I never really make beef chili. I was actually kind of giggling to myself the entire time that I was creating this recipe. The reason is because the ONE dish that my husband would always make was chili. We used to make a joke about it whenever he’d offer to make dinner. But then one night, I found myself looking for something to do with an excessive amount of ground beef on a chilly Fall night. I stumbled into creating One Darn Good Chili.

And really… is there anything better than chili on a cool Fall evening? It’s like a warm hug. Plus my daughter is absolutely obsessed with cornbread and I’m going to use any excuse that I have to cook up some cornbread.

By the way, this chili is absolutely delicious. Usually when I’m coming up with a new recipe, it will require a few tweaks before I really feel happy with it, but man, this first attempt really hit it out of the park. My husband declared it the end of his chili-making era. Haha! But, I have to agree… my chili was waaaaay better than his chili. 😉

Let me show you how I made One Darn Good Chili 👇🏻

Start by dicing up your uncooked bacon slices. Throw them in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat and cook until the bacon is crispy, about 8 minutes.

Remove the crispy bacon to a plate lined with a paper towel, leaving the bacon grease in your pot. Add the onion, jalapeño, and garlic to the bacon grease and cook until the veggies are soft, about 2-3 minutes.

Add the ground beef to the pot with the veggies. Cook the beef until it is cooked and no longer pink, breaking it up as it cooks.

Depending on the beef that you use, you may need to drain some of the grease from the pot once the beef is cooked. (I used an 80-20 and drained all but one or two tablespoons of grease from the pot).

Now add all of the remaining ingredients to the pot- the beef broth, tomato sauce, tomato paste, both beans, diced tomatoes, bacon, chili powder, cumin, crushed red pepper flakes (I’d recommend at least 1 tsp, 2 or 3 if you like a little heat), paprika, sugar, salt, and pepper. Give everything a good stir and bring it to a boil. Once it has come to a boil, turn the heat to low, and cover it with a lid.

It will look loose and runny at this stage. The reason for that is because now it is going to cook and meld all of those lovely flavors together. Cook your chili until it reaches your desired thickness.

I ended up cooking my chili for about an hour and a half. I like my chili on the thicker side. Top it with some fixin’s like cheese, sliced green onion, or sour cream. Maybe some reserved crispy bacon. Whatever you like.

Time to grab a spoon and some buttered cornbread and enjoy this Darn Good Chili!

Enjoy!

These are the recommended products that I used to make this delicious recipe! These are not only products that I use, but products that I love.

One Darn Good Chili

A super delicious recipe for traditional beef chili!

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 1 30

Servings 8 Servings

Author Maggie @ Cupcakes and Sarcasm

Ingredients

8-10 Raw Bacon Slices
2 Lbs Ground Beef (I’d recommend 80/20 or 85/15)
1 White Onion, diced
1 Jalapeno, finely diced
4 Garlid Cloves, minced
2 1/2 Cups Low-Sodium Beef Broth
15 Oz Canned Tomato Sauce
4 Oz Tomato Paste
15.5 Oz Pinto Beans, drained and rinsed
15.5 Oz White Kidney Beans, drained and rinsed
14.5 Oz Canned Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes (undrained)
1 Tbsp Chili Powder
2 Tsp Ground Cumin
1 Tsp Paprika
1-2 Tsp Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
2 Tsp Granulated Sugar
1 Tsp Salt
1/2 Tsp Black Pepper
Optional Toppings: Cheddar cheese, sliced green onion, sour cream, crispy bacon

Instructions

Start by dicing your uncooked bacon slices. Add them to a large pot or Dutch oven, over medium-high heat and cook until the bacon pieces are crispy, about 8 minutes. Remove the bacon from the pot to a paper-towel lined plate, reserving the bacon grease in the pot.
Add the onion, jalapeño, and garlic to the bacon grease in the pot and cook until soft, about 2-3 minutes.
Once the veggies are soft, add the ground beef. Cook the beef until it is no longer pink, breaking it up as it cooks. Depending on the beef you use, you may need to drain off some of the fat. Ideally, you want about 1-2 tbsp left in the pot for flavor.
Add the rest of ingredients to the pot- the beef broth, pinto beans, kidney beans, diced tomatoes, bacon, tomato sauce, tomato paste, chili powder, cumin, paprika, sugar, crushed red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Give everything a good stir and bring to a boil.
Once the chili has been brought to a boil, reduce the heat to low (so that it’s at a gentle simmer) and let it cook until it reaches a desired thickness. Stir occasionally.
It should take about an hour to an hour and a half to thicken up. When done, top with all desired fixin’s. Enjoy!