This Wendy's Chili recipe is a perfect replica – it's full of flavour thanks to green chilies, chili powder, cumin and two types of beans.
Ingredients and substitutions
- Extra-lean ground beef – Feel free to use ground turkey or chicken instead of beef to make this chili lighter in calories or use chunks of sirloin to make it heartier.
- Yellow onion – red onion or shallots would also work.
- Celery – leave this out if you don’t have any on hand.
- Green pepper – any colour bell pepper can be used.
- Canned green chilies – substitute for diced fresh or pickled jalapenos, or leave it out altogether if you’re not a fan of spice.
- Worcestershire sauce – you can leave this out, but it adds great flavour to the chili!
- Chili powder – make your own using a combination of cumin, paprika and cayenne.
- Sugar – brown sugar, honey or maple syrup would all work in place of white sugar.
- Cumin – coriander is the best substitute here.
- Onion powder – you can substitute this for garlic powder in a pinch.
- Paprika – cayenne will work, but it has more of a kick.
- Salt & pepper – to taste.
- Garlic – freshly minced garlic is best but jarred minced garlic can be used too.
- Kidney and pinto beans – use any bean combination of your choice like black beans, white beans, chickpeas or lentils.
- Crushed tomatoes – substitute for canned diced tomatoes instead.
- Beef broth – you can use chicken or vegetable broth, but the flavour will be slightly different.
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How to make Wendy's chili
Step 1: Assemble your ingredients.
Step 2: Brown the grown beef.
Heat a large pot over med-high heat. Add ground beef, breaking up and browning for 3-4 minutes.
Step 3: Add the veggies.
Add onions, celery and green pepper, sauteeing another 2-3 minutes until softened.
Step 4: Mix in the seasonings.
Stir in green chilies, Worcestershire, chili powder, sugar, cumin, onion powder, paprika, salt & pepper and garlic, sauteeing for 1-2 minutes until fragrant.
Step 5: Add in remaining ingredients then simmer.
Stir in beans, crushed tomatoes and beef broth, then bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes with a fitted lid, stirring chili occasionally.
Step 6: Serve and enjoy!
Serve with desired toppings and enjoy!
Topping ideas for Wendy's chili
Wendy’s offers an optional topping of diced onions and shredded cheese cheese for their chili. While those are definitely tasty options, there are plenty of other ways to add flavour to this Wendy’s chili recipe. Try these options:
- Crushed corn chips
- Slices of avocado or guacamole
- Fire roasted corn
- Sour cream
- Shredded lettuce
- Scallions
- Hot chili sauce
- Fruit salsa – for a kick of extra heat, stir in some pineapple habanero or mango salsa
Frequently Asked Questions
This Wendy’s chili is made of ground beef, onion, celery, green pepper, green chilies, kidney beans, pinto beans, crushed tomatoes and beef broth. It’s super flavourful thanks to the wide range of seasonings including Worcestershire sauce, chili powder, sugar, cumin, onion powder, paprika, salt, pepper and garlic.
Yes, this Wendy’s chili recipe is gluten-free.
This copycat Wendy’s chili recipe makes enough for 8 servings. Without additional toppings, there are 255 calories per serving. In comparison, one small serving of the restaurant’s recipe has 240 calories, and a large serving has 330 calories. My serving size is likely on the larger size with higher protein. Plus, it doesn't contain any preservatives or chemicals!
If you are on a low carb or keto diet, this chili can definitely be part of your meal plan! According to the nutritional information on the restaurant’s website, one small serving of Wendy’s chili has 14 net carbs. If you want to make this copycat recipe low carb, I’d recommend leaving out the beans.
Storing and reheating
You can store any leftovers of this chili in the fridge for up to 5 days. To reheat, transfer the chili to a pan on the stovetop and reheat over medium-heat or reheat it in the microwave for 1 to 2 minutes. Add on your fresh toppings and dig in!
Freezing this recipe
This Wendy’s chili freezes perfectly, and it’s one of my favourite meal prep recipes! It can be frozen in single serving containers to pack for lunches or you can freeze a big batch in freezer-safe Ziploc bags for up to 3 months. Just be sure to allow the chili to cool to room temperature or cool it down quickly in the refrigerator before freezing it.
To reheat individual servings from frozen, just microwave it for 6 to 7 minutes, stirring halfway through. You could also let the chili defrost in the fridge overnight then reheat as normal.
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- Grab some glass meal prep bowls if you plan on storing the leftovers.
- I get all my grass-fed ground beef from Butcher Box, conveniently delivered to me frozen.
- Freeze this recipe in glass microwave-safe bowls up to 3 months.
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Wendy's Chili {Perfect Copycat}
Ingredients
- 1 lb extra-lean ground beef
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 3 stalks celery, diced
- 1 green pepper, diced
- 1 (127mL) can green chilies
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 2 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp each salt & pepper
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 (540mL) can kidney beans, drained
- 1 (540mL) can pinto beans, drained
- 1 (796mL) can crushed tomatoes
- 2 cups beef broth
Instructions
- Heat a large pot over med-high heat. Add ground beef, breaking up and browning for 3-4 minutes. Add onions, celery and green pepper, sauteeing another 2-3 minutes until softened.
- Stir in green chilies, Worcestershire, chili powder, sugar, cumin, onion powder, paprika, salt & pepper and garlic, sauteeing for 1-2 minutes until fragrant.
- Stir in beans, crushed tomatoes and beef broth, then bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes with a fitted lid, stirring chili occasionally.
- Serve with desired toppings and enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Comments & Reviews
Tina says
It would be great if you posted the brands that you use. I had to become Sherlock Holmes to figure out the green chiles were Old El Paso chopped green chiles. Whew!
Taylor Stinson says
If you Google canned green chilies, Hatch and Old El Paso show up immediately. I didn’t know that was so difficult.
Samantha says
How could I make this in crockpot??
Taylor Stinson says
You should be able to saute the beef ahead of time then add everything in and cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours.
Morgan says
Great recipe, only chili my partner likes and requests.
Taylor Stinson says
I’m SO happy to hear that! Thank you 😀
Keara says
Oh my goodness! So good and just like Wendy’s
Ada says
I make this yesterday in it was great all 4 of my boys eat in me in my husband love it that’s the only reason we go to Wendy’s
Taylor Stinson says
I’m so happy you enjoyed 🙂
Keith says
II have made this twice and each time it comes out great!
Taylor Stinson says
I’m so glad you like it!
Kenneth Johnson says
unbelievable…great. thank you..
Beth says
I made this and it was great!! It tasted just like Wendy’s chili—especially the next day.