Chili Bar Recipe

How This Recipe Earned Its Spot

A family of picky eaters (read that as kids) begs the question: How to please everyone with a crowd-pleaser of a recipe? Chili bars have been our answer for some time now.

Chili bars are a fantastic option for feeding picky eaters, since kids LOVE the freedom of choosing their own ingredients, but they’re also super fun for any type of get-together, especially during sports season.

The concept is super simple. Basically, we separate the key ingredients of chili into individual components and serve them in bowls so folks can build their own.

The concept reminds me a lot of taco or burrito bars, as it’s self-service and everyone is encouraged to build their own masterfully crafted masterpiece of a bowl.

I came up with the idea of chili bars for game day when we were hosting four opinionated guests on how to construct the perfect bowl of chili. One hates kidney beans.

One avoids ground beef. One craves spicy.

One refuses to eat tomatoes. Trying to fit everyone’s requests into one pot seemed like it was going to result in four bowls of disappointment, so I scrapped that idea.

Instead, I put out a tomato-based chili sauce (see below) along with browned ground beef, four kinds of beans, and a host of toppings. Instant success.

Chili bars are now a regular feature during casual get-togethers in our home. Everyone leaves happy (or full enough to skip dessert, which is a win/win!), and cleanup is a breeze since everything is already divided into manageable portions.

It makes storing leftovers easier, too.

Ingredient Breakdown

• the above ingredients create the base of your chili. You’ll be adding meat, beans, and toppings later.
• meat: I’ve used 1 lb of 80/20 ground beef, but you could certainly add some other proteins to the mix (hot dogs or sausages for instance). In my experience, meat seems to go quicker than beans. Plan accordingly. Brown your ground beef in a separate skillet from your chili mixture, then drain and set aside.
• beans: Four types of beans here. Drain and set aside.
• toppings: As above. Get creative. Serve in small bowls.
• serving: Bowls, spoons and ladles are needed to create a true self-serve chili bar experience.

Directions: Make chili according to recipe below. Brown ground beef in a separate pan and drain.

Divide ingredients into bowls. Serve.

Drain and rinse four cans each of light kidney beans, dark kidney beans, pinto beans and red beans (substitute black beans or add them as another option, if desired). Put them in individual bowls with serving spoons.

How to Set Up a Chili Bar

Step 1: Create the chili sauce.

Add tomato sauce, stewed tomatoes, chicken broth, chili powder and cumin to a large pot or Dutch oven. Cook over medium heat, bringing to a boil.

Lower heat, cover and simmer at least 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Sauce will darken and thicken as it cooks.

Taste and add more chili powder and cumin as needed.

We like Hunt’s and Contadina brand 28-ounce cans of tomato sauce for this recipe (NOT the ones with added seasoning like marinara or Italian-seasoned pasta sauce). We love the convenience of Mexican-style canned stewed tomatoes because they come with green chiles and onions, but regular stewed tomatoes work great, too.

Either way, stewed tomatoes add great flavor and some chunkiness to the chili. Chicken broth helps to keep the chili at a thinner consistency that’s perfect for serving.

Make sure to use the entire amount of chili powder and cumin called for. It may seem like a lot of spice for one pot of chili but customers will be combining the chili with the beans and toppings and will be taking several servings each.

You want the chili itself to be flavorful. Also, the cumin is a must-have ingredient for earthy flavor and takes the chili over the edge from tomato soup to chili.

Step 2: Brown the meat.

Cook the beef in a large skillet over medium-high heat, breaking up with a wooden spoon as it cooks, about 8 minutes or until browned and cooked through.

Next, drain the fat from the cooked ground beef, rinse and drain the beans in a colander, and shred/dice/chop/slice the remaining toppings such as cheese, onions, jalapeño, cilantro, and lime.

Make sure you drain the beans well to avoid adding starchy bean liquid into the chili. We put each type of bean in a separate bowl so customers can choose their bean combination.

We’ve found that’s part of what makes a bar fun.

Set up bowls of toppings. We always serve shredded cheese, sour cream and oyster crackers but feel free to use other toppings, or all of these.

We love diced onions, jalapeño slices, fresh chopped cilantro, Fritos, crumbled bacon, hot sauce and lime wedges for squeezing. Choose at least 5 toppings to provide plenty of options.

The more topping options, the merrier. Providing plenty of toppings and condiments allows diners to customize their bowl of chili and beans.

Set out the bowls, Fritos/crackers in the bag or in a small basket, spoons, chili, meat, beans, and toppings. Arrange the items in buffet form starting with bowls/spoons, chili, meat, beans, toppings, and ending with napkins so guests can easily create a bowl as they walk down the buffet.

Each topping should have its own bowl with a serving spoon.

Set up the buffet in an area where your guests will easily be able to assemble their own bowl.

Storage and Make-Ahead Tips

This recipe makes about 8 servings, depending on the size of your guests’ portions.

The sauce can be made up to 2 days in advance and tastes even better after sitting around. Store in the refrigerator.

When ready to serve, empty into slow cooker and heat on low for 1.5-2 hours.

The ground beef can be cooked and drained 1 day in advance. Store in refrigerator and heat in a skillet when ready to serve.

It’s important that the meat and sauce stay warm while guests are adding toppings. Chili and ground beef both stay hot for 2-3 hours in a slow cooker on “warm”.

Stir every once in a while. If you don’t have enough slow cookers, candle warmers will work for a short amount of time as well.

Trust me on this: You don’t want your guests to have a less-than-delicious chili experience. Ground beef especially will get cold quickly in a bowl.

If you don’t have a slow cooker or candle warmer available to keep the meat and sauce warm, I’d suggest cooking it closer to serving time. Slow cookers are great for keeping food in the serving temperature range (140-165°F) and won’t overcook your chili.

You may want to stir it a couple of times to make sure it’s heated evenly.

Leftover chili sauce, ground beef, and beans can be combined and stored in the refrigerator in a single container. “It’s just chili now.” Store in refrigerator for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much meat and beans will we need?

In my experience, there’s always more beans than meat left over. Plan accordingly.

Should I label the bowls of toppings?

If you’re using common toppings like shredded cheese and chopped scallions, probably not necessary. However, if you’re using less common beans or toppings, labeling can help your guests identify what’s going into their bowls.

Can I use turkey or chicken instead of beef?

Absolutely. Just make sure to add 1 teaspoon beef bouillon to compensate for their weaker flavors and make sure to cook them through completely, of course.

The sauce is flavorful enough to complement turkey/chicken nicely.

Can I make this recipe in a slow cooker?

Yes, add all of the ingredients from the sauce except the beans to a 4- to 6-quart slow cooker, cover, and simmer on LOW for 4-6 hours. You can either serve it in the slow cooker, which is easiest, or transfer it to a pot when finished cooking.

If you’re transferring to a pot, I’d suggest turning the slow cooker to WARM immediately after preparing the recipe, which will eliminate one transition step when serving.

Can I use less than 4 types of beans?

Yes, you can serve this recipe with 2-3 kinds of beans if you’re unable to get all 4. Pinto beans and kidney beans are the most universally liked.

If you’re going to serve two kinds, I’d suggest putting each of them in individual bowls so it still resembles a “bean bar.”

How many people will this recipe feed?

To feed 8 or more, double the meat and sauce. The four cans of beans will be enough.

Can I make the recipe not-spicy for the kiddos?

This recipe is more on the warm side as opposed to spicy thanks to the 3 T chili powder. If some of your little ones still don’t care for even a tiny bit of heat, I’d suggest cooking a pot of plain tomato sauce, warming it, and serving it in a separate bowl for them.

More Recipes You’ll Love

White Chicken Chili, creamy chicken and great northern beans come together with green chiles for a lighter chili that’s packed with flavor.

Walking Tacos, the ultimate in casual, build-your-own tacos. Each person gets a bag of Fritos to fill with seasoned taco meat, lettuce, cheese, and sour cream.