Game Day Food – Low Carb Chili Recipe
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Celebrate Game Day with this hearty Beef Chili Recipe. This Low Carb Chili is full of flavor, perfect for warming you up on cold winter days, and is especially great for a potluck party.
You can stick to your low carb/keto plan, and no one will know your chili is low carb!
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The Best Low Carb Chili for Game Day (or any day)!
It’s January, and you know what that means… Football and game day parties!
We moved into a smaller temporary home and aren’t planning a big party this year. (I say “temporary,” but, it’s already been eight months, and we have at least eight more months to go… I’ll tell you more in another post.) So for the Big Game, we’re keeping our guest list small.
I’ll be cooking up all sorts of low-carb appetizers, including this beef chili recipe.
The good thing about small get-togethers is it’s so much easier to get ready for. A few snacks, plus this Low Carb Chili recipe is all you need. Our guests will bring their favorite chips and dips, so everybody gets the foods they love.
Why you need to try this No Bean Chili Recipe:
When it comes to Chili Recipes, I’ve always been a “beans in my chili recipe” type girl, but since I’m trying to stick to my lower-carb/keto eating plan right now, I need a low carb chili recipe option!
- This no-bean chili recipe is great for gatherings and is perfect for the low-carbers and regular-carbers alike! The chili is so flavorful; I promise you won’t even miss the beans!
- This chili recipe is mild, which is how the kids and I like our chili. However, my hubby likes a bit of kick to his food. The beauty of this recipe is that you can add as much heat as you like. For my hubby, he adds a pinch of cayenne and tops his bowl with jalapenos
- It really hits the spot when it’s cold out and it’s a perfect dish for low carb eaters and their non-low carb eating friends! (Because who doesn’t love chili?)
Why I Love This Low Carb Chili:
You would think a commercially prepared, ready-to-eat, no bean chili would be naturally low carb, but have you ever checked out the nutrient info on the back of a can of chili?
Hormel No Bean Beef Chili, for example, (which I have always enjoyed) has 19 grams of carbs per serving. That’s a lot of carbs!
My low carb chili recipe is a delicious keto chili that cuts the carbs down to around 6 net carbs per serving. Those carbs are coming from the tomatoes, onions, and peppers, but I don’t recommend leaving them out as they add a lot of flavor to the chili.
A reader even left me a comment that they won “best mild chili” with this recipe at their office chili cook-off! Yay!
Ingredients Needed to Make this Chili Recipe:
Want to give this low carb chili recipe a shot? You won’t regret it! These are the ingredients: (At a glance- grab the full list and printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.)
- Ground Beef | Just 1 pound, but you can double or triple this recipe with no problem. I prefer leaner ground beef so there will be less fat to drain off.
- Produce | Bell pepper (your favorite color) and an onion.
- Pantry items: diced green chiles (I always use canned), tomato sauce, beef broth, tomato paste
- Spices | Cumin, celery salt, chili powder, salt, and pepper (you could cheat and just use two tbs of a chili spice mix in place of the 4 spices.) Worcestershire sauce.
How to Make Low Carb Chili:
You’ll love how easy this low carb chili recipe is to make!
Just brown your meat, toss in the onion, bell pepper, chiles, and tomato products, plus the spices, and let it simmer for 30 minutes to an hour.
The longer it simmers, the less liquid-y it will be, plus it helps the flavor meld together! You also have the option to kick up the spiciness by adding a pinch or two of cayenne. Since we feed this to the kids, I always leave out the extra spice.
Tips and Tricks for Serving to Non-Low Carbers:
Is not everyone in your family or friend group into low carb or keto? To keep everyone happy and satisfied I do have a few tricks I use when serving this chili to the family.
- Since beans are actually good for you, and they are one of the few veggies my son will eat without complaint, I will heat up a can of pre-seasoned chili beans and add about a quarter cup to the bottom of the kid’s bowls. (or just serve them on the side, and guests can add however much they want. I then top the beans with the chili, cheese, and whatever other toppings they want.
- Another option is to precook several baked potatoes and offer the option of a chili cheese baked potato. You might be surprised how many will go for this option when offered.
- The third option is to just make another recipe, lol. I have two great chili recipe alternatives: Panera Turkey Chili (copycat version) and a Slow Cooker Beef Chili (with beans).
Options 1 and 2 work perfectly and help the chili go further, too!
Can I Make this Low Carb Chili Recipe in a Crock-Pot?
Yes, of course! This chili is great in the slow cooker too.
I love my crockpot for dishes like this. This chili recipe works perfectly in the slow cooker for days you know you’ll have a good 8 hours away from the kitchen. Nothing better than coming home tired and hungry and having an on-plan hot meal waiting for you.
To make this easy low carb chili in the crockpot, you will need to saute the garlic, peppers, and onions in with the ground beef before adding them to the slow cooker. Once that’s done though, you just toss everything into the crockpot for 8 hours on low.
If at the end of the 8 hours, your chili is still too liquidy, you can remove the lid and let it simmer for another 30 minutes to an hour to help the liquid cook out.
Can You Freeze This Low Carb Chili Recipe?
Yes, you can definitely freeze this Chili. Let chili cool significantly, and package it up into smaller servings in a freezer bag, taking care to remove all the air from the bag. Then when ready to eat, microwave it on medium power until defrosted. Transfer to a bowl and continue to heat until warmed through.
How Many Carbs are in Chili:
The carb count in chili recipes will vary from chili to chili based on the ingredients used. If you are trying to stick to a strict low-carb plan, you definitely don’t want to use a commercially prepared no-bean chili. (Wolf Brand no-bean chili has 18 carbs per serving!)
My low carb chili recipe, prepared as directed below, has 8 carbs and 2 grams of fiber (so if you follow the net carb idea, that’s only 6 carbs!)
Most of the carbs come from the tomato sauce, peppers, and onions.
(Important tip: I don’t recommend lowering the amount of any of these ingredients as they really contribute to the flavor.)
More LOW CARB Recipes You Might Like:
- Low Carb Chili Dog Casserole
- Low Carb Enchilada Soup
- Avocado and Bacon Chicken Salad
- Beer Marinated Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Recipe
- Favorite Broccoli Salad Recipe
Pin this Chili Recipe Here:
Let us know what you think!
Print
Low Carb Chili Recipe
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 75 minutes
- Yield: 5 servings 1x
- Category: chili
- Method: stovetop
Description
This low carb chili has all the classic chili flavors you love, but without the beans (so it’s low in carbs.) It’s hearty, flavorful and perfect for those cold winter nights.
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced (or 1/2 tsp garlic powder)
- 1 large bell pepper (your favorite color)
- about 1 cup onion, diced (use more if you like sauteed onion)
- 2 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp salt (You could cheat and just use 2 tbs of a chili spice mix in place of the 4 spices above.)
- 1 tsp Worcestershire
- 1/2 tsp celery salt
- 4 oz can diced green chiles
- 1 cup of tomato sauce
- 1 cup beef broth
- 1 tbs tomato paste
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Instructions
- Combine the ground beef, onions, bell peppers and garlic in large frying pan and sauté until ground beef is browned. Drain fat.
- Add spices, Worcestershire, diced green chiles, tomato sauce, tomato paste and broth to the pan. stir to combine and simmer for 30 minutes to an hour.
- Give chili a taste, add additional cumin, chili powder and additional cayenne if desired.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/5 of recipe
- Calories: 316
- Sugar: 5
- Fat: 16
- Carbohydrates: 8
- Fiber: 2
- Protein: 33
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I’m making this Tuesday – when you say 4-ish servings do you know about how much that is per serving? 1C? 1.5C? more? I’m doubling the recipe, friends are coming over. Never had Worcestershire in my chili so looking forward to trying this! Thanks so much!!
How much did it feed for your friends?
Thank you for a beautiful low carb chili recipe. Made this tonight for my family and the kitchen smells divine. It tastes even better.
fabulous keto chili recipe, thanks!
Just made this for supper. My husband and I ate the entire pot. Wonderful recipe. I never missed the beans and I was not a fan of bell peppers until now. This will become part of our supper recipe rotation. Thank you.
Thank you, I am so happy you liked it!
According to an article I read, beans actually promote weight loss. Carb counting without nutrition research is not a great mix. Publishing incomplete nutritional information with a recipe is just not helpful. Beans, beans, they’re good for your heart…?
Sorry, I’m not eating beans right now, but you are welcome too.
I made this chili for dinner tonight. I made no changes to the recipe. I think this is the best chili I’ve ever had!! I’ll make this again and again!!
Thank you so much, I’m glad you liked it!
silly question… can I dump all this in a crockpot? Any idea how long?
I think you would need to cook the meat first and then on low for 6 ish hours. I have no idea though because I have not tried it. Let us know if you do.
What is the serving sz?
1/4 of the recipe
Great little pot of Chili. Perfect for our kosher beef dogs. Thank you for a great recipe.
So glad you liked it!!
Just came across this recipe, ,and it looks so good! Wondered what the nutritional facts are?
I actually have these saved in my fitness pal, I will pull that up and add them to the post.
I also use my fitness pal. Have you saved this recipe on there so I can link to it when I have it tonight for supper? 🙂
does this link work for you? https://www.myfitnesspal.com/recipe/view/138022849768493
Football and chili are closely tied together at our house. I will be giving this low-carb variation a try during the Super Bowl weekend. It’s also hubby’s birthday.
Funny but I am the only one in my family that eats beans. So everytime I make chili, I have to divide it into two portions – one with beans and the other without beans. Your chili looks divine too!
I do serve it with chili beans mixed in for the kids. Works great and makes the chili go further.
Chili is perfect for game day. I love your twist on it! I’ve never added Worcestershire sauce to it.
The Worcestershire cuts down on tomato-y-ness and gives it a nice depth of flavor. I was almost done making this chili and kept tasting it and making my hubby taste it, wondering “what else it needed” and I realized I left the Worcestershire out. I definitely noticed a difference after adding it
Ooooo nothing better than Chili on a cold night!!!! I will definitely be giving your chili recipe a try! Looks delicious
We’ve been making a meatless chili that is fantastic. I may steal a couple of your ingredients though to see if we can change it up a bit!
Game Day is all about easy recipes that fill you up so you have the stamina to cheer your team on through the last second. This chili recipe sounds perfect! Plus, I may actually get to watch the game if I’m not stressing about my house being clean.
Oh I love a good chili recipe especially a low carb one! THis sounds great and perfect for football games!
Love that!
I will be making a huge vat of chili for the Big Game. I like to have plenty of it left over so I can turn it into another meal and eat it for lunch.
This sounds delicious! My husband has been cutting carbs after 3pm (it sounds weirder than it actually is.) This would be perfect for dinner (and football!)
I may not be watching the Super Bowl this year (poor Vikings) but I have been looking for a good low carb chili to make for dinner that can also serve as leftovers for lunch!
Lindsey | This Miss Cooks