Cincinnati-Style Chili
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All you need is 5 ingredients to make my Southern version of easy Cincinnati-style chili recipe. It’s the perfect blend of spicy and savory flavors, served traditionally on a bed of spaghetti.
This is my Southern take on a traditional Cincinnati chili recipe (hence the word “style” in the title). I may have tweaked the flavors just a bit (the authentic version uses a lot of spices), but I’m serving it the traditional way on spaghetti, so that gets bonus points, right? Authentic Cincinnati chili has a very unique flavor and is unlike anything I have ever tasted before. I can fully see how, if you were raised on this stuff, you’d be left with a craving that only Cincinnati chili would fill.
But today we’re making a Cincinnati-style chili recipe with an Alabama flair. This recipe is ridiculously easy to make. All you need is 5 ingredients: cooked ground beef, tomato sauce, ground cumin, chili powder, and water. The instructions are as simple as mixing the ingredients together and letting them simmer and thicken on the stove for about an hour.
Then we serve a big scoop of the meat sauce on a bed of freshly made spaghetti. Personally, I love how the spaghetti noodles seem to take to the chili sauce perfectly and they are great for balancing out the chili spices. The finishing touch is the toppings of your choice. As you can see, I opted for shredded cheese, but there are other options below.
You’ll also want to keep scrolling to learn more about Cincinnati chili and how to make this recipe work for you. Now I can’t wait until fall gets here so I can have a big chili dinner with friends. Let’s get cooking!
And if you need other Chili ideas try making some of these: White Bean Chili With Chicken, Easy Skillet Chili Bake, Buffalo Chicken Chili, or Crock Pot Chili Recipe.
Recipe Ingredients
- Tomato sauce
- Ground cumin
- Chili powder
- Cooked ground beef
- Cooked spaghetti for serving
Helpful Kitchen Tools
How to Make Cincinnati-Style Chili
Place all of your ingredients into a large pot.
Fill up your tomato sauce can with water and add that as well.
16 ounces equals 2 cups.
Now give all of this a good stir.
Bring this to a very light boil before reducing the heat and cooking, stirring every now and then, for about an hour.
You also want to cook it uncovered like so.
It will look deliciously thick like this when done.
Now add some cooked spaghetti noodles to your plate…
And add a heaping spoonful of the meat sauce on top.
Like this.
Finish your Cincinnati spaghetti with the toppings of your choice like shredded cheddar cheese.
But there are more options below.
Enjoy your chili. Comfort food at its finest!
Storage
- Store leftover chili in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat it in the microwave or on the stovetop on low until heated through.
- Freeze leftovers in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge and then reheat them as above.
Recipe Notes
- This will make enough for two large servings or four smaller ones, so you might want to double it if feeding a whole family. Luckily it’s super easy to double, you just need a big pot!
- Feel free to substitute the ground beef for ground turkey.
- For extra tomato flavor, use 1 can of tomato sauce and 1 can of tomato paste.
- If you want it to taste like traditional Cincinnati chili, you’re going to need to raid your spice cabinet. Along with the chili powder and cumin, you can add:
- 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon of ground allspice
- A pinch of ground cloves and/or ground nutmeg.
- 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper if you want to add more heat.
- Other seasonings you can add for flavor include 2 minced garlic cloves, a teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce, and a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar.
- Another way to add flavor is to substitute the water for beef broth.
Recipe FAQs
What are the ingredients in Cincinnati chili?
The main ingredients in Cincinnati chili are ground beef, tomato paste, and spices.
Why do you put chocolate in chili?
Adding a tablespoon of unsweetened chocolate (chopped) or cocoa powder to any chili recipe adds so much richness and depth to the flavor. Feel free to give it a go.
What is different about Cincinnati chili?
There are a few differences when it comes to Cincinnati chili:
- It’s served on spaghetti rather than rice.
- You don’t cook beans in the chili, you add them as a topping.
- The seasonings are different and usually include a combination of ground cumin, chili powder, ground cinnamon, allspice, cloves, ground nutmeg, paprika, and/or dried oregano.
What are the three ways of Cincinnati chili?
So, there are three different ways to serve Cincinnati chili (yeah, they do things differently in the Midwest):
- Three-way: spaghetti, chili, and shredded cheddar cheese.
- Four-way: spaghetti, chili, shredded cheddar cheese, and minced raw onion OR warmed canned kidney beans.
- Five-way: spaghetti, chili, shredded cheddar cheese, minced raw onion, AND kidney beans.
What do you eat with Cincinnati chili?
Traditionally you eat Cincinnati-style chili over hot dogs or with spaghetti. If you opt for the hot dog idea, it’s called a Coney Dog. Grab your steamed bun and beef hot dog and top it with chili, diced onion, cheese, and yellow mustard.
You also add the toppings of your choice: shredded cheese, diced onion, kidney beans, and/or oyster crackers.
Can you make Cincinnati-style chili in the slow cooker?
Absolutely! Instead of placing all of the ingredients in a large pot, put them in the crock pot instead. Cook on high for 4 hours or on low for 8 hours. I recommend cooking with the lid on and then removing it halfway through the cooking time. This will allow it to thicken beautifully, as there’s a lotta liquid!
How do you make vegan Cincinnati-style chili?
You have a couple of options for a vegan Cincinnati chili recipe. First, substitute the ground beef for your favorite plant-based ground meat alternative. Second, use a combination (about 2 cups) of cooked lentils and sliced mushrooms.
Check out these other chili recipes:
Ingredients
- 1 16-ounce can tomato sauce
- 16 ounces water (just fill up the empty tomato sauce can)
- 1 pound ground beef, browned and drained
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 2 tablespoons chili powder or to taste
Instructions
- Place all ingredients in a pot and give it a good stir.1 16-ounce can tomato sauce, 16 ounces water, 1 pound ground beef, browned and drained, 1 tablespoon ground cumin, 2 tablespoons chili powder or to taste
- Bring just to a boil and then reduce heat to simmer (uncovered and stirring often) for about an hour.
- Serve over freshly-made spaghetti noodles with the toppings of your choice. Delicious!
“Happiness is an attitude. We either make ourselves miserable, or happy and strong. The amount of work is the same.”
– Francesca Reigler, artist
Submitted by Jenny
Sour cream is really good on top of chili–sprinkled with cheese, of course!
Cincinnati chili most definitely has cinnamon in it! I’m not a fan!
Perfect timing!!! Needed something new for dinner this Friday during family movie night! Just happen to have everything available so no shopping required for this dinner! Thanks!!
I can’t wait to try this. My family put dill pickles in our chili (and our spaghetti too sometimes!) and when my s-i-l joined the family, she taught us to put chili over rice–yummy! Maybe lots if people do this but I had never tried it and I really love it that way. I also like to put chili on a big ole baked potato.
Doesn’t Cincinnati Chili have cinnamon and sugar in it? It is definitely something a little different than what we are used to.
When I tried it I tasted cloves really strong and the menu said it had cloves in it so not sure. but yes, VERY different spices than what us plain ole folks are used to! lol
I lived in Cincinnati and worked in Northern Kentucky right after college and I fell in love with Cincinnati style chili. I would pick it over any other chili ever cooked. You can buy frozen or canned Skyline Chili at Kroger. Skyline is the best Cincy Chili ever!! Yum
I agree, Skyline is the best. I order the Cincinnati Chili spice packets directly from Skyline and they ship them to me here in Oregon. We were introduced to Cincy Chili by a family friend who grew up in Cincinnati. She made it for us over 20 years ago and we have been hooked ever since. I make it at least 1-2 times per month. Another trick she taught us was, during the last 5 minutes of cooking, she added a chopped Hershey bar to the chili, and it added to the flavor- it’s so good! My kids make sure that I add the Hershey bar every time.
I wish I could find a recipe for Cincinnati Chili……..We had a chili place down in SC and I ate it there- and I swear it was the best chili I ever ate other than our Southern version. Have never been able to duplicate the taste tho. 😛
One things for certain……ANY chili recipe needs a whoooooooole lot of cheese piled on top and melted.
I’ve seen the recipes for it online and I know a lot of grocery stores sell Cincinnati chili seasoning packets, might wanna check! I’m wanting to try it again if we ever head up there now that I got to thinking about it 🙂
LOL- Can’t find anything like that here in England, Christy. I’m having all manner of times finding substitutions for our SOUTHERN foods and ingredients here in the UK. 🙁
I was raised on chili like this. My mom made the absolute best chili from a recipe that she actually got while living in Cincinnati. Depending on the number of “layers” that you had, was the name of your chili. I always preferred noodles, chili and cheese which was called “three way chili” I would love a big bowl of it right now!!
HI Sunny,
I have posted my recipe for Cincinnati 5 Way Chili at the bottom of this posting, but her it is for you as well.
Source: A dear friend from Cincinnati, I met while my husband was in the USMC and we were stationed in Japan
A delicious recipe for 5 Way taught to me (a Hoosier) by my Cincinnati BFF
Servings: 8
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 90 minutes
Total time: 1 hour/50 minutes
Ingredients:
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 pounds ground beef
1/4 cup chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 bay leaf
2 (10.5 ounce) cans beef broth
2 (15 ounce) cans tomato sauce
1 (15 ounce) can light kidney beans
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
Barilla regular or thin spaghetti (I only use Barilla pastas)
Some recipes call for chocolate or cocoa, but I think it tastes better without it.
Sometimes I put it the ingredients in a slow cooker to cook slowly on low, rather than in my Dutch Oven, then I just need to prepare the spaghetti when I get home.
It tastes even more delicious the next day.
Directions:
1. Place ground beef in a large pot, and break up with a spoon; cover with hot water and break up the beef into fine pieces as it heats in the water.
2. When ground beef is cooked and in fine pieces; drain.
3. Add onion and cook, stirring frequently, until tender, about 6 minutes.
4. Add chili powder, cinnamon, cumin, allspice, cloves, bay leaf, beef broth, tomato sauce, and red pepper.
5. Stir to mix well. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.
6. Prepare spaghetti per package directions; drain.
7. Remove the bay leaf. Serve chili over hot, drained spaghetti. Top with beans, shredded cheddar cheese, and onions.
8. I garnish the tops with green onions, and you can add sour cream; if desired.
I hope you enjoy this as much as we do.
Owwwww- Bless your HEART Pamela!!!! TY so MUCH!!!!!!! And i think they have all those spices here in the UK. Oh I know what I’m having for supper this weekend!!!!! XXX