Pumpkin Chili
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Slow Cooker Pumpkin Chili is the perfect gluten free fall recipe combining tons of spices and flavor for a delicious dinner, requiring only 15 minutes of prep!
When the weather begins to change, it can only mean one thing… cozy recipes filled with classic fall flavors! Chili is an excellent, easy meal to make in the slow cooker. It’s healthy, filling, and absolutely delicious!
It’s also easy to customize to create a variety of flavors. This recipe for Pumpkin Chili captures the feel of fall just perfectly! Prepare it in the morning for an easy weeknight meal, include it in your game day spread, or get festive and serve at a pumpkin carving party!
Table of contents
Ingredients you’ll need
- Ground beef – ground turkey or chicken can also be used, if you prefer!
- Red onion
- Green bell pepper
- Garlic
- Canned kidney beans
- Canned diced tomatoes
- Tomato sauce
- Canned diced green chilies – easily found in the Hispanic section of most American grocery stores.
- Pumpkin puree – make sure you pick up a can that says 100% pure pumpkin and not pumpkin pie filling, or your chili will be very sweet!
- Jalapeños
- Chili powder
- Crushed red pepper
- Cinnamon
- Nutmeg
- Allspice
- Ginger
- Cumin
- Salt
- Sugar
- Olive Oil
Step by step instructions
Sauté the veggies. Pour the olive oil into a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and green bell pepper, sauté for 4-5 minutes, then add the garlic and sauté for an additional minute.
Cook the meat. Add the ground beef and cook through.
Load the slow cooker. While the meat is cooking, add the diced tomatoes, kidney beans, tomato sauce, green chilies, pumpkin puree & jalapeños to a slow cooker.
Add the cooked ground beef.
Add the seasonings. Toss in the chili powder, crushed red pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, ginger, cumin, salt & sugar.
Combine well. Stir until everything is incorporated.
Cook. Set the slow cooker to high for 3-4 hours, or low for 6-8 hours.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the best secret ingredient for chili? Cinnamon is a popular secret ingredient for chili. Other secret ingredients include buffalo sauce, beer or wine, liquid smoke, vinegar, coffee, chocolate, and Worcestershire sauce. The secret to this chili is obviously the creamy addition of pumpkin!
- How do you make chili flavorful? Use a blend of spices instead of simply adding chili powder. Also, get creative and include multiple veggies in addition to the tomatoes and beans.
- Is chili better the longer it cooks? Yes, the flavors only get better with time! Slow cookers are a great way to allow the flavors to meld without overcooking the meat.
What to serve with it
Load this chili up with your choice of toppings. I highly recommend any of the following:
- Shredded cheddar cheese
- Cilantro
- Avocado
- Diced green onions
- Sliced jalapeños
- Sour cream
Serve along with any of these tasty recipes:
- Jalapeño Cheddar Focaccia Bread
- Gluten Free Jalapeño Cheddar Cornbread
- Chili Roasted Sweet Potato & Cranberry Salad
- Pumpkin Cookie Cups – for dessert!
- Or, use it to make Pumpkin Chili Sliders!
More chili recipes to try
Cozy up with a different chili each week! Make sure to check out each of these recipes.
- Chipotle Stout Crock Pot Chili
- Slow Cooker Chorizo Corn Chili
- Crock Pot Three Bean Taco Vegan Chili
- Whitney’s Pepper Fiesta Vegetarian Chili
- Slow Cooked White Chicken Chili
- Gluten Free Chili
- Slow Cooker Buffalo Chicken Chili
Pumpkin Chili
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 cup red onion, diced
- 1 cup green bell pepper, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 14.5 oz diced tomatoes
- 15 oz kidney beans
- 29 oz tomato sauce
- 4 oz diced green chilies
- 15 oz pumpkin puree
- 2 jalapeños, minced
- 2 tsp chili powder
- ½ tsp crushed red pepper
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- ½ tsp ground allspice
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp sugar
Optional Toppings
- cheddar cheese, shredded
- avocado, diced
- cilantro, chopped
Instructions
- Add the olive oil to a large skillet over medium heat.
- Add the onion and green bell pepper, saute 4-5 minutes, then add the garlic and saute for an additional minute.
- Add the ground beef and cook through.
- While the meat is cooking, add the diced tomatoes, kidney beans, tomato sauce, green chilies, pumpkin puree & jalapeños to a slow cooker.
- Add the ground beef.
- Add the chili powder, crushed red pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, ginger, cumin, salt & sugar.
- Combine well.
- Cook on high for 3-4 hours, or on low 6-8 hours.
- Serve with your choice of toppings.
Notes
Nutrition Facts
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3 Comments on “Pumpkin Chili”
This is a delicious recipe. The pumpkin makes it very creamy and blends in very well since it doesn’t have a noticeable taste. Added everything except jalapenos and red chili flakes and it had a very mild heat which I enjoyed very much even the can of green chilies didn’t have much heat plus I used McCormick chili powder which is also mild. The recipe doesn’t say so but I drained the green chilies and beans. Definitely recommend 2 cans of beans if you like a lot of beans.
wow you are right.. am amazing combo!! I can see why they went back for seconds.. c
This sounds and looks absolutely wonderful – what a great, great colour!