Slow Cooker Southwestern Chili

White bowl containing southwest chili sitting on blue napkin, topped with cheddar cheese.

4.82 from 11 votes

I love this chili recipe because it has an amazing southwest flair that is out of this world delicious! With this southwest chili, you'll put all the ingredients in the slow cooker, set it, and forget it. You don't even have to brown the meat first! Talk about the ultimate convenient slow cooker recipe ever!

Prep Time10

Cook Time8

Total Time8 10

Course: Main Course, Main Dishes

Cuisine: American, Southwestern

Servings: people

Calories: 252kcal

Author: Amanda Mason

Equipment

Slow Cooker
Crockpot

Ingredients

1 onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1 lb ground beef
¼ cup chili powder
1 Tablespoon cumin
½ teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
3 10 ounce jars of pace salsa, mild or medium
1 can black beans, drained
1 can kidney beans, drained
1 can corn, drained
1 4 ounce can green chiles

Instructions

Start by dicing the onion, green pepper, and garlic clove and put them in the slow cooker.
Add the uncooked ground beef, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, ground black pepper, salsa, black beans, kidney beans, corn, and chiles into the slow cooker.
NOTE: There is no need to ground the beef before putting it into the Crock-Pot, but you can if you want.
Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on low for 8-10 hours.
Serve with your favorite toppings such as crackers, cornbread, rice, and or noodles.
Store leftovers in the refrigerator.

Notes

You may be questioning my logic about not browning the ground beef before adding it to the crockpot. Since it's going to slow cook for 8-10 hours along with the other ingredients, why spend the time browning the meat? It's going to completely cook during the slow cooking process.
If you're looking for incredible flavor, use an 80% or 85% fat ground beef. If you want less fat, try 93% or 96% beef.
My kids tell me this is the best to add on top of hot dogs. Perfect for either lunch or dinner!
Can you freeze this chili? Yes you can! I eat soups all year long so after I make a big batch and let it cool, I put it in a 1-gallon plastic sealable bag. Make sure you flatten it out before placing it in the freezer. It should keep for about 6 months in the freezer. When you're ready to warm it up, take the bag out of the freezer and place it in the refrigerator to thaw. From there, warm it up on the stovetop.

Nutrition