This easy Award Winning Chili recipe is made with ground beef, beans, onions, tomatoes, and peppers, and can easily be made as spicy or not as you like.
Okay, my award winning chili was a fourth place award for a chili contest at my husband's work, but still, an award is an award, right? I believe it was 4th out of 37.
The secret to my award winning crock pot chili recipe is I make my chili with tomato juice and V-8 juice. I started putting the juices in my chili years ago simply because although I like some diced tomatoes in chili, I don't like a lot of them. I still wanted the tomato flavor though. I've liked both V-8 and tomato juice since I was very little, and even my daughter who won't touch anything with tomatoes in it will drink both! Okay, I realize that is not like a really major secret ingredient, but I swear it's what makes this chili different.
I make my award winning chili recipe at least four times a year, often for big football games like the playoffs or Super Bowl. My husband is a Steelers fan, I stopped trying to pay attention to football a while ago, haha!
While the step by step photos below show the chili being made on the stove, I normally make it as a slow cooker chili. For that, simply put everything in the slow cooker after browning the ground beef. We like our chili extra spicy, but if you don't just leave out the optional ingredients.
Heat a large pot over medium high heat, add the ground beef.
cook and break up the beef until browned, then drain carefully. Reduce the heat on the stove to low.
Add chopped onions and green peppers,
Followed by diced tomatoes (I always use canned, this time I was out), and drained kidney beans.
Next we stir in chili powder and dried basil.
Then add the liquids, V-8 juice, tomato juice, and a can of beer. At this point I always remove a bowl full for my daughter, who doesn't like spicy chili. Then I add the jalapeno, hot sauce, and cayenne pepper, stir it up, raise the heat and let my Award Winning Chili come to a simmer, cover it and let it simmer for two hours.
Award Winning Chili
If you would like a different chili recipe, check out some more of my favorites:
Instant Pot Spicy Chili (Similar to this recipe, but for the Instant Pot)
Southwest Chicken Pumpkin Chili
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Award Winning Chili!
Ingredients
- 3 pounds lean ground beef
- 1 large yellow onion chopped
- 1 jalepeno pepper sliced (optional)
- ½ of a green pepper diced
- 1 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes drained
- 2 19 ounce cans dark red kidney beans drained and rinsed
- 5-6 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- fresh ground pepper to taste
- 1 cup V-8 juice
- 1 cup tomato juice I always use Campbells
- pinch Cayenne pepper optional
- a couple of dashes each red and green Tabasco sauce optional, or to taste
- 1 can or bottle beer I have always just used Coors Light, a stronger flavored beer will result in a different taste
Instructions
Slow Cooker Instructions:
- Brown the ground beef in a large, deep pan over medium-high heat. Drain well and pour into a large crock pot. Add remaining ingredients, stir well. Cover and cook on low 8-10 hours or on high 4-6 hours. I usually do mine on high for around 5 hours.
Stove Top Instructions
- Brown the ground beef in a large pot over medium-high heat. Drain carefully and return to the stove over low heat. Add the remaining ingredients, stir well. Increase the heat until the chili comes to a simmer, cover and simmer for two hours.
Nutrition