A simple five-star Texas no bean chili with a rich, spicy heat. It has lots of kick and a great taste profile from three types of chilies. Just follow the easy step by step photo instructions.
This is an extremely easy "dump and cook" slow cooker recipe. I based it on a previous Texas chili I had made but seemed to be lacking a bit.
It turns out my chili needed some chiles. The multiple types of chilies seem to add more than heat. They add different tastes that are very, very nice.
My Rating
A solid 5. A great taste profile and a wonderful change of pace.
Pro Tips: Recipe Notes for Crock Pot Texas Chili
What is Texas Chili?
Texas Chili, what is it? Well, it could be any chilly cooked in Texas or by a Texan, but the consensus seems to be a beef chili with no beans. I'm going with number three.
So no beans seem to be the most consistent part of the definition. Some will insist that there should be no tomato products, but most modern recipes include some tomato.
The purest will use a paste of chiles with the beef and not much else.
If you have a different definition, please post it. But please don't downrate the recipe due to this.
What Meat to Use?
This calls for chunks of beef, not ground beef.
I like to cube my own from a beef roast. I prefer a nicely marbled chuck roast, but really with the prolonged cooking, even leaner cuts will be fine.
If you are lazy like I can sometimes be, use pre-cut stew meat.
The Chiles
I suggest fresh jalapenos, Anaheim, and Poblano peppers. These will provide a nice heat with a great taste profile. Plus, they are commonly available fresh. Dried chiles are not interchangeable with fresh.
The Heat of the Chiles
The heat of chiles is commonly expressed by the Scoville heat scale. Some chiles can run-up to the 800,000 range. The common Jalapenos are 2,500-8,000, green Anaheims run 1,000-1,500, and the Poblano peppers are 500-2,500. So not too hot here.
This is a 6/10 spicy, which is about as high as I go. But I'm a wimp, so it is probably ok for most people.
Add a little sour cream and cheese on top and your taste bud will dance.
Crock Pot Size
This makes about 11 cups of chili as written. This will fit in a 3 ½ quart crock pot, but bigger is fine.
It is also an easy recipe to cut in half.
Other Great Crock Pot Chilis to Try
Ultra Simple Crock Pot White Chicken Chili
Crock Pot Three Bean Turkey Chili
Crockpot Southwest Chicken Chili
For a full recipe, you need about 2 pounds of cubed, trimmed beef cut into 1-inch pieces. You can be lazy and use precut stew meat if you want.
If you want, browning the meat before adding to the crock pot will add more flavor.
Chop one large onion. Also, clean and dice two jalapenos (finely), 2 Anaheim peppers, and 2 Poblano peppers.
Combine the chopped onion and peppers with 4 cloves of crush garlic, 2 - 14 oz cans diced tomatoes, 14 oz can beef broth, 2 tablespoons chili powder, 1 teaspoon pepper, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon oregano, and ½ teaspoon cumin.
Cook a crock pot for 8 hours on low or 4 hours on high. It will fit in a crock pot of 3 ½ quart or larger.
Serve topped with sour cream and cheese to contrast the heat.
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Crock Pot Texas Chili
Ingredients
- 2 lbs beef roast - trimmed and cut into 1 inch cubes or use stew meat
- 2 jalapeno - diced small
- 2 Anaheim - diced medium
- 2 poblano pepper - chopped medium
- 1 onion - large chopped
- 4 cloves garlic - crushed or minced
- 28 oz diced tomatoes
- 14 oz beef broth
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoons cumin
Instructions
- For a full recipe, you need about 2 pounds of cubed, trimmed beef cut into 1-inch pieces. You can be lazy and use precut stew meat if you want.
- If you want, browning the meat before adding to the crock pot will add more flavor.
- Chop one large onion. Also, clean and dice two jalapenos (finely), 2 Anaheim peppers, and 2 Poblano peppers.
- Combine the chopped onion and peppers with 4 cloves of crush garlic, 2 - 14 oz cans diced tomatoes, 14 oz can beef broth, 2 tablespoons chili powder, 1 teaspoon pepper, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon oregano, and ½ teaspoon cumin.
- Cook in a crock pot for 8 hours on low or 4 hours on high. This will fit in a crock pot 3 ½ quart or bigger.
- Serve topped with sour cream and cheese to contrast the heat.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips
- You can use pre-cut stew meat or a beef roast trimmed and cut into 1-inch cubes.
- This just fits a 3 ½ quart crock pot, and bigger is fine.
- This is an easy recipe to cut in half.
- The "heat level" is about 6/10 to me.
- The nutrition is calculated for 1 cup. That would be a small serving Bx most people will want a 1 ½ to 2 cup serving.
- Will be good refrigerated for 3-4 days and freeze well for 3-4 months.
Nutrition
Originally Published February 25, 2012. Updated with expanded discussion and instructions along with refreshed photos.
Barbara
I finally found someone who knows, if is Texas chili it has NO beans in it!!! Thank you Dr Dan. Just a suggestion, if you find it a bit to thin or "soupy" as we down here call it, add some marina masa to the pot about 30 minutes before you serve. Be sure to stir well.
thx A true Texas native.
Philip e Dally
Should be a brisket if it's Texan. I'm trying to figure out if I made this in a cast iron pot if I could smoke it for 8 hours. Never smoked soup before...Love your recipes!
Dr Dan
I was lazy and did not brown but don't forget to trim. In my beef stew, I do brown ahead and I believe it did add some taste. So either should be fine.
Julia Roberts
What a great website! And this recipe looks delicious. Found it when I googled stew meat chili as I've got a ton of stew meat in the freezer. Did you brown the meat first? Doesn't look like it. Does it matter?
Julia Roberts
This looks great! Going to make it this weekend. Did you brown the meat first? Doesn't look like it.
Chris
I like the nice mild heat this one brings to the bowl. Spicy but not flaming miserable.