Beef and bean chili is loaded with ground beef, red beans, black beans, tomatoes and spices. It’s an easy, hearty meal for a cold night, gameday, or any night of the week.
Ingredients
- Oil – Use olive oil, or your favorite oil as long as it is suitable for sautéing.
- Aromatics – Onions and garlic add to the flavor.
- Ground Beef – Use the ground beef with the fat content of your choice. You can go super lean with sirloin or if you want a little fat for flavor go with ground chuck or ground round.
- Spices – Chili powder, salt, garlic powder, cumin, black pepper, cayenne pepper, bay leaf, and chili de arbol (dried whole chili pepper) add flavor, color, and spice.
- Pantry – Beef broth, diced tomatoes, black beans, and red beans make this meal convenient and easy to make.
- Suggested toppings and sides – corn muffins, crackers, corn chips, sour cream, shredded cheese, green onions, chopped cilantro, diced white onions, sliced jalapenos peppers, hot sauce, just to name a few.
- See the recipe card for quantities and preparation.
How to make beef and bean chili
- Heat oil in a large, heavy pot over medium heat. Add onions and cook for 5 minutes, stirring often. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute.
- Raise heat to medium-high, add the ground beef, and stir to combine. Spread into one layer and cook for 3 minutes. Stir, break up large pieces, and cook another 3–5 minutes until browned. If needed, remove the pot from heat. Push the meat to one side, tilt the pot to pool the oil, and spoon out the excess. Keep 1–2 tablespoons for flavor. Return the pot to medium heat.
- Lower heat to medium. Add chili powder, salt, garlic powder, cumin, black pepper, and cayenne. Stir until the beef is evenly coated with spices.
- Add diced tomatoes, beef broth, bay leaf, and dried chili peppers (if using). Raise heat to high and bring to a boil (about 5–6 minutes). Lower heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Raise heat to medium. Stir in red and black beans. Once it begins to simmer, uncover and cook for 45–55 minutes, or until thickened. Stir occasionally and lower the heat if it starts to boil too vigorously.
- Taste and add more salt if needed (we added ¼ teaspoon). Serve with your favorite toppings like cheese, sour cream, or green onions.
Recipe tips and notes
- Go easy on the salt with this recipe because canned ingredients usually contain a good amount of salt already. You can always add at the end if needed.
- If you are sensitive to salt replace the canned ingredients with reduced sodium alternatives. There are good low sodium options for canned beans, tomatoes and broth.
- Reduce or eliminate the cayenne pepper and the chili de arbol to make it milder if you don’t like food too spicy.
- Typically, the lean-to-fat ratio in ground beef is: 80% lean / 20% fat for ground chuck, 85% lean / 15% fat for ground round, and 90% lean / 10% fat for ground sirloin. Choose your favorite. I like using a higher fat content because it adds extra flavor, although I do drain some of the excess oil if it renders too much.
Storing instructions
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days. Reheat it in a saucepan or in the microwave until heated through (at least 165°F).
You can freeze it for 2-3 months. Cool it quickly and place in an airtight containers that is appropriate for freezing. Remember to leave an inch or two of space to allow for expansion.
Reheat leftovers to an internal temperature of at least 165°F. For more information on food storage and safety guidelines visit U.S. Department of Agriculture and foodsafety.gov.
Chili is a family favorite, not just because a big bowl is delicious with corn chips or cornbread, but because the leftovers are the best! There’s something that makes it taste better the next day! We use leftovers to top hot dogs, a baked potato for lunch, or add it to a mountain of fries with cheese.
For more chili with beans recipes try this turkey white bean chili or this chili cornbread casserole that will not disappoint!
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📖 Recipe
Beef and Bean Chili
This beef and bean chili is loaded with ground beef, red beans, black beans, tomatoes and spices. It’s an easy way to get a big pot of hearty chili for a cold night, gameday, or any night of the week.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon Olive Oil or oil of your choice
- 1 Large Onion finely diced
- 5-6 Garlic Cloves minced
- 2 tablespoon Chili Powder
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1 teaspoon Ground Cumin
- ¼ teaspoon Black Pepper or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon Cayenne Pepper optional – leave it out if you do not like spicy
- 1½ pound Ground Beef
- 3 (14.5 ounce) Cans Diced Tomatoes (we use petite dice)
- 4 cups Beef Broth
- 1-2 Bay Leaves
- 1-2 Dried Whole Chili Peppers we used dried Chili de Arbol, optional – leave it out if you do not like spicy
- 2 (15 ounce Cans) Black Beans drained and rinsed
- 2 (15 ounce Cans) Red Beans drained and rinsed
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat (at least 6-quart). Add the onions and cook for approximately 5 minutes until they start to soften, stir frequently.
- Add the garlic, cook 1 minute, stirring frequently.
- Raise the heat to medium-high. Add the ground beef and stir to combine with the onion-garlic mixture. Arrange the meat in one layer and cook for 3 minutes.
- Stir, while breaking up any large pieces with a wooden spoon and cook another 3-5 minutes until the ground beef is browned. Stir occasionally. If there is too much oil in the pot after browning the beef drain some (or all) of it - See Notes.
- Lower the heat to medium and add the chili powder, salt, garlic powder, cumin, black pepper and cayenne pepper stir well until combined with the ground beef.
- Add the diced tomatoes, beef broth, bay leaf and dried chili peppers (if using) and stir. Raise the heat to high, bring the liquid to a boil (will take about 5-6 minutes).
- Then, lower the heat to medium-low, cover and simmer 30 minutes to let the flavors develop and come together, stir occasionally.
- Raise the heat to medium, add the red and black beans to the pot, stir. Cook the chili, half-covered, until it starts to simmer. Then, uncover the pot and cook for 45-55 minutes (longer if needed) until it thickens.
- Stir occasionally at first. As the chili thickens and reduces, stir more often to prevent sticking on the bottom. Also, keep it at a simmer, lower the heat to medium-low (or further) if it starts boiling too vigorously.
- Taste and add salt if needed. As a reference we added ¼ teaspoon to ours.
- Serve with your favorite toppings and enjoy!
Notes
- The easiest way to drain some (or most) of the oil from the pot is to: take the pot off the heat and pile the beef mixture to one side of the pot. Tip is slightly so that the oil pools opposite the meat. Use a ladle or large spoon to remove excess oil and add it to a small bowl, can, etc. Remove as much as you like – I like to keep some for flavor. Level the pot and place it over medium heat, continue with the recipe.
- If you are sensitive to salt replace the canned ingredients with reduced sodium alternatives. There are good low sodium options for canned beans, tomatoes and broth.
Nutrition
Calories: 432kcalCarbohydrates: 43gProtein: 31gFat: 16gSaturated Fat: 6gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 58mgSodium: 1728mgPotassium: 1288mgFiber: 16gSugar: 6gVitamin A: 825IUVitamin C: 20mgCalcium: 152mgIron: 7mg
The nutritional information above is computer generated and is only an estimate. There is no guarantee that it is accurate. This data is provided as a courtesy for informational purposes only.
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