Perhaps your kids won’t eat ground beef? Now they will. This chili is an easy family-favorite dinner.
For years, when I would hear of friends making meatballs, sloppy joes, or meatloaf for dinner, I would think to myself, “It’s such a shame no one in my family will eat ground beef.”
The fact that no one ate ground beef cut out a significant amount of dinner options. And so, I kept writing recipe after recipe for boneless chicken breasts. That’s what they liked and that’s what I kept trying to reinvent. (See Dinner Done for lots of choices!) And then, one day, I thought this is ridiculous: Enough chicken. I must be able to create some kind of recipe they’d enjoy using ground beef.
Why is this recipe different? The chili cooks long and slow, so the flavor gets seeped deep into the meat and you don’t get that “meaty” flavor of typical ground beef. My kids love tortilla chips (think snack, restaurant-style) so I served this with those salty chips for the first few times. That made the dinner fun, they were able to dip the chips into the meat (even if they only dipped “slightly” in the beginning).
Once they were tempted to try the chili, it became a family favorite and part of the dinner rotation. Now I take wraps, cut them into triangles and bake them with some oil spray and a light sprinkle of salt for a healthier version of chips. See this recipe for clearer instructions. There is one kid that will only eat the chili with a bag of tortilla chips but hey, some kids take baby steps, and I’m not complaining.
No Bean Beef Chili
Ingredients
- 2-3 tbsp oil
- 2½ lbs lean ground beef
- 1 onion, finely diced
- 3½ cups water
- 1 15 oz tomato sauce
- 6 oz tomato paste
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp cocoa powder
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar (or any vinegar)
Instructions
- In a large pot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add ground beef and cook, stirring, breaking up the meat with the side of the spoon. This is the only time the recipe needs a little hands-on work. You want to make sure the ground beef is fully broken into small pieces; if you leave it chunky it doesn't taste the same.
- Add onion. Stir for a few minutes then add in remaining ingredients.
- Cook semi covered for 1½ – 2 hours on low, stirring occasionally.
- Serve with tortilla chips, homemade chips, or soft rolls. You can add toppings such as guacamole, tomato salad, sliced jalapenos or anything else you wish.
Notes
Can this be made in a crockpot?
1 tsp cocoa powder??
Are u serious??
Um, can someone please reply if that cocoa powder is a typo? Would love to make this recipe!
its not a typo 🙂
This is not a typo. A lot of good chili recipes have UNSWEETENED Cocoa powder in them. This is not the stuff you mixed with milk when you were a kid.
Added a can of chili beans, was delicious, will definitely be making this again
No I don’t think it is. Cocoa isn’t sweet it gives a nice flavor. I’ve seen cocoa in roast recipes
I’ve seen cocoa or even pieces of dark chocolate in chili recipes. It’s not a typo. Enjoy!
Can this be adapted for heat settings to serve shabbos day meal?
Would this work with ground dark meat turkey? Thanks!
This chili is delicious and has a nice full flavor. I really enjoyed it!
This dinner was AMAZING! my 2 year old is on a food strike and she POUNDED this last night!!!!
Thank you for your comment. I haven’t tried this recipe but will try it. As I have 2 two year old toddlers also on a food strike, comments like this are very helpful as I search for toddler friendly recipes! Mahalo, Cathy from Hawaii
My family loved it!! Thank you!
Can this recipe be made with ground chicken?
We’ve never tried it. Assuming it would need less cooking time if its chicken.
Will it still be good if I skip the 1 tsp chili powder ?
Wondering about this too. I dont want to buy it for just 1 recipe.
There’s no measurement for the tomato paste. How much should I use?
There is: says 6 oz
Says 6 oz.
I made this for dinner and was shocked that my pickiest eater ate his whole portion! Definitely a keeper!
This was delicious. Served it with tortillas, guacamole, and taco salad and then told one of my kids it was meat sauce and served it with noodles for him. Happiness all around.
This was delicious!! Love that it was a diff kind of supper. I served with tacos.. guac and a tomato garlic salad was enjoyed by all! Adults and kids loved it, thank you! 🙂
This was delicious. The only thing is I followed the exact instructions and it came out very soupy. Can I leave out the water next time or is it important for the overall outcome?
You can raise the heat the last 20 minutes so that the sauce cooks down at the end. Or use 1/2 cup less water when cooking it.