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With the weather quickly turning, all I can think about are warm hearty meals. Nothing hits the spot quite like a big bowl of beef chili. This hearty dish is packed with rich flavors from the smoked ground beef, smoky spices and a new twist to a traditional recipe that come together for the ultimate comfort meal. Whether you’re cooking for a weeknight dinner, a game day crowd, or a cozy weekend at home, this Over the Top Beef Chili recipe is guaranteed to be a hit.
Don’t miss my Over the Top White Chicken Chili and Smoked Pit Beans for a lighter option.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Beef Chili
This isn’t your average chili—it’s a robust, flavor-packed meal that builds depth with every ingredient. The secret to this unique Over the Top Beef Chili lies in the layering of flavors. It starts with smoking the beef over the chili mix. This method enhances the flavor not only of the meat itself, but the broth as the meat drippings build on the savory notes. The right combination of chili powder, cumin, cayenne, and a touch of a secret ingredient and you’ve got a bowl that delivers both heat and heartiness.
The slow simmering process ties everything together, allowing the seasonings to infuse the beef and beans, resulting in a thick, meaty chili that’s bold, smoky, and deeply satisfying.
Ingredients needed to make an Over the Top Beef Chili
- Ground beef: 80/20 blend of ground chuck for the best balance of flavor and fat
- Italian sausage: I used a few links of Hot Italian Sausage to add heat and variety to the chili.
- Broth: low sodium beef broth for the liquid base.
- Spices: the perfect mix of cayenne pepper, chili powder, cumin, garlic and onion powder, salt and pepper and a little taco seasoning to build on the robust and hearty flavors of a chili.
- Coco powder: use baking coco powder which is not sweet to balance the acidity of the chili.
- Beans: need beans otherwise the chili is just beef soup. I used kidney and pinto beans.
- Veggies: sautéed and caramelized onion and green bell peppers to provide aromatics.
- Tomatoes: diced tomatoes, sauce and paste to build on the rich chili base.
Prepare the beef chili mix.
Most of the my Over the Top Beef Chili is a classic recipe with 1 exception. I’m smoking a big hunk of beef right over the chili! The drippings will add a ton of flavor to the chili.
Start by taking out your dutch oven and sautéing diced onion and a bell pepper over some olive oil. Once the veggies get semi soft and translucent, add in the spices – cumin, chili powder, cayenne, Dad’s Taco seasoning, garlic and onion powder, salt, pepper. Mix the ingredients together and add in tomato paste, tomato sauce, unsalted or low sodium beef stock, minced garlic and diced tomatoes with green chili. I picked the green chili diced tomatoes to give this recipe some extra heat and flavor.
For the beef, I used ground chuck (80%/20% mix) and hot Italian sausage meat. The Italian sausage will elevate this recipe with additional spicy and savory flavors. For the seasoning I used the same blend as the chili mix – cumin, chili powder, cayenne, Dad’s Taco seasoning, garlic and onion powder, salt, pepper. Mix the ingredients together and form a round flat patty.
Place the formed meat patty on a wire rack and place it on top of the dutch oven.
Recipe Tip
Shape the meat into a patty rather than a ball. It will lay flat on the wire rack and absorb more smoky flavor.
Dad’s Seasonings
Must have grillin seasonings!
Grill the over the top beef chili.
Preheat the grill to 300 degrees and set for indirect heat. I used my Weber Searwood Pellet grill but any grill or stove top will work. Follow the same times and temps. The only difference in the flavor if making it at home is you won’t get the smokey flavor as you would otherwise on the grill.
Smoke the chili and meat for 2 hours or until the meat reaches 150 degrees internal temperature. The beef drippings from the meat above will add another layer of amazing beefy goodness. For an all in one dish recipe, check out my Smoked Cowboy Casserole.
It’s time to add meat into the chili! Remove the wire rack from the grill and crumble up the beef. I like to leave the pieces slightly bigger to get a better texture in the chili. Next, place the crumbles in the chili along with pinto and kidney beans and let it continue to cook for another hour or until the beans are soft. The smokiness of the beef with the spiciness from the hot sausage, cayenne pepper and green chilis make for one over the top beef chili!
Be sure to check out my Smoked and Shredded Italian Beef Sandwich for another hearty option.
When the chili is ready, remove the Dutch oven from the grill and serve immediately. I like to garnish with Fritos chips, sharp cheddar and some hot sauce. It’s perfect for these cold winter days.
Storing and Reheating
One of the best things about beef chili is that it tastes even better the next day. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 3 months. When reheating, add a splash of beef broth to bring back that silky texture.
Final Thoughts
This Over the Top Beef Chili is everything you love about comfort food—simple ingredients, big flavor, and endless customization options. Whether you enjoy it by the bowl, over fries, or with a side of cornbread, this recipe delivers every time. Perfect for chilly nights, game days, or any time you need a warm, hearty meal that satisfies every craving.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Beans are probably the most controversial ingredient in my chili recipes. The country is definitely split in half here. I say, do what you want. I always include beans. It adds texture, flavor and substance to the chili. If you are going to use beans, use both kidney and pinto beans.
The most common protein in chili is ground beef. However there are so many other alternative options. You can use such as a ground pork and beef blend, mix beef with Italian sausage or chorizo, left over brisket is another great option. For vegetarians, beans is a great protein option.
Delicious Smoked Chili Recipes:
If you tried this Over The Top Beef Chili or any other recipe on my blog, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the📝 comments. I love hearing from you!
Over The Top Beef Chili
Ingredients
Chili Mix Spices
- 1 tbsp Olive oil
- 1 Bell pepper, diced
- 1 Onion, diced
- 1 cup Low sodium beef stock
- 1 tbsp Cumin
- 1 tbsp Chili powder
- 1/2 tbsp Salt
- 1/2 tbsp Pepper
- 1/2 tbsp Taco seasoning
- 1 tsp Cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp Garlic powder
- 1 tsp Onion powder
- 1 tbsp Baking coco powder
- 1 tbsp Minced garlic
- 15 oz Diced tomatoes with green chili
- 15 oz Tomato sauce
- 6 oz Tomato paste
- 15.5 oz Kidney beans – drained
- 15.5 oz Pinto beans – drained
Meat Patty Spices
- 1 lb Ground Chuck 80%/20% blend
- 3 Links of hot Italian Sausage
- 1 tbsp Cumin
- 1 tbsp Chili powder
- 1/2 tbsp Salt
- 1/2 tbsp Pepper
- 1/2 tbsp Taco seasoning
- 1 tsp Cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp Garlic powder
- 1 tsp Onion powder
Instructions
- Saute the diced onions and bell pepper over olive oil until the veggies are semi soft and start becoming translucent.
- Next add in the spices: cumin, chili powder, cayenne, salt, pepper, garlic and onion powder and taco seasoning and mix in with the veggies
- Finally add in the beef broth, diced tomatoes, tomato paste and sauce, mixed garlic and coco powder. Mix all the ingredients together one last time.
- Separately, mix the ground chuck with 3 hot Italian sausage links. Be sure to remove the casing from the sausage.
- Add in all the meat spices and mix it in with the beef and Italian sausage.
- Form the beef mixture into a round flat patty and place it on a wire rack on top of the dutch oven.
- Preheat the grill to 300 degrees and set for indirect heat.
- Place the Dutch oven on the grill.
- Smoke the beef until it reaches an internal temperature of 145 degrees.
- Remove the wire rack from the grill and crumble up the beef. Place the crumbles back in the chili along with pinto and kidney beans.
- Continue to cook for about an hour or until the beans are soft. Remove from the grill and serve immediately. Garnish with chips, cheese and hot sauce.
Notes
- When shaping the meat into a patty rather than a ball. It will lay flay on the wire rack and get more of the smokey flavor.
- When crumbling the smoked beef patty, keep the pieces larger. This will make for a much better texture in the chili.
Do you still have the previous recipe?
The ingredients and steps stayed the same to the original. I just updated the pictures and added more content.
This was delicious! We followed some of the other comments and cut way back on the cayenne. You mention smoked paprika in the opening but it’s not in the ingredients. How much do you use? Thanks!
Awesome! Glad you liked it. Please follow the exact measurements in the ingredients list. The smoked paprika in the recipe story was a typo the we have fixed. Thank you for pointing that out.
Can I do this in my Traeger smoker? What temperature would you suggest?
Yes, same time and temps.
Hi Maciek, I really enjoy your videos and recipes. This recent Over the Top Beef Chili recipe looks awesome and the video shows you adding garlic, but there is no mention of it in the written recipe. Is that garlic you added or another ingredient and if garlic, how much do you add as I want to make the recipe this weekend. It looks awesome! Thanks, Ellen
Yes you can add minced garlic. 1 tablespoon is all you need.
Good but spicy. I skipped the cayenne and still thought it was a tad too spicy (might’ve been the Trader Joe’s Hot Sausage). Ended up diluting with additional tomatoes and beans. 👌
Thanks for the recipe, can’t wait to try it.
Harty, warm and DELICIOUS! We love this chili recipe. I hope you will too.
The only Chili recipe that I do. The whole family love it. It is a little bit spicy for the kids so I put less cayenne. In the video you put garlic in the sauce but it is not in the ingredients. Unfortunately I have not found the diced tomatoes with green Chili here in Quebec so i just put ordinary diced tomatoes. (I smoke on the Weber performer with hickory). Keep the good work! I watch all you instagram posts!