It’s that time of year again, packing away the swim suits and tank tops and pulling out the sweaters and hoodies. There’s a chill in the night air, the days are getting shorter, football is on the tv and it’s got me craving some Good Ol’ comfort food. And there’s no better comfort food than a nice warm bowl of hearty chili…not too spicy, but just enough to warm you up.
“Everyone I know has their own recipe. The chili I grew up eating always had lots of beans, meat and tomato sauce…but now being on keto, we need to omit the beans, and limit the amount of tomatoes, without sacrificing the flavor or texture of your traditional chili. Easier said than done”.
But with a little inspiration from our friends over in Texas, and a few little tips and tricks to extract maximum flavor in minimum time, you’ll be glad you stopped by. How do we get the hearty texture of chili without the beans? Well… I use 2 different types of meat.
Ground Beef – This is your typical chili meat. I like to use a 75/25 grade of beef, because you want something that has a decent amount of fat.
Cubed Pork – Not only will this give it a huge bump in flavor, but this is what’s going to replace that texture that you’re used to from the beans.
This is a style of Chili that is popular in Texas, where using beans is mostly frowned upon.
A great chili that’s full of flavor usually has to be cooked over a period of several hours, but with this unusual tip that I learned from a restaurant I worked at in Australia, you’re going to have the most flavorful Chili in less than an hour.
Now you’re going to think I’m crazy when you hear the secret ingredients that I throw in this Chili to quickly boost that flavor, but you gotta trust me on this one.
Here it goes….Fish Sauce and Coconut Liquid Aminos (or soy sauce IF it doesn’t offend your keto)
But they’re Asian ingredients right, not something that you put in a Chili?
I first came across this tip used in both a stew and also in a spaghetti meat sauce. At first I thought they were crazy, surely you’re going to taste it in there… Nope you don’t at all.
Fish Sauce and Liquid Aminos are high in what they call Umami.
Umami is what gives things a rich, savory, meaty flavor. Foods that are naturally high in Umami flavor are Parmesan Cheese, browned meats, ketchup, and for all the Aussies out there…Vegemite(which also works well in stews or chili’s in small doses may I ad).
These 2 additions are going to quickly boost the rich, meaty flavor in your chili, that usually can only be replicated by hours and hours of slow cooking. So not only are you getting an awesome tasting Chili, but you’re getting it in record time. And if you’re anything like me, you want it NOW! There’s nothing like watching the game with a warm bowl of Chili.
YOU CAN NOW FOLLOW ALONG THE STEPS TO MAKING THIS RECIPE WITH US, IN THE VIDEO BELOW!!
Also pair it with some fantastic Southern Cornbread…Our great friend Neisha, from Neisha Loves It, has a great Keto Southern Cornbread Recipe here.
See bottom of the page for a great LEFTOVERS idea!
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 pound ground beef (I use 75/25)
- 1 pound pork cut into small cubes
- 1/2 cup onion finely diced
- 1/2 cup green pepper(capsicum) finely diced
- 3 tspn minced garlic – fresh or paste is fine
- 3 TBSP tomato paste
- 3 TBSP bacon grease/lard/manteca/olive oil (these are my preferences in order of flavor)
CHILI LIQUID SEASONING:
- 3 cups beef bone broth
- 1 TBSP apple cider vinegar
- 1 TBSP fish sauce
- 1/2 TBSP coconut liquid aminos (or soy sauce IF it doesn’t offend your keto)
- 1 tsp worcestershire sauce
CHILI SPICE BLEND
- 2 1/2 TBSP chili powder
- 2 tsp smoked paprika – normal is fine also
- 2 tsp cumin
- 1.5 tsp of our Sazon Recipe or 1 sachet of GOYA Sazon(If it doesn’t offend your keto)
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp of our our Adobo Seasoning Recipe or GOYA Adobo Seasoning
*** OR IF YOU’VE MADE OUR CHILI SPICE BLEND IN BULK – USE 2.5 TBSP PER POUND OF MEAT ***
In a large jug, mix all the liquid ingredients and stir to combine. In a small bowl, mix all dry spices together and set both aside.
- In a large pan or dutch oven, heat your choice of oil on medium heat until very hot.
- Add both meats and sear until meat is browned.
- Turn heat down to medium, add onions and green peppers and saute until softened, about 10 minutes, then add minced garlic and stir for a further 1 minute.
- Make a well in the center of pan and add tomato paste and saute it for about 1 minute until it darkens in color, then stir into the meat mixture until combined.
- Sprinkle the spice blend over the top of the meat and combine until incorporated, about another minute. Don’t worry about the stuff sticking on the bottom, that’s called the fond, that is pure flavor.
- Add liquid seasoning into the pot and stir, be sure to scrape up all that fond on the bottom at the same time, until it comes to a rapid boil, then reduce heat and bring it down to a low simmer for about 45 minutes.
Garnish and Serve! I like grated cheese, sour cream and an avocado for freshness
Cooking Keto With Faith 
Yummy. Making it now. Halting the recipe. Can you tell me the macros please
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Hi Candis, the macros are as follows per serving: 5g Net Carbs, 27g fat, 54 g protein, 495 Calories.
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Naive question, what is your recommendation for serving size so that I can plan my macros?
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About 1 1/2 to 2 cups per serving that’s approx.
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Total carbs?
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Total carbs?
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Can this be made in a slow cooker?
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As long as the meats are seared off first, I don’t see why not.
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Could I sub the “fish sauce” for the liquid from a can of sardines, it in own juices, water, no sodium added.?
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It’s a completely different taste and process. Fish sauce is fermented and even though it smells strong in the bottle, once you add it to sauces, you cannot taste or smell it. It just adds a meaty depth.
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I just made this chili, I can honestly say it is the most flavorful Keto meal I have made since starting this journey mid-April! I didn’t have enough bone broth, so I used chicken bone broth also.
I doubled the recipe to feed my lg family.
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So if I wanted to triple this recipe is it just as easy as tripling all the ingredients or is it more complicated than that ?
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Hi Tim, yes you can, maybe just reserve some of the seasoning and some of the stock, and taste as you go along and adjust the seasoning and liquid….you don’t want it too liquid or too salty either….but I’ve doubled it with no problems. Let us know how you go with it!
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Could you possibly make a link to the recipe for gat can be printed? It’s hard to follow when your phone keeps going dark and you have to put your code in so you can get back to the recipe
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Not “gat”. Supposed to be “so that it”
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I made your chili today and the flavors were amazing! Great combination of spices. I served it with Neisha’s cornbread which was also a new recipe for me. Both are winners for sure!
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Several questions …. Green pepper …Bell ? , what kind of pork ?
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Yes green bell pepper or capsicum if you’re Australian. However, if you like it spicier feel free to use fresh jalapeno or poblano.
For the pork, any boneless cut is fine, we used a boneless pork chops in this recipe and diced it into 1/2 inch cubes.
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Being a Texasnative, born and breed I am going to try your take on chili this weekend. In my non keto days I have no problem with beans sometime in my chili, it just makes a dish heartier.
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I made this last night. OMG so good! I used leftover shredded pork, and I also cooked it in my Ninja Foodi. Sautéed the ingredients first, and then pressure cooked it for 10 minutes. It turned out amazing! Best. Chili. Ever!!
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Awesome, glad you liked it Lynette…And great adaption by making it in the pressure cooker!!
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Just made this in a crockpot. Very flavorful, but I will cut back on the broth next time. Perhaps in a regular pot some of thew liquid might have evaporated.
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Yes, Crockpots and Instant pots you will have to reduce the liquids. The recipe is for how we’ve made it only. Any different methods of cooking need to be accounted for! But thank you for your feedback and this will definitely help to advise others who may try to cook it by another method.
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Just made this, still simmering low on the stove. I love it! Rich color, rich flavor without being salty. Next time I’ll cut the pork into a bit smaller chunks. I wouldn’t tweak your recipe or add anything else to it as it’s perfect as written.
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Thank you so much for the compliment.
I’m glad you enjoyed it!!
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Hello! 2021 here… trying this, do you leave lid on or off to simmer for 45mins? Also, would be good to have the 1/2″ cube instructions next to pork (I suppose you assume since their. Faux beans, but just thought it was there to bulk it up either way), as I have already cut and cooked and added in 1″ size. Since lid instructions didn’t specify, I am trying 1/2 on and 1/2 time off. ?
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Sorry for the late reply.
I generally don’t use a lid, however if you prefer a thicker Chili consistency, you could definitely do lid half on, half off.
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The recipe starts on medium and then in the next step it says to turn it down to medium.
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I usually start it on med/high.
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Melissa all I can say is WOW. I made this based on Neisha’s top 10 ground beef recipes and your name and blog kept coming up again and again. Thank you for sharing such a amazing recipe! I usually will follow the recipe the first time and then look at adjusting spices to taste. So I followed your recipe cautiously as the amount of spices seemed like a lot, but what a pleasant surprise! It was so good, no adjustment necessary, one of those rare times I wasn’t disappointed by a Keto recipe, LOL. Can’t wait to try your other recipes! So awesome!
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Thank you very much Derek. I appreciate the feedback and glad you enjoyed it!!
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