This super easy keto friendly low carb chili is bursting with flavor! Enjoy it mild, or spice it up with more peppers. Prep takes only minutes, and you can make it on the stove, in a slow cooker, or in an Instant Pot.
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From the first cool breeze in the fall through the dead of winter, you’ll find me making soups and stews. I love how satisfying they are and they way they warm you up. Plus, they are so easy to make!
But this low carb chili may just be my favorite. Actually, my whole family loves it!
It's been a popular recipe on this blog for several years. Everyone seems to love this hearty, flavorful, dish.
Prep is quick and easy. You simply brown the beef, drain it, then add the rest of the ingredients. That’s it! And you can choose to make it on the stove top, in a slow cooker, or in an Instant Pot.
Low carb chili modifications
Personally, I like my chili seasoning mix to be a bit spicy. Not burning hot, just a bit of a kick. So for me, the amount of peppers used was perfect.
However, if you don’t like spicy food, feel free to adjust. Anyone that doesn’t like spice should probably stay away from hot peppers.
I also like to include black olives to add flavor as well as healthy fat. But please note that they are completely optional! Some people really don’t enjoy black olives. If that’s you, just omit them or add in some chopped veggies like zucchini.
However you customize this keto chili, you can be sure it will warm you up and satisfy!
Step by step instructions
You can choose to make the dish on the stove, in a slow cooker, or in your Instant Pot. Each method will turn out hearty and flavorful.
- Brown the ground beef. This can be done in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat or in an Instant Pot on the sauté setting.
- Chop the peppers and the onions. You can do this as the meat cooks to save time. When chopping your hot peppers, I highly recommend wearing gloves to prevent the juice from getting on your skin. Also be very careful not to get any juice near your eye. I speak from personal experience on that one!
- Drain the fat from the ground beef. Once browned, you can spoon off any excess liquid, but you may want to keep the fat in the chili.
- Add water, vegetables, tomato paste, and seasonings to the meat. Combine the ingredients together in the pot.
- Cook slowly to blend the flavors. First you'll bring the mixture to a boil. Then reduce the heat and simmer for about 1-2 hours, stirring occasionally.
You can also cook this keto chili in an Instant Pot or slow cooker . Those instructions are provided in the printable recipe card further down.
Chili with the lowest carb count
The exact nutritional value will always depend on the ingredients you use. Especially in a recipe like this one, where the size of ingredients like peppers may vary.
For precise macros, I recommend weighing and inputting your ingredients into a macro tracker. But out of all my low carb chili recipes, this one has the least amount of carbs.
With the ingredients I used, a 1 cup serving came out to 7 grams of total carbs and 2 grams of fiber. This means there's about 5 grams of net carbs per 1 cup serving.
Carbs in black olives
As I mentioned before, black olives are entirely optional in this recipe. Olives tend to be very hit or miss for people. If they’re a miss for you, just leave them out.
If you enjoy olives though, they are a great source of fat and flavor in this chili. They are also very low carb.
This recipe calls for 2.25 oz (about 67 grams) of black olives. That comes out to 4 grams of total carbs and 2 grams of fiber. So there are 2 grams of net carbs from black olives in the entire recipe.
Per 1 cup serving, black olives only account for 0.3 grams of net carbs.
What types of chili are keto?
Traditional chili is usually not keto friendly.
Tomato products tend to be higher in carbs. They are fine in moderation, but most traditional chili recipes call for a larger quantity. This contributes to the higher carb count.
You’ll also find beans in many recipes. Beans are a cheap filler that take up space and increase the carb count.
And, of course, many traditional recipes include sugar. Which we definitely don’t want on a ketogenic eating plan.
This keto chili recipe, on the other hand, doesn’t call for sugar or beans. It also uses tomatoes in moderation.
Thanks to a few substitutions, one serving comes out to only 5 net carbs. So this recipe is perfect for any low carb diet!
Other recipes to try
Looking for a few more delicious low carb chili recipes to warm you up on a cold day? Check out a few of these other favorites:
- No Bean Chili uses diced tomatoes and plenty of protein-rich meat to fill you up. A mix of peppers gives a moderate amount of spice.
- Paleo White Chicken Chili is a thick, hearty soup that’s packed with flavor, totally dairy free, and can be made in the Instant Pot or on the stovetop.
- Turkey Pumpkin Chili made in the slow cooker is super filling and perfect for warming up on a cool fall day!
- Venison Chili is a rich, hearty dish made with ground meat, bacon, veggies, and healthy beef bone broth.
- Slow Cooker Turkey Chili No Beans is a healthy recipe made without beans that’s low carb and full of flavor!
For another Instant Pot recipe, take a look at this easy chili verde. And be sure to check out my other keto Mexican recipes.
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Recipe
Keto Chili
Video
Ingredients
- 4 cups water
- 1 ½ pounds ground beef
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon cumin
- ¼ cup onion chopped
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce check ingredients for paleo
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- ¾ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon red pepper
- ½ teaspoon allspice
- 6 ounces tomato paste
- 3 bay leaves
- 2.25 ounces sliced black olives can be omitted or replaced with zucchini
- ¼ cup chili peppers finely chopped
Instructions
- Brown ground beef in large pot (or Instant Pot sauté setting) and drain out fat.
Stove Top
- Add remaining ingredients, bring to a boil. Then simmer about 1-2 hours, stirring occasionally. If using zucchini in place of olives, add them during the last 15 minutes of cooking.
Slow Cooker
- Add all remaining ingredients to the slow cooker.Cook for 3-4 hours on high or 6-8 hours on low.
Instant Pot
- Once the beef has browned in the Instant Pot, add the other ingredients. Lock the lid and ensure the valve is set to sealing. Set the pressure cooker to manual high pressure for 10 minutes.
- After the timer goes off, let the pressure naturally release for another 10-15 minutes. Set the valve to venting to release any remaining pressure.
Notes
Low Carb Sweeteners | Keto Sweetener Conversion Chart
Nutrition
Additional Info
Note on Nutritional Information
Nutritional information for the recipe is provided as a courtesy and is approximate only. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information given for any recipe on this site. Erythritol carbs are not included in carb counts as it has been shown not to impact blood sugar. Net carbs are the total carbs minus fiber.
Unauthorized use of this material without written permission from Lisa MarcAurele is strictly prohibited unless for personal offline purposes.
Single photos may be used, provided that full credit is given to LowCarbYum.com along with a link back to the original content.
First Published: September 18, 2010... Last Updated: January 20, 2020
Chuck
This chili has an amazing flavor. It's good - very good. We've had it a few times now and it has emerged as our favorite chili. I modified the recipe a little bit by reducing the water from 4 cups to 2 1/2 cups. Four cups of water made the chili a little too "soupy" for our tastes. Reducing it to 2 1/2 cups of water thickened it up to the texture we desire. I've also tried using 1 lb of ground beef with a half pound of pork sausage instead of using 1 1/2 lbs of ground beef. It taste great either way. Lastly, my wife and I like to sprinkle just a little bit of Stevia sweetner on top of the chili. The added sweetness seems to complement all the other flavors in the chili well. Bottom line: this is really good tasting chili. Thanks for the recipe, Lisa.
Patricia
Made this today and it is so good. I omitted the olives and chili peppers.
Becky
Hi. This recipe looks great. Do you know what the nutritional values are if I replace with the zucchini?
Lisa MarcAurele
I'd have to do a separate calculation, but it doesn't change it by much.
Clark
Lisa,
I'm collecting beanless chili recipes, keto, LCHF, etc. The one you have posted here looks like a great candidate to add to my collection. I'd like a copy of your original beanless recipe mentioned below. Would you email it to me, please?
Thank you,
Clark
Lisa MarcAurele
Clark, you'll find the other recipe here: low carb no bean chili
Cassandra Quinn
Hi, can I please have the original recipe with the balsamic vinegar? It's the best! Thank you!
Lisa MarcAurele
You'll find that recipe here: no bean chili
Amy
What happened to the original recipe for the low carb chili without beans? I loved that recipe!
Lisa MarcAurele
The carbs were too high for most, but you can get it by email if you really want it.
Brad
Please email me the original recipe. It was delicious and my favorite chili. I was starting to freak out????.
Lisa MarcAurele
Check your email. The other no bean chili was just sent. I may just bring the recipe back if others miss it too.
Peter
Any chance I can get that as well? I had that pinned from forever ago, and just came back to make it again. I loved it when I used to make it. Thanks!
Lisa MarcAurele
You can print it yourself here: chunky chili
Bernadette
Would like recipes for buns
Lisa MarcAurele
Try this low carb hamburger bun recipe. It's excellent for dinner rolls.
Ranie
Thank you for the recipe, but, chili never has beans in it, though chili beans does have beans...*smile*...trying to change diet to a low carb diet, I don’t know why I didn’t think chili as a low carb....
Alisha Ross
Hello! I stumbled across your blog some time ago and enjoy all the recipes! The Spaghetti Squash Bake looks yummy! Several in our family are on the GAPS diet right now and we are always looking for new recipe ideas! Thanks for sharing!
Lisa MarcAurele
I do have a lot of GAPS recipes. Maybe I should make that a category. Thanks for getting me thinking about that. I'll add it to a list of items I have to do later.
Jay
OMG..... This makes a great chili.... my hubby is NOT a chili fan, but I am.... so, sometimes, I just have a "chili" craving and I try to make it in such a way that my hubby will like it too. Since he is a HUGE bacon fan, I added a lot of bacon in with the ground beef.... wowzers, he loved it and asked for seconds this time.... lol lol
I also found another use for left-over chili.... since our house is dealing with diabetic issues, we are trying hard to stick to low-carb meals, but every Friday is "pizza" night at our house. I found a great low-carb pizza crust recipe and now I use the left-over chili as the "tomato" base.... wow, what a great addition to the pizza. Of course, I add a little bit of other meat and cheese on top.... but it sure has upgraded the pizza from boring to super-good!
Thank you for such an amazing recipe - it should be 10 stars...... loveeeeeeeeeeeeee it!
Lisa
Bacon sounds like such a good add. Thanks for sharing that!
Saleha
Oh my goodness. My husband LOVES chili, and since he isn't feeling well, I wanted to make something warm and hearty. I realized I was out of beans, and I came across your recipe for no beans chili.
I just halved the chili powder, and followed the recipe to a T, otherwise. It was phenomenal!! I added in some leftover rotisserie chicken, added that in too.
The flavours, the smells, it was divine! =)
Lisa
Hope your husband is feeling better and the chili helped comfort him.
Michele
Any idea how long to cook in an instant pot?
Lisa
I'd say about 10 minutes and then a natural pressure release (about 10-15 minutes) at the end.
donna whitener
Could I make this chili in the crock pot?
Lisa
It can definitely be put in the slow cooker rather than simmered on the stove.
Andi Hawkins
Oh, and the olives add awesomeness!
Andi Hawkins
I just made this today. I used a Pablano pepper and a whole medium onion. This is the best chili recipe ever! Spicy, sweet, savory, all rolled into one. 5 stars!