Easy to make and one of the best homemade chilies, this small-batch crock pot chili recipe is versatile—you can make chili for two in a mini crock pot or larger for a crowd. It's a classic recipe with ground beef, a mildly spicy tomato-based sauce, and tender beans.
Ingredients
Ground beef
Aromatics—onion and garlic
Tomato—paste and diced
Beans—kidney or other
Bell pepper—optional
Spices—chili powder, cumin, oregano, salt, pepper, cayenne pepper (optional)
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Featured comment from Rae: "Five stars. I made this recipe for my office's chili cookoff...and won!!! "
My wife wanted "a great everyday chili." This "All-American" chili has ground beef, kidney beans, traditional chili spicing, and tomato-based sauce. It's perfect for every day, tailgating, or a family get-together.
A small batch recipe that makes 6 cups of chili (about 4 servings), so it is the "perfect chili for two" and smaller households. It fits in a mini crock pot (2 quarts) but is easy to double or triple in size.
👨🍳How to Make Crock Pot Chili—Step-by-Step
1. Use ground beef or other ground meat. This recipe fits in a 2-quart mini crock pot but can also be made in a bigger one.
2. Chop half of the green bell pepper and a small onion. Rinse and drain one can of light kidney beans.
3. Brown 1 pound of ground beef. After 3-4 minutes, add 1 small chopped onion (½ cup). Near the end of browning, add minced or crushed garlic. The total browning time is about 8 minutes. Drain and add to the crock pot.
4. Add one 14-oz can of diced tomatoes, half a 6-oz can of tomato paste, ½ cup water, 3 tablespoons chili powder, 1 teaspoon cumin, ½ teaspoon oregano, ½ teaspoon salt (to taste), ¼ teaspoon pepper, and ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional and adjust to taste).
5. Cook covered on low for 8 hours or 4 hours on high.
6. Served topped with shredded cheese or there toppings.
For more details, keep reading. See the Recipe Card below for complete instructions and to print.
🥣Variations and ingredient options
Meat: This recipe is based on ground beef, but you can use any other ground meat, like turkey or chicken. Each will have a slightly different taste profile, but the spices and tomato products will even things out.
Spices: Adjust the heat with cayenne pepper or add half a jalapeno pepper.
Vegetables: You can modify the beans, remove the bell pepper, or make other changes.
Tomato products: Diced tomatoes make the base for the chili. Tomato paste is added to boost the tomato taste and some sweetness.
Thickness: This is a thick chili, but you can add more water or beef broth if you like your chili more like soup.
Other small crock pot chili recipes
This chili recipe is one of many small crock pot recipes for chili, which includes Salsa Verde Chicken Chili, Healthy White Chicken Chili, Stew Meat Chili, and Crock Pot Texas Chili.
Small Crock Pot White Chicken Chili
This easy-to-make homemade chicken chili is my best chicken chili. Only 5 ingredients are needed: shredded chicken, white beans, salsa, cheese, and cumin to make this dump-and-go small-batch white chicken chili recipe, which can win the office chili cookoff.
♨️Adjusting recipe size and different crock pot sizes
This is scaled for small crock pots. A crock pot should be no more than 75% full. You can always use a larger crock pot, which may cook slightly faster.
If you make this single-batch recipe as written, you will have half a pepper and some tomato paste left over. Both will freeze well. Chop the pepper before freezing. With the tomato paste, make one tablespoon-size mound and freeze it for future use.
A single recipe makes 6 cups of chili. The serving size is about 1 ½ cups.
- A 2-quart is the smallest you should use for a single recipe.
- You can also make a half recipe with a smaller slow cooker, but the smaller crock pots tend to have temp control issues, so be careful.
- A double recipe needs 4 quarts or larger.
- A triple recipe fits in a crock pot of 6 quarts or larger.
- You can always use a bigger crockpot than required, but a very small recipe in a large crock pot may cook faster.
To adjust the recipe card:
- Use the recipe card and adjust the number of servings.
- Use the amount of ingredients in the ingredient list, not the instructions—those do not adjust.
Approximate yield of chopped onion using different onion sizes.
- A small onion, about the size of a lemon, will yield about ½ cup of chopped onion.
- A medium onion, about the size of a baseball, will yield about 1 cup of chopped onion.
- A large onion, about the size of a grapefruit, will yield about 2 cups of chopped onion.
Serving toppings and sides
Top with shredded cheddar cheese, sour cream, avocado slices, and sliced green onions.
Serve with Old Fashioned Cornbread or Cornmeal Biscuits.
Storage of leftovers
Seal leftovers in an airtight container. Refrigerate for 4 days or freeze for 4 months.
To reheat, thaw frozen chili overnight in the refrigerator. Reheat on the stovetop or in a microwave.
❓FAQs
Ground meat needs to be precooked for crock pot recipes. This is not a safety thing but a texture thing. While the meat will cook well past the 165° safe temperature in the slow cooker, it will cook in clumps and not break apart, which you want for a good chili texture. Also, fat and juices will not be drained.
Chili can get out of hand on sodium content. Don't add additional salt if you are salt-sensitive. It can always be added at serving.
Rinsing the beans helps reduce the sodium, so use low-sodium beans. If you add broth to thin the chili, use low-sodium broth.
This recipe is listed in these categories. See them for more similar recipes.
Have you tried this recipe, or have a question? Join the community discussion in the comments.
📖 Recipe
Small Crock Pot Chili
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Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 small onion - ½ cup chopped
- 1 clove garlic - minced or crushed
- 14 oz light kidney beans - low sodium, rinsed, and drained.
- ½ green bell pepper
- 14 oz diced tomatoes
- 3 oz tomato paste
- ½ cup water
- 3 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper - optional and adjust to taste
Instructions
- Use ground beef or other ground meat. This recipe fits in a 2-quart mini crock pot but can also be made in a bigger one.
- Chop half of the green bell pepper and a small onion. Rinse and drain one can of light kidney beans.
- Brown 1 pound of ground beef. After 3-4 minutes, add 1 small chopped onion (½ cup). Near the end of browning, add minced or crushed garlic. The total browning time is about 8 minutes. Drain and add to the crock pot.
- Add one 14-oz can of diced tomatoes, half a 6-oz can of tomato paste, ½ cup water, 3 tablespoons chili powder, 1 teaspoon cumin, ½ teaspoon oregano, ½ teaspoon salt (to taste), ¼ teaspoon pepper, and ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional and adjust to taste).
- Cook covered on low for 8 hours or 4 hours on high.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips:
- This is scaled for a smaller crock pot. A 2-quart is the smallest you should use. A double recipe needs 4 quarts or larger. A triple recipe fits in a crock pot of 6 quarts or larger. I always do a double batch.
- Use ground turkey or chicken if you wish.
- A small onion is ½ cup chopped. A medium onion is 1 cup chopped.
- Precook the ground meat since uncooked ground meat will clump.
- Rinsing the beans will decrease the sodium load.
- Add salt to taste only.
- This is a thick chili. Add more water or beef broth if you like your chili more like a soup.
- The serving size is about 1 ½ cups.
- Good in the refrigerator for 3-4 days and will freeze well for 3-4 months.
Your Own Private Notes
To adjust the recipe size:
You may adjust the number of servings in this recipe card under servings. This does the math for the ingredients for you. BUT it does NOT adjust the text of the instructions. So you need to do that yourself.
Nutrition Estimate
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Editor's Note: Originally published January 19, 2015. The text and options have been expanded. I have published it now as a smaller recipe. I generally make a double batch, and that was initially published. I have also refreshed all the photos and added a table of contents to help with navigation. Please enjoy this excellent chili.
Scrig says
So good and so easy! I enjoyed it with corn chips. I will definitely be making it again.