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This copycat Wendy’s chili recipe captures the bold spices and hearty comfort of the fast-food favorite, for a hearty bowl-full at home!!
a spot-on copycat recipe!
Craving Wendy’s chili recipe? The kids love this chili, so we knew we had to recreate that signature flavor at home – and it tastes just like the real thing!
We love to whip up batches in the fall/winter, from our White Chicken Chili Recipe to Classic Chili recipe, and now this fast food copycat.
Whether you prefer it topped with cheese and served with Sweet Cornbread or nestled in a Bread Bowl, this chili is a versatile and satisfying main dish, perfect for chilly nights.
WHY WE LOVE IT:
- Pantry staples. This chili uses mostly canned and pre-chopped ingredients you’ll likely have on hand, making it a budget-friendly and convenient meal.
- Flavor customization. Since you’re the chef at home, you can tailor chili recipes to your exact taste preferences.
- Easy. Whether cooking on the stovetop, or in the crock pot, this chili comes together in a single pot, minimizing cleanup.
Ingredients
PREP TIME: 5 minutes
COOK TIME: 70 minutes
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 pounds ground beef – drain excess oil. You can also use ground chicken or ground turkey. If you happen to have leftover hamburger patties, this is the dish to make. After all, in an effort to reduce food waste, Wendy’s developed this recipe using leftover cooked burgers.
- 2 stalks celery chopped, optional
- 1 green bell pepper chopped
- 3 (14-ounce) cans stewed tomatoes chop them up a little more
- 1 (10-ounce) can diced tomatoes with green chilies such as RO*TEL
- 1 (14-ounce) can tomato sauce
- 1 cup water – you can also use beef or vegetable broth
- 2 (1.25-ounce) packages chili seasoning such as McCormick® Mild Chili Seasoning Mix – see FAQs for a recipe
- 1 (14-ounce) can kidney beans undrained
- 1 (14-ounce) can pinto beans undrained
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar or more to taste
- optional spice – For spicier chili, Add in chopped jalapenos, cayenne pepper, red pepper flakes, or hot sauce
How to Make Copycat Wendy’s Chili Recipe
- BEEF. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Cook 2 pounds ground beef until no longer pink.
- VEGGIES. Stir in 2 stalks chopped celery and 1 chopped green bell pepper into ground beef for 4-5 minutes.
- COMBINE. Pour in 3 cans chopped stewed tomatoes, 1 can diced tomato with green chiles, 1 can tomato sauce, and 1 cup water. Break apart large chunks of stewed tomatoes. Stir in 2 packages chili seasoning.
- Mix 1 can kidney beans and 1 can pinto beans into chili, season with salt and black pepper, and bring to a boil.
- SIMMER. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 1 hour. Mix 1 tablespoon vinegar into chili.
Slow Cooker Directions
- Brown the beef as directed in steps 1 and 2. Drain excess fat if necessary.
- Scrape the browned beef into the crockpot and add the ingredients listed in steps 3 and 4.
- Cook on LOW for 4-6 hours or on HIGH for 2-3 hours.
Complete The Meal
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Wendy’s Chili Recipe
This copycat Wendy's chili recipe captures the bold spices and hearty comfort of the fast-food favorite, for a hearty bowl-full at home!!
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 pounds ground beef
- 2 stalks celery, chopped, optional
- 1 green bell pepper, chopped
- 3 (14-ounce) cans stewed tomatoes, chop them up a little more
- 1 (10-ounce) can diced tomatoes with green chilies, such as RO*TEL
- 1 (14-ounce) can tomato sauce
- 1 cup water
- 2 (1.25-ounce) packages chili seasoning, such as McCormick® Mild Chili Seasoning Mix
- 1 (14-ounce) can kidney beans, undrained
- 1 (14-ounce) can pinto beans, undrained
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar, or more to taste
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Cook meat until no longer pink.
- Stir celery and green bell pepper into ground beef for 4-5 minutes.
- Pour in chopped stewed tomatoes, diced tomatoes with green chiles, tomato sauce, and water. Break apart large chunks of stewed tomatoes. Stir in chili seasoning.
- Mix kidney beans and pinto beans into chili, season with salt and black pepper, and bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat to low and simmer for 1 hour. Mix vinegar into chili.
Video
Nutrition
Calories: 343kcal, Carbohydrates: 26g, Protein: 20g, Fat: 18g, Saturated Fat: 6g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 8g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 54mg, Sodium: 437mg, Potassium: 868mg, Fiber: 7g, Sugar: 6g, Vitamin A: 490IU, Vitamin C: 21mg, Calcium: 89mg, Iron: 5mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe FAQ
How do I Make McCormick Chili Mix?
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 2 teaspoons dried parsley
- 1-2 teaspoons salt
- 4 teaspoons chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
How to Store Wendy’s Chili Copycat Recipe?
- Fridge. Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days until you are ready to heat and serve.
- Freezer. Store cooled chili in an airtight container for up to 6 months.
My mom used this recipe with McCormick and I knew it was delicious so I used this recipe. I didn’t have McCormick seasoning so I followed the recipe in the description. I believe it meant 1 Teaspoon of cayenne instead of 1 tablespoon. I’m terrible at making chili so I followed the recipe even though I was skeptical of the amount. It was so incredibly spicy that my brother in laws couldn’t even handle it. They both love a ridiculous amount of spice. I’ll be trying again tonight with 1 teaspoon instead.
Thanks so much for the feedback. We will revisit the measurements of that homemade chili mix option. Let us know how the 1 tsp turns out.
Where’s the onion?
This recipe doesn’t call for any onion, but if you love onion, go ahead and add it in! 🙂
This is the best chili ever. My husband loves Wendy’s chili. This is my go to recipe for chili.
Made the Wendy’s Chili last week. It was so good! Better than Wendy’s. Wendy’s Chili isn’t consistent in taste/texture. I prefer this recipe. Thanks for sharing.
This is seriously delicious! I don’t normally eat chili but this recipe has made me rethink that. Easy to make and truly yummy.
I’m looking at two different recipes for “Wendy’s Chili” and your recipe has half as much beans as the other recipe. Both are highly rated. Which is closer to actual Wendy’s chili?
This recipe does taste so similar to the chili from Wendy’s! We loved topping ours with fritos and cheddar cheese.
this is just as good, even better than the original chili! thank you for sharing this recipe!
I absolutely LOVED this recipe! It’s our favorite chili when we go out and this was so much like it, that I’m not sure we’ll go out of our way to go there now. We’ll just make it at home. Haha!
This is one of our favorite chili’s!! It’s crazy good, and always gets rave reviews at our chili cook offs. I love that it’s easy. This is a must-make chili.