 8
Quick cooking notes
- Core ingredients include ground beef, onion, diced tomatoes, red kidney beans.
- Follow all 6 steps in order for the intended texture and doneness.
- Ingredient quantities listed below are for 8 servings.
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground beef
- 1 large onion (chopped)
- 2 cans diced tomatoes (14.5 ounces each, undrained)
- 1 can red kidney beans (15 ounces, drained and rinsed)
- 1 can chili beans (15 ounces, undrained)
- 3 cups tomato juice
- 2 tablespoons chili powder (or to taste)
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
- 0.5 teaspoon black pepper (or to taste)
Instructions
- In a large Dutch oven or heavy pot, cook the ground beef and chopped onion over medium heat until the beef is browned and the onion is softened.
- Drain off excess fat, then return the beef mixture to the pot.
- Add the diced tomatoes, red kidney beans, chili beans, tomato juice, and sugar. Stir well to combine.
- Bring the chili to a gentle simmer, then season with chili powder, salt, and black pepper to taste.
- Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the chili thickens and the flavors meld, about 45 minutes.
- Serve hot with optional toppings such as shredded cheese, sour cream, and oyster crackers.
Nutrition (per serving)
- Calories: 360
- Protein: 26 g
- Fat: 18 g
- Carbohydrates: 21 g
- Sugar: 8 g
- Sodium: 780 mg
Nutrition values are estimates based on stored ingredient totals and serving size.