Wendy’s Chili Recipe

Wendy’s Chili Recipe, a delicious and easy copycat chili, this fast food joint favorite is perfect when you just cannot make the drive.

Delicious and hearty for winter weather, this chili is spiced up fantastically and full of savory beef and beans in every bite.

Why you will love making Wendy’s Chili at home!

Copyright recipes can be really hard – most companies don’t exactly print out their secrets, so it can take a bit to get it right. But this Copycat Wendy’s Chili is pretty close and fits the bill when you are wanting a homemade meal with fast food flavor.

With tons of amazing spices, beans (great source of protein!), and of course savory beef, you cannot go wrong snuggled on the couch with a bowl of chili.

Copycat Wendy’s Chili Recipe

Wendy’s Copycat Chili can be made in a stock pot and takes about an hour from start to finish if you stovetop.

You could easily translate this to a slow cooker chili recipe or a chili recipe for one (click to be taken to each of those instructions).

Ingredients

• Lean ground beef
• Fresh: Onion, Celery stalk, Green pepper,
• Pantry: Cooking Oil, Dry chili seasoning, White vinegar
• Canned: Rotel (tomatoes with green chilies), Stewed tomatoes, Kidney beans, Pinto beans, Tomato sauce

Brown beef before beginning chili recipe

Add ground beef, onion, celery, green pepper and cooking oil in a large stock pot and cook until hamburger is browned, about 8-10 minutes. Salt and Pepper beef to taste.

If your meat has too much grease, drain before going on into the next step. Grease is more of a preference thing.

I like to use 80/20 beef because the extra fat gives it extra flavor but when making soups and chili’s, if you do not drain before adding liquids, can def add a layer of grease on the top. I will leave that up to you.

How to make Wendy’s Chili at Home

1. In a large stock pot, heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium heat. Add 1 lb of lean ground beef, 1 diced small onion, 1 diced stalk of celery, and 1 chopped small green pepper. Cook for 8-10 minutes until the beef is thoroughly browned. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Drain any excess grease if necessary.
2. To the pot, add one 10 oz can of Rotel (tomatoes with green chilies), one 28 oz can of stewed tomatoes, one 14 oz can of undrained kidney beans, one 14 oz can of undrained pinto beans, one 14 oz can of tomato sauce, and one 1.25 oz packet of dry chili seasoning. Stir well to combine.
3. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring the mixture to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low, cover, and let it simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
4. Stir in 1 tablespoon of white vinegar just before serving.
5. Serve the chili hot, optionally topped with shredded cheddar cheese and serve with a copycat wendy’s frosty.

MAKE YOUR CHILI BETTER

Everyone likes their chili differently and while this recipe is more authentic by itself, I personally enjoy mine like this.

• Use the recipe above BUT also add (1) can of Wolf Brand Chili (no beans) and one extra pound of cooked ground beef.
• Add minced garlic while cooking the beef ( I use about 1 tablespoon per pound of beef). This will make your chili super thick, and I love the can of Wolf Brand chili in mine because of the flavors.
• If your chili is TOO thick, just add about 1/4th cup of water or beef stock at a time.

Suggested Chili Toppings

• Diced Onions – dice and cut up mini onions. My store actually carries these pre-cut for quick serves like this.
• Shredded Cheddar Cheese
• Sour Cream – a dollop will do ya!
• Serve with Tortilla Chips – we skip the spoon around here and serve all our chili’s and Mexican soups with tortilla chips. My kids like to use them to dip out the chili but my husband likes to crunch his up and put on the top of the chili.