Cooler Weather Means Slow Cooker Bean Chili For Dinner
As the weather cools off and the leaves begin to change, I start to think about making soup. I tend to prefer hearty, thick soups because they are more filling.
My mom always made a simple beef and bean chili that was thin, as far as chili goes. It also seemed to be overtaken by kidney beans, which I still don’t really care for.
As a result, I didn’t particularly like chili.
Developing a Super Easy Slow Cooker Three Bean Chili Recipe
When I started developing our own family chili recipe, I knew I wanted it thick and hearty.
But it also had to be easy and flavorful.
I had made a dried soup packet for chili before that I really enjoyed. I had never seen anything like it before, so I endeavored to replicate that final product using fresh, real products.
The dried packet version contained 3 different types of beans and rice. Rice in chili? That was new to me, but it was amazing!
I decided to use canned beans in this recipe to make it easy. If you prefer to use dry beans, just be sure to soak them before you use them in this recipe.
I played around with different versions for months before settling on the final product. Thicker…thinner…more beans…fewer beans…ground beef…ground turkey…different spices. The list went on and on.
My poor family! One night they loved chili and the next time, they hated it.
We went through A LOT of variations to get the recipe just right!
All that experimenting paid off because, in the end, we had a delicious chili recipe that I loved. And even better, the whole family loves it!
My kids beg me to make this chili as soon as the weather starts getting cooler.
Ok, guys, I guess I’ll make chili tonight 🙂
Love Using Your Slow Cooker? You May Also Enjoy:
Slow Cooker Peach Crisp
Slow Cooker Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal
Crock-Pot Lasagna
Slow Cooker Baked Potatoes
What is the Best Way to Serve This Three-Bean Chili?
Be sure to top with your choice of shredded cheese, sour cream, sliced green onions and oyster crackers!
We love to pair this recipe with some fruit or homemade applesauce and a dinner roll or some Fritos. Yum!
How Do I Save This Slow Cooker Three Bean Chili?
It stores well, freezes well, and reheats well.
You can safely store this chili in your refrigerator for up to one week and freeze it for up to 6 months in a tightly sealed container.
To thaw your frozen three-bean chili, let it sit in a bowl of lukewarm water for a couple of hours and finish thawing in the refrigerator.
To reheat, put it in a microwave-safe dish and microwave it until hot, or you can reheat this chili recipe in a pan on the stove, cooking it on medium-medium high heat until hot.
Tools Needed to Make Our Hearty Easy Slow Cooker Three Bean Chili
I hope you love this chili as much as we do! It’s absolutely perfect for a cool, rainy (or snowy) weekend day – just throw everything into the slow cooker and let it do the heavy lifting on this meal.
Enjoy!
Tell us in the comments: what is your favorite type of chili?
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| Servings | Prep Time |
| 6-8 people | 15-20 minutes |
| Cook Time |
| 8 hours |
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This hearty & easy three-bean slow cooker chili is tongue-tingly delicious as well as healthy. Made with natural, real ingredients, this three bean chili recipe for the slow cooker will quickly become your new family favorite! Just watch how fast it disappears.
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- 1 lb ground beef or turkey
- 1 onion diced
- 2-3 stalks celery diced
- ¾ cup diced green bell pepper
- 2-3 cloves garlic
- 1 can of tomato paste 10.75 ounces
- 1 can pinto or kidney beans with liquid 15 ounces, could use dry beans and add liquid
- 1 can black beans drained (could used dry beans), 15 ounce
- 1 can great northern or cannellini beans with liquid 15 ounce, or use dry beans and add liquid
- ½ - 1 Tbsp chili powder
- ½ - 1 tsp parsley
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 3/4 - 1 tsp dried basil
- 3/4 - 1 tsp dried oregano
- ¼ tsp ground black pepper
- ¼ tsp paprika I used smoked paprika
- ¾ tsp cumin
- ¾ tsp better than bouillon beef flavor
- ½ cup rice
- 1 cup water
- Place the meat in a skillet over medium heat and begin browning; add onion, garlic, green pepper, and celery and sauté until soft.
- - Spray the slow cooker. Place the meat and veggies in the slow cooker. Add all remaining ingredients except rice and additional water.
- - Cover and Cook on low 8 hours. Add rice and extra water with 1-2 hours cooking time left.
To serve, top with your choice of shredded cheese, sour cream, sliced green onions and oyster crackers!
I’ve been really craving chili lately and I love that this one has black beans. It sounds delicious.
Hey Kristi! Honestly, this is the best chili I’ve ever had! I love that it has black beans instead of kidney beans (although you can totally use kidney beans if you like them)! So much flavor, all great ingredients, and I even make it with ground turkey!
Officially saving this recipe to my bookmark list! I love making chilli! This recipe looks very simple yet fun to make
We love chili, a good football game and we are set. I haven’t tried chili in a slow cooker, but I love the idea. 3 beans, it really gets better and better as I go down the list. I can’t wait to try this for the family. Thanks for sharing.
I vastly prefer cooking in the slow cooker to standing by a stove for 20-30 minutes (or more). This recipe is so super easy, you could be getting ready for the big game while the food is cooking and getting more done in less time!
Chili is a fall favorite!!!!!!!! Love my chili every now and then!!!!!!!
YES!!! We don’t eat it all the time, but man, do we love it when we do! It’s the perfect fall dish – throw in some apple crisp for dessert, and it’s all over!
fall days call for good soup, this one we will try soon thanks for sharing
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Hi Angie! Thanks for stopping by! I took at look at your site and love it – those Waffle Iron Churros…incredible-looking! And I love what you had to say about instilling a love of learning in our children. I think that’s a vital thing. I hope you’ll come back to visit again soon!
This does sound so good, and finally it is slow cooker and comfort food weather. I’d love to try this. My favorite is chili with beans.
I like chili with beans too, but I don’t especially like kidney beans. What’s great about this recipe is that you can have the kidney beans if you like them or substitute them out if you don’t! I’m so glad to see you stopping by and hope to see you again soon, Rosie!