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Cincinnati Chili Recipe

Cincinnati Chili Recipe photo by Taste of Home

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The chocolate in this recipe threw me off at first, but now it's the only way I make chili. You'll find layers of delicious flavor in this heartwarming dish. It's well-worth the time it takes! —Joyce Alm, Thorp, Washington

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Cincinnati Chili Recipe

Prep: 25 min. Cook: 5-1/2 hours

Yield: 10 Servings

25 330 355

Ingredients

3 pounds ground beef
1-1/2 cups chopped onions
1-1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 cans (16 ounces each) kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2 cans (15 ounces each) tomato sauce
2 cups beef broth
1/4 cup chili powder
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 ounce unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1-1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
Hot cooked spaghetti
Shredded cheddar cheese and sliced green onions, optional

Directions

In a Dutch oven, cook beef and onions over medium heat until meat is no longer pink. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Drain.
In a 5-qt. slow cooker, combine the beans, tomato sauce, broth, chili powder, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, chocolate, cinnamon, cumin, salt, oregano, pepper and cloves. Stir in beef mixture. Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours or until heated through.
Serve with spaghetti. Garnish with cheese and green onions if desired. Yield: 10 servings.

Originally published as Cincinnati Chili in Simple & Delicious January/February 2008

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Reviews for Cincinnati Chili

Cincinnati Chili

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Reviewed on Feb. 05, 2011 by cherokee69

apparently none of you have ate the real cincinnati chili because the beef is not fried, it is placed in the liquid raw and broken up fine with the hands..This is a knock off and I would be ashamed to call it Cincinnati Chili.

Reviewed on Oct. 13, 2010 by Seminoles

Loved this! I visited Cincinnati a few years back and tried a couple different version of this and loved them all. Nice to be able to make it at home!

Reviewed on Oct. 02, 2010 by pamah

Hi - how much water do you use to boil and do you drain it before putting meat in crock pot? thanks

Reviewed on Oct. 02, 2010 by pamah

hi - how much water do you use and do you drain before adding to crock pot?

thanks

Reviewed on Oct. 01, 2010 by Ronnienron

You obviously have not eaten Cincinnati Chili.

Reviewed on Oct. 01, 2010 by marbecca

I am from Cincinnati and we NEVER use green onions! You layer this...spaghetti, chili (boiled, not browned with onion), then a heavy layer of finely shredded mild cheddar cheese. That is what we call a 3-way; with raw onions, 4-way; beans added is a 5-way, then topped off with cheese. Always served with oyster crackers. No self respecting Cincinnatian would ever twirl the spaghetti on the fork. Cincinnati style is to CUT the spaghetti with your fork, starting from one end of the plate! That started because of the oval plates used in our chili restaurants.

Reviewed on Sep. 20, 2009 by vickiinmyhead

I grew up in Ohio and my mother is from Cincinnati, so the chili has been fed to me from a very early age. This is the best recipe that my mother has ever made, and she shared it with me. It is great. I did not add beans and i browned the meat with water to give it the right texture. Other than that it was great. Add hot sauce and minced onions on top with fancy shredded cheese to get the best tate. Do the same when making chili dogs.Yummm.

Reviewed on Feb. 27, 2009 by ljustus414

I live in Northern Kentucky where this type of chili is king. I love this recipe and make it at least once a week. Once you get used to the cinnamon/chocolate flavor it is hard to eat it any other way.

Reviewed on Jan. 12, 2009 by jennyu

I wasn't sure we'd like this but it was good. My husband ate his with tortilla chips and I used spaghetti and some raw onions on top. We both had shredded cheese. My 3 year old liked it a lot!

Reviewed on Jan. 12, 2009 by Weavo

I won't make this chili again. I tasted it after 4 hours in the crockpot and salvaged it with brown sugar and salt. I guess I like Pennsylvania chili better.

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