I was hesitant about eating chili without all the extra fixings, but it turns out the cheese, sour cream, and bread aren’t needed for it to be delicious. Instead of using beans, like in a traditional chili, I loaded up this recipe with extra veggies. Bell peppers, celery, and onions are all added for additional flavor. The most time-consuming part of this chili recipe is actually during the prep.
After everything is chopped and diced, the ground beef needs to be browned with the onion and garlic before being added to the crock pot. Some crock pots have a built-in option to brown the meat in the pot, but I just cooked the meat on the stove quickly and then transferred it. And as usual, I used my handy dandy crock pot liners for easy cleanup afterwards. Once everything is in the crock pot you just let the flavors meld for 8 hours.
Similar to pulled pork, most people have certain preferences when it comes to what goes into their chili, so feel free to adjust some of the ingredients to your personal tastes. I highly recommend adding a little adobo sauce; it brings a unique depth of flavor to your bowl for a comforting, hearty chili.
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. ground beef
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1 green bell pepper, diced
- 3 stalks celery, diced
- 1 tomato, diced
- 1/4 cup diced green chilies
- 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
- 15 oz. can tomato sauce
- 2 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tbsp oregano
- 1/2 tbsp basil
- 1/2 tbsp cumin
- 1/2 tbsp adobo sauce
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1/2 tsp cayenne
Directions
- In a large skillet, sauté the onions and garlic over medium heat. Add in the ground beef and cook until browned. Drain the excess fat and then transfer the meat mixture to the crock pot.
- Add in the bell peppers, celery, and diced tomato. Top with remaining ingredients and spices and stir everything together. Cook on low for 6-7 hours. Serve warm.
Hate to ask a stupid question, what size crockpot did you use this recipe for? Trying to decide if I need to short it for my 4qt 🙂
LOVED this recipe! 🙂 It was a hit (By guys who aren’t even really into Paleo foods). I definitely recommend this meal to try. Its a healthy version of chili! Finally we can know what is going into our soup. 😉
I used a 4qt crock-pot and it fit all the ingredients in great! (My smaller 2 qt crock-pot didnt fit all the delicious ingredients)
Thanks again for this recipe. 🙂 I can’t wait to make it again and impress others with this yummy recipe.
P.s. I added a can of red kidney beans (May not be paleo, but they’re good for ya! :)) It’s totally optional, though. The recipe didn’t even call for it and I’m sure it’d be great without them.
Loved this recipe. Easy and so good! I will definitely make again!
Hi, I really want to try this recipe, but I have been unable to find the adobo sauce, can anyone give me an idea of where to find this? Thank you.
Look for Adobo with the Hispanic foods. I also add cinnamon. I just put it in the pot so let’s see how it goes!
Made this tonight and it was a hit! My son is not paleo so he made “sloppy joes”. I also made the rosemary and thyme eggplant fries and dipped them in…delish! I did kick it up a bit by adding smoked paprika, white pepper, and extra black pepper.
Can I make this on the stove? How long should it cook?