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This whole30 chili is absolutely full of flavor, loaded with sweet potato, chipotle chili powder, garlic, cocoa powder, sweet potatoes, and fire-roasted tomatoes. It’s paleo and Whole30-approved!
Hello darkness, my old friend… It’s me! Your very favorite ultra-sporadic blogger, Cheryl of 40 Aprons. You used to read my blog… remember? It was a while ago, but we had a thing. I might even call it a connection… a spark? Whatever you want to call it, we had it.
Ah yes, what’s happened since we last chatted? Besides being voted Blogger Most Likely to Fall Off the Face of the Planet, I’ve been doing things like working like a madlady at my agency job, continuing the good ol’ side hustle (and we’re caught up on our waitlist over at my food blog designer service, so get in touch if you’re ready to upgrade your blog’s look! Spoiler alert: it’s important.), putting our house on the market, building our dream house, taking my crazy little one to Spain, and making the best Whole30 chili (with chocolate!). But oh, how I’ve missed you!
I knew I just had to share this recipe when we made it the other night. We’re on our second Whole30 right now because #spain, and I can’t wait to share our whys and hows for doing the Whole30 (and now again!). Going into things this round, I knew that I had to include recipes that made lots of leftovers and that weren’t um, how do I put this… roast chicken, eggs, or meatballs? With fall supposedly upon us, despite record high temperatures, I knew a spicy, rich chili had to happen. And I’m not really into bell peppers or drier chilis, so this slightly smoky, majorly flavorful recipe absolutely fits the bill whilst feeling a bit indulgent and naughty, too. The cocoa powder adds a depth that grounds the dish but isn’t “chocolatey,” so don’t be afraid of it!
With cocoa powder, chipotle chili powder, sweet potatoes, fire-roasted tomatoes, and loads of garlic, this Whole30 chili recipe is destined to become a regular in your meal plan, but I promise that any meat-eater would love this dish. It’s so aromatic and rich, grounded and perfectly spicy… what’s not to love?
Not familiar with the Whole30? Learn all about what it is and why it’s amazing.
Whole30 Chili (with Chocolate!) – Paleo
Whole30 Chili (with Chocolate!) - Paleo
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 2 white onions , diced
- 4-6 cloves garlic , minced
- 2 pounds ground beef
- ¼ teaspoon allspice
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 2 tablespoons chipotle chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons salt
- a few dashes of ground cinnamon
- 1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste
- 2 (14-ounce) cans fire-roasted diced tomatoes
- 1 (14-ounce) can beef broth
- 1 cup water (or more beef broth or dark beer, if you're not on Whole30)
- 1 medium sweet potato , peeled and diced into bite-sized cubes
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high. When the oil is hot and melted, add the onions and cook, stirring often, until they're soft and translucent, about 7-10 minutes. Add the garlic and stir constantly until it's fragrant, about 30 seconds to 1 minute. Add the ground beef into the pan, stirring with your spoon to break up. Cook until brown and evenly crumbled.
- In a small bowl, combine the allspice, oregano, chili powder, chipotle chili powder, cumin, cocoa powder, and salt. Whisk with a fork to combine, then add to the pot. Add in a few dashes of cinnamon then add the tomato paste, stirring until well-combined.
- Add the cans of diced tomatoes, beef broth, water, and sweet potato, then stir well. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to a gentle simmer. Simmer uncovered for at least an hour, and don't skip this step! It's important to the dish. When ready to serve, ladle into bowls and garnish to your heart's content.
Approximate Information for One Serving
Nutrition Disclaimers
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.
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Adapted from JessicaRodriguezFitness.com.
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can you use stew meat rather than ground beef?
We haven’t tested it with stewed meat, but let us know how it goes! It sounds like it’d be yummy!
Great recipe, except I’m not sure it truly needs for 2 Tablespoons of chipotle chili powder? Is that correct? Flavor was pretty overwhelming, perhaps I’ll do 1-2 teaspoons next time.
Omg same. I used chipotle powder and this recipe was thermonuclear hot, and I LOVE hot food. My husband and kids can’t eat it at all because it’s so hot.
I wonder if the recipe meant 2 tsp?
2 tablespoons is correct but as always, we encourage readers to scale back on hotter ingredients if they’re at all heat-sensitive! We’ll make sure to highlight that better in our post!
This is an absolutely amazingly delicious chili recipe. I am so glad that I found it. I added some kidney and black beans to it, to make it thicker and to go longer. It is has a hot spicy bite to it that can be toned down, if desired, with a dollop of sour cream. I can’t add how delicious it is. I recommend it to anyone!
I made chili for the first time today and decided to try this recipe. It is absolutely delicious!
Yay! I’m so glad that your first chili was a success 🙂 Thank you for your comment!
When and how much sweet potatoes do you add? Picture looks amazing!
Sorry about that – I updated the recipe!