Slow Cooker Cincinnati Chili: Make-Ahead Freezer Batch
A double batch of Cincinnati chili cooked in a 7-quart slow cooker and frozen flat in portions. Cool it fully first, and you have a dozen servings ready for busy nights.
Slow Cooker Cincinnati Chili: Make-Ahead Freezer Batch
Course: Main CourseDifficulty: Easy12
servings20
minutes8
hoursA double batch of Cincinnati chili cooked in a 7-quart slow cooker and frozen flat in portions. Cool it fully first, and you have a dozen servings ready for busy nights.
Ingredients
4 lb 85/15 ground beef, raw
6 cups cold beef broth
2 cans (8 oz each) tomato sauce
3 tbsp tomato paste
2 large yellow onions, finely diced
8 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tbsp chili powder
4 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground allspice
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 tsp kosher salt
1 lb spaghetti per meal, cooked fresh at serving time
Directions
- Pour the cold broth into a 7-quart slow cooker and whisk in the tomato sauce and tomato paste until smooth.
- Add the onions, garlic, cocoa, chili powder, cumin, cinnamon, allspice, cloves and salt, and whisk for a full minute.
- Crumble in the raw beef in handfuls, mashing each handful apart before adding the next. A double batch clumps easily, so take your time.
- Cover and cook on LOW for 9 hours or HIGH for 5 hours. Stir at 30 minutes and again at 2 hours on LOW.
- The chili is ready when the beef is fully cooked and the sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Stir in the vinegar and Worcestershire, then taste for salt.
- Turn the cooker off and let the chili cool uncovered for 2 hours. Skim the fat from the top with a spoon.
- Label the freezer bags with the date and portion. Ladle about 2 cups into each bag, squeeze out the air and seal.
- Lay the bags flat on a baking sheet in the freezer for 3 hours until solid, then stack them upright like files. Flat bags thaw in about 20 minutes in a bowl of cool water.
- To serve, thaw overnight in the fridge, heat in a saucepan with a splash of broth and cook fresh spaghetti. Top with cheddar.
Notes
- Freeze portions of 2 cups so each bag feeds two people. Chili keeps for 3 months in the freezer before the spices fade. Thaw in the fridge, never on the counter, and reheat until steaming hot. Leave the pasta and cheese out of the bags, as they freeze poorly. A 6-quart cooker can handle 3 lb of beef if you do not have a 7-quart.
How to cook a double batch
A 7-quart slow cooker holds this much chili if you use cold broth and raw beef, and the long cook breaks the meat into a fine texture. Making twelve servings at once costs only a little more time than six, which is why it is worth the pot space.
Cooling is the step people rush. Spread the chili in shallow pans first.
Swaps and one to skip
Turkey can replace part of the beef. Leave the pasta and cheese out of the freezer bags, since both turn grainy after thawing. Do not freeze in one big block, which takes ages to thaw.
Freezing and reheating
Freeze flat in 2-cup bags and stack them. Thaw in the fridge and reheat on the stove until steaming, then serve over fresh spaghetti.
What to serve
Add shredded cheddar, onion and oyster crackers on the plate. A green salad makes it a full dinner on a weeknight.
Label each bag with the date and the amount. Lay them flat on a tray in the freezer and stack them once solid, so they take little space and thaw in about an hour in a bowl of cold water.
Slow Cooker Cincinnati Chili: Make-Ahead Freezer Batch at a glance
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Cooking time: 8 hours
- Servings: 12 servings
- Ingredients: 16, led by 85/15 ground beef, cold beef broth, (8 oz each) tomato sauce, tomato paste
Tips for Slow Cooker Cincinnati Chili: Make-Ahead Freezer Batch
Freeze portions of 2 cups so each bag feeds two people. Chili keeps for 3 months in the freezer before the spices fade. Thaw in the fridge, never on the counter, and reheat until steaming hot. Leave the pasta and cheese out of the bags, as they freeze poorly. A 6-quart cooker can handle 3 lb of beef if you do not have a 7-quart.
Slow Cooker Cincinnati Chili: Make-Ahead Freezer Batch FAQ
How long does Slow Cooker Cincinnati Chili: Make-Ahead Freezer Batch take?
Slow Cooker Cincinnati Chili: Make-Ahead Freezer Batch takes 8 hours of cooking after 20 minutes of prep.
How many people does Slow Cooker Cincinnati Chili: Make-Ahead Freezer Batch serve?
This recipe makes 12 servings.
What do I need to make Slow Cooker Cincinnati Chili: Make-Ahead Freezer Batch?
16 ingredients, led by 85/15 ground beef, cold beef broth, (8 oz each) tomato sauce, tomato paste. Amounts are in the recipe card above.
Part of: 10 Slow Cooker Cincinnati Chili Recipes for Spaghetti Night
