Texas Style Keto Chili Recipe

Name: Texas Style Keto Chili
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 120 min
Total time: 125 min
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients: 4 cups water; 1 1/2 pounds ground beef; 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon; 3/4 teaspoon cumin; 1/4 cup onion (chopped); 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce (check ingredients for paleo); 2 cloves garlic (minced); 1 1/2 teaspoons salt; 2 tablespoons chili powder; 3/4 teaspoon black pepper; 1/2 teaspoon red pepper; 1/2 teaspoon allspice; 6 ounces tomato paste; 3 bay leaves; 2.25 ounces sliced black olives (can be omitted or replaced with zucchini); 1/4 cup chili peppers (finely chopped)

By Lisa MarcAurele on January 20, 202063 Comments

This super easy low carb Texas keto 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 low carb chili. It’s a satisfying dish that always warms you up. Plus, it’s so easy to make!

But this recipe for Texas style chili may just be my favorite.

Actually, my whole family loves it! It has also been my top chili recipe on this blog for several years running. It seems like everyone loves this hearty, flavorful, keto chili recipe.

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.

Easy modifications

Personally, I like my chili with a bit of spice. 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 your chili, you can be sure it will warm you up and satisfy your chili craving!

What is Texas chili?

This style of chili is very meaty and well-suited for a low carb diet. Well, after a few small changes, of course.

Traditional Texas style chili uses minimal or no tomato products and does not include any beans. Instead, it is made primarily from meat and chili paste. This gives us a wonderful, hearty bowl with just the right amount of kick!

It’s also known as Texas red chili or cowboy chili.

Because it uses less tomato products and no beans, this kind of chili is pretty easy to convert to a low carb version. It still packs all the flavor you expect, just with a lower carbohydrate count.

How to make Texas style keto chili

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.

Initial preparation

Brown the ground beef over medium high heat. This can be done in a large pot, a Dutch oven, or in an Instant Pot on the sauté setting.
As the meat cooks, chop the peppers and the onion. I like using a hand chopper to speed things up.

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!

Final cooking steps

Once the ground beef is browned, drain out the fat.
Add the chopped onions, peppers, and other ingredients to the pot.
Bring to a boil, then reduce heat.
Simmer for about 1-2 hours, stirring occasionally.

Instructions for cooking in an Instant Pot or slow cooker 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 recipe. 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 low carb chili recipes

Looking for a few more delicious 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.
Low Carb Turkey Chili 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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Print Pin Review

4.59 from 12 votes

Texas Style Keto Chili

A low carb chili is easy to make. Just take out the beans and add a bit more meat. Can be made mild or turn up the heat with more hot chili peppers.

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Keyword healthy chilli, low carb comfort food

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 2 hours

Total Time 2 hours 5 minutes

Servings servings

Calories 263kcal

Author Lisa MarcAurele

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Ingredients

4 cups water
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon cumin
1/4 cup onion chopped
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce check ingredients for paleo
2 cloves garlic minced
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons chili powder
3/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon red pepper
1/2 teaspoon allspice
6 ounces tomato paste
3 bay leaves
2.25 ounces sliced black olives can be omitted or replaced with zucchini
1/4 cup chili peppers finely chopped

US Customary – Metric

Low Carb Sweeteners | Keto Sweetener Conversion Chart

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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

Hot peppers can be adjusted to taste.

When working with hot peppers, it’s a good idea to wear gloves. And be careful not to get any of the pepper juice into your eyes.

If you don’t like black olives, they can be left out or replaced with a chopped up vegetable like zucchini.

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Nutrition

Additional Info

Net Carbs: 5 g | % Carbs: 8 % | % Protein: 41.6 % | % Fat: 50.4 %

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.

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First Published: September 18, 2010… Last Updated: January 20, 2020

DISCLAIMER: I am not a medical or nutrition specialist. Consult with your doctor before making any dietary changes to ensure it's right for you. The nutritional data for recipes on this site are calculated using a standard food database and should not be relied on without verifying against another calculation. The total carbohydrate count does not include erythritol if used in the recipe as it's been shown not to impact my own blood sugar levels. While I do my best to supply accurate information on this site, errors and omissions may occur. I do not accept any liability, direct or indirect, for any loss or damage which may directly or indirectly result from any advice, opinion, information, representation or omission whether negligent or otherwise, contained on this site. You are solely responsible for the actions you take in reliance on the content on, or accessed, through this site.