Slow Cooker Chili Recipe: Thick, Hearty & Perfect for Fall

There’s something about the first cool days of fall that makes us want to pull out the slow cooker.

After a summer of grilling and lighter meals, cooler temperatures mean it’s time for the kind of food that can simmer away all day and have the RV smelling incredible by dinnertime.

We recently made our Slow Cooker Beef Stew, and this time we were craving a big pot of homemade chili.

This Slow Cooker Chili Recipe is exactly the kind of meal we want on a cool fall day. It’s thick, hearty, and loaded with ground beef, beans, tomatoes, peppers, and plenty of seasoning.

We also added a couple of ingredients you might not expect—dark chocolate and espresso concentrate. You won’t really taste either one individually, but they add another layer of deep, rich flavor to the finished chili.

Best of all, our 8-quart Crock-Pot has a Browning/Sear setting, so we browned the ground beef right in the Crock-Pot before adding everything else.

No frying pan. No transferring the meat. And no extra pan to wash.

Once everything was in the pot, we switched it over to Slow Cook and let it simmer away while the RV filled with the smell of chili.

By dinnertime, all that was left to do was grab a bowl, add some shredded cheddar and sour cream, open the bag of Fritos, and dig in.

Looking for a chili specifically made for football season? Check out our Game Day Chili Recipe for another crowd-pleasing option.

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Why You’ll Love This Slow Cooker Chili Recipe

There are plenty of chili recipes out there, but this one checks a lot of boxes for us.

It’s a big, hearty batch of chili made for our 8-quart Crock-Pot. It’s thick rather than soupy, has plenty of meat and beans, and develops even more flavor as it slowly cooks.

It’s also an especially good recipe for RV life because we can do everything in one pot.

Our Crock-Pot has a Browning/Sear function, so we can brown the ground beef and cook the vegetables right in the same pot we’re going to use for slow cooking.

Once everything is combined, there’s really nothing left to do.

That’s our kind of RV cooking.

Slow Cooker Chili Ingredients

This is a big batch of chili. We used our 8-quart Crock-Pot, and with five pounds of ground beef plus the beans and tomatoes, it makes plenty for dinner and leftovers.

Meat & Vegetables

• 5 pounds 80/20 ground beef
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• About 1 tablespoon minced garlic

Tomatoes & Beans

• 2 (28-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes
• 1 (14.5-ounce) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
• 1 (10-ounce) can RO*TEL
• 1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste
• 2 (15-ounce) cans dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (15-ounce) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed

Liquid & Flavor

• 1 cup beef broth
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon Nescafé Espresso Concentrate
• ½ ounce (14 grams) unsweetened baking chocolate, finely grated

Seasonings

• ½ cup chili powder
• 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper

For Serving

We went with:

• Shredded cheddar cheese
• Sour cream
• Fritos

You could obviously serve yours however you like, but after trying the finished bowl with crackers and then Fritos, the Fritos won this round.

How to Make Slow Cooker Chili

One of the things we like most about this recipe is that everything happens in the same Crock-Pot.

1. Brown the Ground Beef

Set the Crock-Pot to Browning/Sear.

Add the ground beef and begin breaking it apart as it cooks.

Because we were working with five pounds of ground beef, there’s quite a bit of meat going into this chili. Give it enough time to brown rather than simply steaming in the pot.

Drain off excess grease if necessary.

2. Add the Peppers and Onion

Add the diced green bell pepper, red bell pepper, and onion to the browned beef.

Continue cooking until the vegetables begin to soften.

3. Add the Garlic

Stir in about 1 tablespoon of minced garlic.

Cook it briefly with the beef and vegetables until fragrant.

You don’t need to cook the garlic for long. We’re just giving it a little time in the hot pot before everything else goes in.

4. Add the Seasonings

Now add:

• ½ cup chili powder
• 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• ½ teaspoon cayenne

Stir the seasonings into the beef and vegetables.

Letting the spices hit the heat for a short time before adding all the liquid helps wake up their flavor.

5. Stir Everything Together

Give the seasoned beef and vegetables a good stir so everything is evenly combined.

At this point, you’ve already built the base for the chili without dirtying another pan.

6. Add the Tomatoes

Add the crushed tomatoes, fire-roasted diced tomatoes, RO*TEL, and tomato paste.

The crushed tomatoes make up most of the chili’s thick tomato base, while the fire-roasted tomatoes and RO*TEL add more flavor and texture.

7. Add the Beans

Drain and rinse the kidney beans, pinto beans, and black beans before adding them to the Crock-Pot.

We like using several kinds of beans instead of just one because they add different textures to the finished chili.

8. Add the Beef Broth

Pour in 1 cup of beef broth.

This might not seem like much liquid for such a large batch, but that’s intentional.

The tomatoes and vegetables will release additional liquid while everything cooks. We’re making chili—not chili soup.

9. Add the Final Flavor Boosters

Stir in:

• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• ½ ounce finely grated unsweetened baking chocolate
• 1 teaspoon Nescafé Espresso Concentrate

Now give everything a really good stir.

The Crock-Pot is going to look pretty full at this point.

That’s okay.

This recipe was made in our 8-quart Crock-Pot, so we had plenty of room for the full batch.

Why Put Chocolate and Espresso in Chili?

I know.

Chocolate and coffee in chili sounds a little strange.

Neither one is there to make the chili taste like chocolate or coffee.

The unsweetened chocolate adds a subtle richness and helps round out some of the acidity from the tomatoes, while the espresso concentrate adds another layer of deep, roasted flavor.

We’re only using a small amount of each in a very large pot of chili.

The goal isn’t to be able to identify either ingredient.

It’s for somebody to take a bite and think:

There’s something really good going on in there.

Slow Cook Until Thick and Hearty

Once everything is mixed together, switch the Crock-Pot from Browning/Sear to Slow Cook.

Cook the chili on:

LOW for about 8 hours.

Give it a stir occasionally if you’re around, but otherwise this is where the Crock-Pot earns its keep.

The long cooking time gives all those individual ingredients time to turn into one big pot of chili.

How Thick Should Slow Cooker Chili Be?

We like our chili thick.

You should be able to scoop it into a bowl without having a bunch of watery liquid pooling around everything.

This batch came out exactly that way.

The crushed tomatoes and tomato paste create a thick base, while the relatively small amount of beef broth provides enough liquid for everything to cook without turning the chili into soup.

If you prefer a thinner chili, you can always add a little more beef broth near the end.

It’s much easier to thin chili than it is to rescue one that’s too watery.

How We Served Our Chili

Now for the important part.

Toppings.

We topped ours with shredded cheddar cheese and sour cream.

And yes, I got a little creative with the sour cream.

We initially tried serving it with crackers.

Nothing wrong with that.

But then we broke out the Fritos.

That was better.

The crunch and salty corn flavor work really well with the thick chili, so that’s how I’d serve it again.

We even threw a few Fritos directly into the bowl.

One-Pot Chili Is Perfect for RV Cooking

This is where this recipe really earns a spot in our RV meal rotation.

RV kitchens aren’t exactly known for unlimited counter space, huge sinks, or tons of room for dirty dishes.

Anything that eliminates another skillet is a win.

Because our Crock-Pot has a Browning/Sear function, we browned all five pounds of ground beef right in the cooking pot.

Then we added the vegetables.

Then the seasonings.

Then the tomatoes, beans, broth, and everything else.

When dinner was over, we weren’t looking at a Crock-Pot and a greasy skillet that needed washing.

That’s one of those little things that matters a lot more when your entire kitchen is inside a motorhome.

The Crock-Pot We Use

Our 8-quart Crock-Pot isn’t just a basic slow cooker.

It has a Browning/Sear function, which is what allowed us to cook the ground beef directly in the pot before switching over to Slow Cook.

That feature is particularly useful in an RV because it eliminates the need for a separate skillet.

Slow Cooker Chili Tips

A few things we learned from making this batch:

Use an 8-quart slow cooker. This is a big recipe. Five pounds of ground beef plus four cans of beans and all those tomatoes takes up some serious room.

Don’t add too much liquid at the beginning. The tomatoes, peppers, and onions release moisture as they cook.

Brown the beef first. You get better flavor and texture than you would from putting raw ground beef directly into the chili.

Give the spices a little time in the heat. Adding them while you’re still using the Browning/Sear setting gives them a chance to become fragrant before the liquid goes in.

Don’t worry about tasting the chocolate or espresso. Neither should jump out at you. They’re there in the background.

Make enough for leftovers. Chili is one of those foods that can taste even better after spending a night in the refrigerator.

How to Store Leftover Chili

Let the chili cool slightly, then transfer the leftovers into shallow, airtight containers and get them into the refrigerator within two hours of cooking. Dividing a big batch like ours into smaller containers also helps it cool more quickly.

The USDA recommends keeping refrigerated leftovers for 3–4 days. If you know you won’t finish it within that time, freeze individual portions for later.

When reheating, heat the chili thoroughly until it reaches 165°F throughout. The chili will probably thicken considerably in the refrigerator, so add a small splash of beef broth if you want to loosen it back up.

And chili is one of those meals that can taste even better the next day after all those flavors have had more time to mingle.

Can You Freeze Slow Cooker Chili?

Absolutely.

Chili is one of the meals that’s worth making in a big batch specifically because it freezes so well.

Let it cool and portion it into freezer-safe containers, leaving a little room for expansion.

Individual portions are particularly handy because you can thaw only what you need instead of defrosting an entire container.

That can turn today’s big Crock-Pot dinner into several easy meals later.

What to Do With Leftover Chili

Reheating another bowl is the obvious answer, but leftover chili gives you plenty of options.

You can use it for chili dogs, spoon it over a baked potato, pile it onto nachos, or make chili cheese fries.

But considering how this batch turned out, simply reheating another bowl and grabbing the bag of Fritos isn’t exactly a bad Plan B.

Slow Cooker Chili Recipe

Frequently Asked Questions About Slow Cooker Chili

More Fall Slow Cooker Recipes

If you like this chili, don’t put the Crock-Pot away yet.

Our Slow Cooker Beef Stew Recipe is another hearty cool-weather meal that’s perfect for fall camping, workdays, or those days when you just want dinner cooking while you’re doing something else.

And if you’re looking for another chili variation, check out our Game Day Chili Recipe. It’s another hearty chili that’s perfect for football season, tailgating, or feeding a hungry crowd on game day.

Final Thoughts

This is exactly the kind of recipe we like making in the RV.

It’s hearty.

It makes a ton of food.

Most of the cooking happens while we’re off doing something else.

And because our Crock-Pot lets us brown the meat and slow cook in the same pot, cleanup is about as simple as you can make it for a meal this size.

But the real test is always the finished bowl.

This one passed.

Thick chili, plenty of beef and beans, shredded cheddar, sour cream, and a handful of Fritos.

That’s a pretty hard combination to beat on a cool fall evening.

How do you top your chili—cheese and sour cream, crackers, Fritos, or something completely different?