Easy Crock Pot No Bean Chili (2024)

Made with your choice of ground turkey or ground beef, this crock pot no bean chili is super easy to put together. And since it can be made ahead of time in a slow cooker, it’s the perfect dish for a potluck dinner or football party.

If you’re looking for a no bean chili that you can make ahead of time, tastes delicious, and is super easy to put together, then you’ve come to the right place.

It’s not super spicy (unless you want it to be) and you get to choose whether to make it with ground beef or turkey.

So you can customize it to fit your preferences. The perfect dish when you’re having a lot of people over for a get-together or taking it to a potluck dinner.

And since you cook it in a slow cooker, it’s the kind of set-and-forget dish that I love to make for parties. So much less stressful than trying to finish cooking while guests are arriving.

This crock pot no bean chili is also quite thick which means it works well for serving on top of hot dogs. Great for tailgating or a Super Bowl party.

Ingredients

This recipe makes enough for about 8 regular-sized bowls. Or to cover about 16 hot dogs.

Here is your shopping list:

• meat – 1½ pounds ground beef or ground turkey. I like to use ground turkey.
• fresh vegetables – 1 cooking onion
• oil – 1 Tablespoon olive or vegetable oil
• spices – 2 Tablespoons chili powder
• seasoning – 1½ teaspoons salt
• canned goods – 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes, 1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes, 1 6-ounce can tomato paste. I prefer brands that don’t have added sugar for this.
• flavoring – 1 teaspoon hot sauce. I use Tabasco.
• garnishes (optional) – grated cheese, sour cream, chopped green onions, chopped jalapeno peppers

Substitutions and additions

• This recipe makes a mild chili. If you would like it to be spicier, you can increase the chili powder to 3 or 4 Tablespoons and/or increase the hot sauce to 2 or 3 teaspoons.
• For some extra flavor, add 2 cloves of garlic (minced) in with the onion.
• If you like peppers in your chili, add 1 chopped green pepper (or jalapeno pepper for more heat) in with the tomatoes.

How to make crock pot no bean chili

Prep work

Chop a cooking onion into small pieces. An electric chopper or food processor will make quick work of this if you don’t want to cut them by hand.

Set up the crock pot. Lining it with a slow cooker liner will make it easier to clean when you’re done.

Cook the meat

Heat 1 Tablespoon olive or vegetable oil in a large frying pan on the stove over medium heat for a minute or two.

Add the chopped onion and cook for 4 to 5 minutes until soft, stirring occasionally to keep it from burning.

Stir in the ground beef or turkey.

Cook until the meat is browned about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Mix in 2 Tablespoons chili powder and 1½ teaspoons salt.

If you’re preparing this ahead of time and aren’t ready to make the rest of the chili yet, the meat mixture can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Then continue with the next step.

Add everything to the slow cooker

Add the cooked beef or turkey mixture to the slow cooker.

Pour in the 28-ounce can of crushed tomatoes, 14-ounce can of diced tomatoes, 6-ounce can of tomato paste and 1 teaspoon hot sauce. Do not drain the juice from the tomatoes.

Stir well.

Cover and cook on high for 3 to 4 hours or on low for 7 to 8 hours.

Since the meat is already cooked, you can actually cook it for less time than this. But the longer you leave it, the better the flavors will blend.

serve

Once the chili is done, it can be left in the slow cooker on warm for 2 to 3 hours. If it starts to get too thick, stir in ¼ cup water.

While it tastes delicious all on its own, you can serve no bean chili with toppings such as grated cheese, sour cream, chopped green onions, or sliced jalapeno peppers.

Or put it on rolls, bread and crackers.

It also makes great hot dog chili. Which is how I serve it for my annual Super Bowl party.

Storage

The chili can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator over night, or using the Defrost setting on your microwave before reheating.

Other recipes you might like

• Thick chili (with beans)
• Crock pot macaroni and cheese
• Slow cooker meatballs in tomato sauce

Comments or questions about our crock pot no bean chili? Tell us in the section below.