Boilermaker Tailgate Chili

Very disappointed. I hope he didn't make this down here in El Paso last year when Purdue played in the sunbowl and try to pass it off as authentic. Most of the ingredients are from a can and taste like it. If you want it truly hot, better add more "hot sauce" as he puts it. Not trying to be critical, but this isn't authentic chile. Pass on this and try another chile recipe that has the word "Texas" in it.

This was okay chili. The Italian sausage gave it a nice flavor, but hubby and I didn't care for it. Didn't have bacon bits. Great for a crowd. It made so much that I had to use 2 crock pots... make sure to use a really large stew pot! As far as the list of ingredients, too lengthy and too much prep time for the end result. I've had as good or better chili with half the time, work, and cost! Overall, this was decent but it didn't knock our socks off. The list of ingredients was just too long, I was tired just getting to the end of it...(my thought was, whew! did I forget anything?!!!) Nothing special, I won't make this again. I even had to throw out the leftovers. I didn't even bother to add the cost of all the ingredients!!! Overall, this was very disappointing. Thanks for posting so we could try anyway.

EDIT - Still the best chilli ever. My changes include using only 2 cans of beans, using chunks of steak (or stewing beef) instead of sausage, and if you like to keep'em guessing - add a nice tablespoon of spicy brown mustard. I've made this chilli over 10 times now and I have to make double batches because every member of my family requests it.

MY FIRST HOMEMADE CHILI! I've got a huge pot of this yummy concoction simmering on the stove for tomorrow's big game. I felt the need to bump up the amount of beer (I used Alaskan Amber) and (brown) sugar a bit but left everything else "as is". Will post a follow-up review tomorrow. I've got my Frito's, sour cream, sharp cheddar and Tums ready - LOL. Update: "Awesome", "Superior" and "Kick-A$$" were the comments I heard from folks who had this chili. Whole pot's gone too. I truly believe that the sausage, sugar, bacon and beer are what makes this a stand-out recipe from the others on this site.

MightyPurdue22, PLease Forgive me for I have sinned...I took this wonderful chili and turned into a vegetarian recipe! It was so great the first time as written, my wife (who is not as enamored with meat as I am) asked if I would leave out the meat and substitute zucchini and more bell pepper. It hurt just to think about it, but guess what? It really is good this way. So if you are looking for a FABULOUS vegetarian chili, just leave out the meat and put in whatever veggies you like. Again, my apologies for this sacrilegious variation.

I just made this recipe for the Pat's playoff game on Sunday... I thought it was amazing chili and was waiting for rave reviews from everyone who ate it. Although everyone ate it and said it was good I didn't get any "I must get this recipe from you" and I pretty much had to ask people if they liked it, so I was a little disappointed after reading reviews that it won chili competitiions. I went by the recipe exactly,I slowly simmered it on Saturday and let it heat up in the crock pot on Sunday. I thought it was great but some of the comments I got back lead me to believe it wasn't quite spicy enough, next time I make it I will spice it up more, although I might find a recipe with less ingredients as this one wiped out my spice cabinet!

This is my new 'go-to' chili recipe! Between the recipe and other reviews, I ended up with a great pot of chili that we completely demolished, even all the leftovers (which just got better)! I took a few notes from other reviews, however. Instead of ground beef, I used a mix of cubed chuck steak and stew meat. I started the entire process in a skillet: I fried the bacon, cooked the veggies (omitted the green bell pepper) in the bacon fat, then used the pan to brown the meat in stages. Between each pan of meat, I used the beer to deglaze the pan (ended up using an entire bottle of beer). Everything went into my slow cooker. I used a mix of beans (black, kidney, and chili beans in spicy sauce) - and all the cans I used were either 'low sodium' or 'no salt'. Like other reviewers, I left out the Tabasco and used brown instead of white sugar. Yummy and perfect spicy for us!

***UPDATE** This Chili recipe has now won us 2 Chili cookoff blue ribbons! It is still our only Chili recipe. Just two minor alterations: 1)We used a whole bottle of Guiness beer and 2) only used 2 cans of spicy chili beans (we aren't huge "beans-in-chili" people) and cooked it all day on low in our HUGE slow cooker (after browning and drianing all meats) and it was fantastic! Great flavors - our new favorite chili recipe for all football sunday gatherings! Lot's of chopping but oh so worth it in the end.

Fun to make and what a nice change from the old standby I usually make even though my family says I make the best chili around! A little involved, but if you enjoy cooking, that's where the fun comes in!

I'm using my wife's login. First off, I make recipes from allrecipes all the time but this is the first review I have ever left. Secondly, I never follow directions to the letter because I HAVE TO TINKER with things -- add a little here, remove a little here, etc. Thirdly, I'm a Texan so I know a good chili when I taste one. This is without a doubt the best chili I have ever had. It pains me to admit that, but it's true. As instructed, I made it the night before. Thank God I did because it made all the difference. Read on and you'll see why. Based on other reviews, I omitted the bacon bits and put in 4 slices of bacon. I cut the 3 cans of chili beans to 1 can, and I drained it before putting in the pot. I also drained the can of spicy beans. I cut the ground beef from 2 pounds to 1, and I added 2.5 pounds of a rump roast that I cubed. Instead of the 2 green chilis, i put in a small can of green chilis. As I previously stated, I prepared it the night before. As I was putting the chili in the fridge for the night I was shocked by the fact that there was hardly any liquid at all in the pot and it tasted rather bland. I was ticked because it was a bit of a pain to make. The next day morning I put it on the stove to simmer all day. Once again, not much liquid and not much taste. For lunch I grabbed a small bowl of the chili, and while it had plenty of liquid, it was still a bit bland. Well, the final 6 hours did the trick. It was incredible!

I have won 1st place in 4 different cook-offs with this recipe. I've been using it since it only had 50 reviews! :) I do replace the ground beef with 1lb stew meat and 1lb roast (which ever kind is on sale) cubed. I mix up the beans a bit using 1 can black beans, 1 can dark kidney, and 1 can spicy chili. The flavors are amazing as they are written! BUT the texture of the different beans and meats makes it blow the judges and crowds away!! Thanks for the WINS and the great recipe!!!

I WON! I just won our school's Chili Cookoff with this recipe! If you are looking for a winner than this is it. It is superb! The only thing I changed was that I substituted spicy Italian sausage instead of plain Italian sausage. Also instead of bacon BITS I bought real crumbled bacon and used 1 T which is what the recipe calls for. The key to success (other than the amazing recipe) I believe, is in how long the chili is cooking. I cooked it on the stove on low for 2.5 hours and then switched it to a crock pot for about 6 hours - that really made the veggies get nice and tender and made the flavor wonderful. Thanks for the recipe! :)

By far the best chili recipe ever! My husband used this recipe for his office chili cookoff competition and has won 2 years in a row, and he's been in 2 different companies! We follow the recipe exactly but also added cubed chunks of steak as well as cooking and using real thick cut bacon instead of the bacon bits, we then also sauteed the peppers and onions in the bacon grease. It is a real winner!

This is an excellent recipe, delicious, easy and makes a large pot that can serve many. It's also spicy hot and if you have others in your family (like mine) that only like very mild spiciness, here are some useful modifications to make it milder and still has amazing flavor like the original. 1) Don't put in any cayenne, chili, paprika, cumin or hot sauce until then end. Even then, put in a very small amount of these starting with 1/8 increments (seriously) until you've reached the spicy hotness that works. (For some, 1/8 will work but I like it at about 3/8 or 1/2 of the original amounts). 2) Consider using 2 pounds of ground turkey instead of ground beef. This doesn't change the spiciness of course, but it's an easy substitute for a bit more healthy dish. Double the amount of beef bullion and double the Worcestershire sauce and you won't miss the beef or even notice. Don't substitute on the Italian sausage, though! 3) Skip the celery and double the onions and garlic used. It's adds more flavor and aroma that's lost when you reduce the chili spices. 4) Substitute another bell pepper for the 2 green chile peppers. At my store I can get a package of 3 bell peppers that works well, one each of red, green and yellow. (The yellow adds nice color, too!) 5) Substitute another can of chili beans for the spicy chili beans. That's it. Enjoy!

Won 1st place in local community chili cook off! I intended to use real bacon instead of bits, but accidentally burned it. Too many beans, recommend only 3 cans. To get a nice consistent mixture, chop veggies (except chilies) into bean-sized pieces and saute them with garlic before adding to pot. Also break up meat to bean size. To improve texture, I used crushed tomatoes (pureed works too) for one of the cans. And after it's cooked for a while, scoop out some of the liquid that comes to the top before stirring, otherwise it's too runny. Add Tabasco last, 1/2tsp at a time, tasting until desired spicyness is achieved.

Won a chili cook-off last night with this recipe. Like others, I made a few modifications... I used 5 strips of bacon and sauteed the veggies in the bacon drippings. I used HOT Italian sausage and didn't use chile peppers. I added 2 cans spicy beans NOT drained and 2 cans mild DRAINED. I cooked for 2 hours and then refrigerated overnight. I then let it simmer on low for 8 hours before taking home the prize!!! Everyone loved it.

This was an amazing chili as the recipe is stated but it was too spicy for my 20 year old and 8 year old daughter so I made a few changes. I did not add in the hot sauce or the cayenne pepper and instead of the 1/4 cup chili powder, I added just half that (2 Tbsp. chili powder) and then added in just under a Tbsp. of unsweetened cocoa powder. The cocoa still gives it a depth of flavor but without the heat. The result was an amazingly deep flavored chili with no heat although it almost seemed like there would be some there. I would take a bit and definitely taste the wonderful flavor and expect the heat to come but it never did! This is an 11 on a scale of 1-10 according to my family. A DEFINITE keeper!

Review readers beware........don't fall for the 5 stars with 2k plus rating as it is skewed. Let me start with this is the first review I have ever bothered to write, but I felt it necessary. Also let me say that I followed this recipe to the T which is something I never do but assumed the 5 stars wouldn't do me wrong. For something with so many ingredients, this recipe severely lacks flavor. I was leary when the recipe called for "chili beans in sauce" rather than kidney beans and I should have walked away then. Overall this recipe is too expensive to make considering the lack of flavor and originality.

This chili is Awesome! Great for those cold Indiana afternoons. Go Boilers!

Made this for the annual UCLA-USC football game. Followed the directions exactly, and everyone loved it!!! Don't let the long list of ingredients intimidate you. It truely can be put together in a short time. I thought I would have a long grocery list, but in fact, I had at least 1/2 of the items already!!

GREAT recipe! To make things easier, the night before I made this I sat down in front of my spice cabinet, measured out everything I needed, dumped it in the bowl and put all the spices back. That took care of 10 of the 28 ingredients called for, so once that was done everything else was a breeze (and I wasn't drowning in spice bottles all over the counter while I was trying to cook). The only changes I made were adding 2 t. cocoa to add a little more depth and "darkness" of flavor. I also used 2 cans of pinto beans and 2 cans of black beans (drained the black beans but not the pintos) b/c I didn't have any "chili beans". It was plenty hot enough even without spiced beans... in fact if you are serving this to kids I would cut the cheyenne pepper back to 1/2 t. I also used a full cup of beer. I liked the celery in it, next time I'll add more.

I made this pretty close to recipe to check it out. Loved it!!...although too spicy for us, a great recipe to start with!!!! I hate buying seasoning packets and loved the flavors of these but next time will cut back on cayenne and chile powder. Lost my mind and used jalapenos, but next time will def use Hatch New Mexico Green Chiles. Used ground tri-tip and Mild Italian Sausage...next time will use a cubed and browned beef roast and either Hot Italian sausage or chorizo. (Thought the occasional flavor of the mild Italian sausage was a little odd.) Also used real bacon and browned veggies in the bacon drippings. Overall...it was delicious...I think it was probably one of the best chili recipe's I've made. Right up there with my Mother-In-Law's Texas Red (no bean) chili. I'd love to make them to taste side-by-side...after my stomach calms down, lol! Beans, no beans, there's room enough in this world for all of it!! Thanks for the recipe!! LOVE IT!!!!

I normally do not like chili, but decided to try this for my family,and it is the BEST chili I have ever made. I will use this as my standard receipe from now on. I made it with all ground beef (no sausage) and it was quite yummy with a nice little kick.

I am not going to rate this chili recipe. This is just a chili vegetable stew. True chili does not have bell peppers, celery, bacon bits, basil, worchestershire sauce, Italiam sausage or canned beans. In the south this would never pass as chili.

I thought the chili was great. I changed a few of the ingredents as follows 1 can of beer, only one teaspoonn of cummin, only one teaspoon of tabasco sauce. Put in crook pot for six hours on slow cook. get ready for second and thirds Ymmmmm

This is probably one of the best chili's I've ever made. I made very few modifications to it and it was fabulous. First, not sure what a boilermaker is, so I used my slow cooker. I browned the meat (including 3 strips of real bacon. Don't do bacon bits!) and then threw everything into a slow cooker on low for 8-9 hours. I used a bean mix (whcih I drained and rinsed) and serrano peppers instead of green chile's as I like the flavor a bit better. I also cut the recipe in half (there's only two of us) which was good because my slow cooker couldn't fit anything more than what I made. Freaking Deee-lish!

I used beef smoked sausage with great results. This is one of the best chili recipes I have used. Lots of flavor and no bitter aftertaste. (Maybe because I used Keystone Light for the beer) ;~)

I thought this would be a really great chili and was a little disappointed. It was very good, but not GREAT. There was something missing, or maybe it was just too many flavors being brought together. Next time I would use an entire can/bottle of beer and maybe tweak some other things as well to get it more to what I'm looking for.

Excellent. This will be my standard chili recipe from here on out. I faithfully followed the recipe. The end result was awesome. It's spicey hot which suits me fine! If I were to change anything, I might cut down on the cumin. The chili improved with age and actually cooled down a bit. Way to go and thanks for posting this recipe.

My family loves this chili. The only thing I do different is instead of bacon bits I use real bacon and cook it at the start of the recipe and then I add the rest of the meat and veggies.

This chili is EXCELLENT! I am putting it in my file. It has a little kick to it which I really like. It tastes much better the next day, just re-heat it on the stove. I left out the fritos and made corn bread muffins. I topped the chili with cheddar cheese and sour cream.

Very good! I didn't put all of the chili powder in right away...think I started with just a little under 1/4 cup and I only used one tsp of tabasco to start. Figured I go had it in later if it needed more spice. Turned out it didnt...was the perfect amount for our family. I also didn't use the sausage...just because I didn't have any. Used 3# of ground round instead.

This was 'THE BEST CHILI' I've ever eaten. Thanks for sharing the recipe.

Fun to make on a rainy day. Taste was excellent, altho I must warn everyone that it is very hot and spicy! Next time I might cut down on the cumin and Tabasco.

I was really excited to make this chili! Sadly it didn't meet expectations. I am surprised to see so many 5 stars, to me it was bland. Although I am not sure how because it wiped out my spice cupboard. We even had leftovers that ended up getting tossed. Seems to me like it is fairly expensive to make. I will keep looking.

This was pretty good, it was my first attempt at making chili. I followed the recipe and put it in the fridge overnight, then put it in a crockpot and brought it to work (group lunch) and set it on low all morning. Got rave reviews! Served with Homesteader Cornbread and saltine crackers.

I really enjoyed this recipe. I followed others advice and added a full beer and cooked it in a slow-cooker all day. INCREDIBLE!!! Thanks for sharing this recipe!

This Chili was delicious! I didn't make any changes. Nice kick, great flavor. Best I've ever made. My husband said it was better than his! Now, that's a compliment! :-) Better the next day. This recipe made a big quantity so with leftover we made chili burritos, used it as a dip with chips, had some with rice, and never got tired of it! I'm making it for Super Bowl Party! Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe.

Great chili. When this came into my inbox this week and I saw the name I knew that I had to use it for the cookoff with a few of mhy changes. Won the chili cookoff at church tonight in Putnam County, Indiana. Boiler UP!

I won a chili cookoff with this recipes

Had to try this recipe because we're big Boilermaker fans. Thought it was great; however, didn't use the spicy beans because of the kid's preference...I just let everyone add their own spices. (crushed red pepper with Frank's hot sauce)Everyone loved it. Go Boilers!

Followed the recipe with the exception of 19oz of sausage and 12 oz of beer(used entire container each time). Probably the best chili I've ever had. Can't think of anything I would do different. Thanks for the great recipe

This was pretty good. Not 5 stars but definitly deserving of 4. The only thing I cut down on was the beans since my crockpot couldn't hold anymore,however, I don't think that affected the taste at all. Oh, and added a entire can of beer.I simmered on low all night, popped it in the fridge, and now I'm enjoying a great bowl of chili for dinner. Like others I served it up with some cornbread and shredded cheese on top. Thanks for the recipe, a definite keeper!!

Didnt really care for this Chili plus waaay to many ingredients and effort for the results

The best thing I learned from this recipe was to use Italian Sausage in my chili from this day forward. I think that was a flavor that I had missed in my years of chili-making. I did skip out on the peppers and celery as they just didn't sound appealing for chili. Also I always add a can of rotel and subbed it for some of the tomatoes. Finally, I subbed some of the chili beans for kidney beans, about half of them. I think this would be a great recipe for the chili-beginner.

Ok....this is the best chili I have had hands down. My friends would agree. However, the recipes says it makes 12 servings. I had over 20 people so i doubled the recipe. Everyone had seconds AND I sent them all home with some. And I still have the whole second pot. I could've saved alot of money had I known. So keep that in mind when making for parties. It makes ALOT!!

I make a double batch of this chili every year for a halloween party and it's always a huge hit!! My husband makes me reserve some of it before we leave for the next day.I don't change a thing with the ingredients.

The best chili I have ever had. Everyone that tries it asks for the recipe

We found this recipe a year or two ago and now we make ONLY this recipe!!! It is delicious....everyone in my family gives it very good reviews!!! Kudos to MightyPurdue22!!! :)

Left out the beer, bell peppers, chili pepper, and halved the chili powder. Substitued steak chunks for ground beef, but still used the Italian sausage. Turned out FABULOUS. Was the rave of the party.

This chili is phenomenal! I will definitely make it again. Everyone raved! My variations: I omitted the celery (didn't appeal to me) and used 2 cans of chili beans and one can of kidney beans. I also only used 2 T of chili powder instead of the 1/4 C it called for.

Amazing! It was restaurant-quality and so full of flavours! We omitted the Worchestershire sauce because it wasn't available and used real bacon instead of bacon bits. I was wary of the amount of chili suggested in the first place, but finally it wasn't too much. Thanks for a great recipe!

This is not chili it is a ground beef stew! A true chili would not be loaded up with all the vegetables and odd additions like this one. I would leave out all the canned items, vegetables, basil, Italian sausage, Worcestershire's sauce, and bacon, in particular and focus on the subtle blending of spices and meat. Better yet, get a Texas cookbook. And, no Frito's! Tostado chips, please!

It's okay, but I won't make it again. I've made better chili recipes.

so far so good. the 2 hour taste test is a success. some things i had to change due to materials on hand: used Killian's Irish Red Lager, 1/2 a bottle (what kind of beer you use makes a difference!), used fresh bacon, 4 slices. Omitted celery. Browned other veggies in bacon drippings. Substituted Kielbasa for the Italian sausage, also browned in bacon drippings. Used 1 lb gr.chuck and 1 lb gr.turkey, again, in the bacon drippings. Used 1 can each of dark red kidney beans, light red kidney beans and great northern beans (had no regular chili beans on hand). All spices stayed the same. I have to say, this was surprisingly easy to prepare, considering the rather imposing list of ingredients. I will make this again, hopefully with the ingredients the recipe calls for, just to try it. But the way its turning out now.... Delicious, thick, hearty, loaded with meat and veggies, with a nice solid kick to it. I'm impressed. And I'm a chili critic.

Honestly amazing! I made a few changes... scaled the recipe back to serve 8. Excluded celery. I like alot of beans in my chili and so used a 2 cans dark kidney beans and 2 cans light kidney beans. To give the chili a nice Smokey taste I used 3 cans fire roasted diced tomatoes and 1 can hunts tomatoes sauce. There was no type of sausage or beer listed so I went with sweet Italian sausage and Sam Adams Boston Lager... The meat came out so tender and the flavor is wonderful with lots of depth. It disappeared from the table.

great stuff, easy to modify to personal taste!

Great Chili!! so much flavor! This is now a staple for our family! They loved it! We had it as is one night, and then the next night, we warmed up the leftovers and put it over baked potatoes! It was delicious! Mu husband said this was the best chili he had ever had! Thanks for the recipe!

I tried to stay as close to the recipe as possible. I didn't have chili beans, so I used black. I left out the chili peppers because I need to feed little mouths and I also used california chili powder, which gives you all the flavor of chili powder but less heat. (You can find california chili powder in the "ethnic" section of your grocery store hanging from a j-hook in a cellophane package and it costs under a dollar.) I also used brown sugar in place of the granulated, because I like a richer flavor rather than just sweet. I try to use all organic ingredients and a quality beer because the flavor and quality of what you make just turns out so much better. Those were the only changes I made. This recipe looks complicated, but it's really not. I can't tell you how wonderful it smells already. I layered all the ingredients in the crockpot so it'll be able to simmer on low most of the day. I'll update how everyone liked it later today. EDITED: This is the best chili I've ever had. Real beefy. This will replace my own recipe for chili as of today. Best chili EVER. And honestly, the longer it sits, the better it gets. Really.

Great chili! I doubled the recipe. Doubling this recipe made two large crock pots of chili. I cooked it yesterday, cooled overnight and re-heated today on low in the crock for dinner. Friends raved. I have made it to the letter in the past and loved it. This time, I substituted (for a double batch) 6 lbs. cubed sirloin instead of the ground chuck for tender, meaty servings and 3 lbs. ground turkey with Italian seasoning instead of the bulk Italian sausage (again, for a doubled volume). I added 3-3 ounce jars of crumbled bacon to the turkey as it browned because I like the smokey flavor of the bacon. Oh, and because of my Scandinavian family, I used only half of the chili powder (1/4 c. for a double batch). Still spicy enough, but not over the top for these native Minnesota taste buds. All other ingredients were included to the letter. Served with sour cream and shredded cheddar atop and fresh sourdough bread, this made a wonderful, hearty meal. Quite a time-intensive process, but well worth it!

Very good for thick chili. I ended up adding some water to the recipe to make it somewhat less thick; however, it still ended up thickier than I personally like. My husband loved it (he's a Boilermaker Alumni so that may have something to do with it, too)!! I cooked the chili overnight in the crockpot, so as it was ready for football at lunchtime! It was a little time consuming b/c of all of the ingredients - but it was certainly good. I also used fresh bacon - instead of bacon bits. My husband wished I had added even more bacon b/c he liked the flavor it added. I prefer this chili without frito's b/c of it's thickness(but it would be fine for dipping as a snack) but the cheese was wonderful on top. I only made half of this recipe and it made so much chili - we had alot of leftovers! If you're expecting a big crowd - definetly this is a chili worth fixing!! BOILER UP!!

This has pretty much everything I put in my own chili. I'm a kind of "throw everyting in the pot" kind of cook and usually don't measure anything. I folowed this recipe exactly and I have to say.....I like it much better than my own. I discovered I was putting waaaay too much beer and other spices in my own. I thought the measurements of seasonings was perfect. Really thick and meaty. I recommend cooking it at least 2 hours (or more). The tomatoes break down nicely and the flavors are developed. I did add more chili powder in the end as suggested. Makes enough for a crowd and goes together quickly. Yum!

Really good...

super fantastic!!!! I did not use the bell peppers because I am not a fan of it in my chili. This chili has such a great flavor....loved all of the spices.

This is the best chili ever. I did tweak a little. I used hot sausage so I didn't need the 2 teaspoons hot sauce. I used 1 can pink beans drained, 1 can dark kidney beans drained, 1 can red beans drained. I will add another can of kidney beans if too much liquid. Most important I put all the dry ingredients and bouillon cubes in a small bowl and keep adding until I felt it was to my liking. Only used about 1/2 the dry ingredients and only 2 of bouillion cubes. You can always put in more as needed. Now I have all the dry ingredients for another batch. Love this recipe I bet it will get better tomorrow

Wow!!! This was definitely the best chili I have ever made or tasted. I upped the spices a little to make it spicy, but other than that followed it to a tee & it turned out perfectly. Cooked it in the slow cooker for about 8hrs. Everybody loved it. It does make a lot though so make sure you have a really big pot or slow cooker!

The problem with recipes like this is they say things like "2 green chile peppers" without telling you WHICH chili pepper. There are hundreds. It's like saying "one cup liquid" without saying which liquid!

Awesome chili - it's the first chili I've ever made and it turned out excellently!! I subbed two jalapenos for the chili peppers and couldn't find beans in spicy sauce so I just used another can of regular beans...otherwise I think I did everything else just as the recipe calls! I did make cornbread muffins to crush up in my chili as I eat it...really yummy with some Greek yogurt and avocado on top. I can't stop eating it!

Amazing chili, EVERYONE loves it, I've made it many times now and have even made it for company. It is a bit spicy so I don't feed it to my little one, but the adults love it, this is my only chili recipe now. (Don't tell my mom). :-)

Turned the Heat down a bit. Love this Chili!

We eat this all the time in the winter and for footbal games - it is really good and has become a permanent part of our family menu!

Just took 1st place at a chili cook off with this recipe. Only changes I made was I substituted 1 pound of ground beef with stew beef and added some bacon. I also used chipotle peppers instead of chili peppers. YUM!! This is good stuff!!

I have made this recipe twice now... As much as i wanted it to be my "perfect" chili recipe it didn't happen. It is a very good chili but it definitely did not stand out from other recipes i have tried. My quest continues.

I made this for a Chili cook off at the office and won! What a great recipe! People especially liked all the different ingredients without it being too over the top. I had to print off a couple copies and give them away because so many people asked for the recipe! Thanks!

I know the ingredient list looks daunting, but it is SO worth it!! Best chili I have ever had!! I change it up to suit my tastes(no sausage, sometimes I use ground turkey, I generally never use beer because I don't have it in the house ever, and most of the time I add a can of black beans to it) but this will always be my chili recipe from now on.

There are many ingredients in this chili. Measuring them all out is a little tedious, and it would seem that the hot peppers, the cayenne, tabasco etc. would be too spicy, but in fact this chili is perfectly seasoned and delicious!! I served it for a dinner party last night to rave reviews! I highly recommend it!

This is absolutely the best chili I have ever made. It was a huge hit!! I did everything as directed and would not change a thing. Thanks

We love chili, but NOT this recipe. Followed the recipe exactly. And so, the recipe is totally disappointing. Way too many flavors "fighting" each other, and really didn't mesh well together. I don't mind putting a lot of work into a meal, but all these ingredients did nothing for one another. Odd flavor, didn't taste like chili at all. I'm thinking the bacon bits and beef boullion as well as the Worcestershire, celery and basil (along with the seasonings normally found in Italian sausage such as fennel seed) were big culprist.

OMG - can we say awesome??? I prepared this stovetop, then threw it in the crock pot to simmer. I did make some changes, but none were drastic, just me cooking :) For those curious, I used dried celery flakes (i/o stalks), crushed red pepper (i/o chili peppers), and about half the onion, adding diced green onions to make up for it. i actually cooked a whole package of thick cut bacon, diced it set aside, and used half the drippings to saute my onion, garlic and meats in, adding the bacon after i cooked the meats. I did use deer meat in place of ground chuck, because thats what was on hand. I added some fennel seeds too, because my sausage was a mild blend. I did change the chili beans a bit, but just for presentation. I used a can of pinto, light and dark kidney, and one chili bean. I didn't add as much diced tomatoes, but next time i will. It can handle it. I truly think the flavors came out beautifuly. I dont actually measure my spices, just sprinkle till I think that's about right. So my concoction maybe a lil diff each time, but this is simple the best chili I've ever made. Thank you soooo much for sharing!

Great recipe. I made it vegetarian by taking out all the meat products and using Boca Crumbles.

VERY GOOD!! I have made this a few times and stored in the freezer for a cold night when I don't want to cook. It freezes really well. Thanks for sharing.

This was the best chili we have ever had, bar none! It's amazing! For someone to post that this was no big deal with 2760 reviews making it a 5 star, well .....enough said! You def won't be disappointed. I will get rid of any other chili recipes I have, there really is no point in trying another.

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I only had about two tablespoons of chili powder so that's all I used and I didn't have the bacon bits but other than that I stuck to the recipe. We loved it. Full of flavor and hearty. My new chili recipe of choice.

THE best chili I have ever tasted. I love all the spices in this. My husband ate it Sunday (I made it for the football game), then brought it to work for lunch on Tuesday and Wednesday! :) I used ground Turkey and Turkey sausage and halved the recipe (it fed 4 of us with 2 extra large bowls left over). I left out the chili peppers and hot pepper sauce because we have kids, and it turned out wonderfully! I figured we could add those later if we needed, which we didn't. Seriously, awesome.

Excellent, excellent. Added a little more cumin, cayenne, and a chopped jalapeno (seeds removed). Also, what the heck, used a whole bottle of guiness. If you don't have all of the chili beans called for, kidney beans work well too!! Thank you. This is the only way we make chili now.

This was absolutely awesome!!! Loved it, and it made a big batch. It was just a bit spicy for me (and I even left out the 2 green chili peppers), so next time I will cut the hot pepper sauce back by one teaspoon. Be sure to serve with the Fritos and shredded cheddar cheese -- really makes it "pop!" Don't know why anyone would say this recipe is "bland" or is just an "ok" chili recipe -- must be an IU fan. Go Boilers!

LOVEDDD this recipe!! I tweaked the recipe just a bit - I did not add bacon bits. I also did not use 2 cans of diced tomatoes. I only used one and also used a 28oz can of tomato puree to loosen up the chili. It was perfect after simmering for 2 hours. This will be my "go to" chili for now on.

THIS WAS AMAZING!! I did not make any changes to this recipe. Everyone in this household raved anout how good it was. It was even better the next day! This will definitely be made over and over and over again!

Best chili I have ever had. Did not want to share.

I made for Super Bowl 45. The chili was a real crowd pleaser. It was a bit too thick for my personal liking and is quite mild in terms of spice. Nevertheless, it is a very solid "standard" chili.

Wow, this chili was awesome! My husband says there is something about it that is slightly "addicting" and makes him want to eat bowl after bowl. I made it for the Superbowl, but we were so full from snacks that we didn't eat it until the next day, which I think made the chili even better! A couple of things I changed just due to availability of items: I used one 28 oz. can kidney beans and one 28 oz. can of pinto beans. I also used Anaheim chili peppers because green chiles weren't available and I cut down the amount of cayenne pepper to 1/2 tsp. because my 15 month old was going to be eating it and I didn't want it overly spicy. I think these were minor changes and stayed true to the original recipe, which made a fantastic pot of chili!

Excellent chili! I followed the recipe exact, except I didn't have Bacon Bits, so I cooked 2 strips of bacon and crumbled it. Other than that, I did exact to recipe and it was fantastic! This makes a big pot, so I froze half of the chili for another nights dinner.

Best chili ever!! I don't drain any of the chili beans and 3 cans of the chili beans from Aldi work great with 1 can of Bush's chili beans in hot sauce. I use a can of diced green chiles instead of seeding and chopping 2 green chile peppers. I add more like 3 or 4 tablespoons of bacon bits and almost a whole bottle of beer. I also use a vidalia onion because that is all that I buy. Thanks for the post!!

Great chili! Very tasty & hearty. Probably one of the best recipes for chili I have used yet. I did however make a few changes & substitutions, the biggest was adding beef stock and brown sugar, but it is all about personal taste. Its great on top of hot dogs! You won't be sorry-try it!

I have been making this recipe for a few years now and get amazing reiews from family and friends. After much urging, I finally got the nerve and entered in a Chili Cook-Off yesterday.....TOOK 1st PLACE! I made only minor changes: in place of 3-15oz cans chili beans, I used 1 large 29oz can of pink beans and 1 15 oz can light red kidnet beans, all drained and rinsed; 2 4oz cans diced green chilis instead of fresh, leave out bacon bits altogether and leave out the extra tsp of salt as there is plenty of salt throughout the recipe.

Very good! Too hot for me though. I will cut down on the hot sauce and chili powder next time, but still has a good full flavor.

Basically followed the recipe, but toned down all the heat...and it was still plenty hot and spicy. Omitted the "spicy" can of chili beans. Added an extra can of regular chili beans instead. Instead of two green chili peppers, I only added @1/2 of one green chili pepper. (Pasilla Chili pepper) Other reductions: 2 Tbsp of chili powder, 1 tsp Tabasco, 1/2 tsp pepper, 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper. If you are concerned at all about this chili being too spicy, follow the reductions that I am suggesting. The quality of this chili is amazing...just figure out how spicy you want it and you can't miss!!

Not an "oh-my-word-this-is-the-best-chili-I've-ever-had" chili, but a solid recipe. I lessened the amount of hot spices I put in, but otherwise followed the recipe exactly. Good flavor. Very hearty. Reheats well. Makes a pretty big batch. We'll make it again sometime to freeze for several dinners for the two of us to have in the future.