Wendy’s Chili is a delicious, hearty dish that is perfect for a winter meal. This copycat recipe tastes a lot like the original and is sure to please your family and friends. Serve with a side of cornbread or crackers and enjoy!
Wendy’s has been serving its rich and meaty chili since 1969. The gluten-free menu item is delicious as a side dish, a main dish, on top of a potato, or as part of the Wendy’s Taco Salad.
Wendy’s sets the standard for great chili and it is surprisingly easy to make. Let’s take a look at how to make a version of the famous chili at home, shall we?
🥘Ingredient List
To make the chili, you need the following ingredients:
- 2 pounds ground beef
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 3 cans chili beans
- 2 cans Ro*Tel
- 8-ounces tomato sauce
- 1 cup of water
- ¼ cup chili powder
- 2 -4 Tablespoons cumin
If you are very observant, you will notice in the picture above that there are three cans of tri-colored beans. Why? Wendy’s Chili is made with more than one kind of bean. According to Wendy’s website, “Prepared Pink Beans and/or Prepared Pinto Beans, Prepared Red Kidney Beans” are listed as ingredients.
However, I find that using canned chili beans produces better results.
🔪How To Make Wendy’s Chili (Copycat) at Home
To make the chili, brown ground beef and onions until the beef is no longer pink. I like to use my Instant Pot since I can both saute and slow cook with only one pot to clean.
If you don’t have an Instant Pot, you can adapt the recipe and brown the beef and onions on the stovetop and then simmer the chili on the stove or finish cooking it in a slow cooker/Crockpot.
Once the beef has cooked, add the chili beans, Ro*Tel, chili powder, cumin, tomato sauce, and 1 cup of water. For convenience, I take the 8-ounce container of tomato sauce and use that for measuring my water.
If you like cumin like I do, then you might want to go heavy and use 4 tablespoons (which is equal to ¼ cup). If you aren’t sure, start with 2 tablespoons. You can do a taste test after about an hour. You can always add more cumin, but you cannot take it away once it has been added.
Stir all of the ingredients together and allow it to slow cook for 4-8 hours.
Ladle chili into bowls and top with shredded Cheddar cheese and sour cream.
I love being able to recreate recipes at home because it allows me to choose what ingredients go into it. I prefer to use organic when I can, including grass-fed beef. This recipe can be made using non-organic ingredients, if necessary.
For those who want to know, like the original, this recipe is gluten-free. However, it is not a low carb dish.
FAQ
According to the Wendy’s website, Wendy’s chili ingreidents are:
Chili Base (Chili Sauce [Water, Tomato Paste, Tomatoes (Tomatoes, Tomato Juice, Calcium Chloride), Sugar, Modified Corn Starch, Salt, Chili Pepper, Spices, Flavor Enhancer (Dextrose, Salt, Yeast Extract, Modified Corn Starch), Citric Acid, Garlic Powder, Disodium Inosinate and Disodium Guanylate, Onion Powder, Xanthan Gum], Onions, Celery, Green Peppers), Water, Ground Beef (Beef, Salt), Chili Beans (Prepared Pink Beans and/or Prepared Pinto Beans, Prepared Red Kidney Beans), Soy Lecithin. CONTAINS: MILK AND SOY.
Wendy’s uses ground beef in their chili recipe.
No and yes. While monosodium glutamate is not a listed ingredient, Wendy’s uses yeast extract.
According to Healthline, “Yeast extract contains glutamates, which are forms of an amino acid that are found naturally in many foods. They’re sometimes extracted and used as additives to prepared food. This product is commonly known as monosodium glutamate (MSG). Yeast extract contains naturally occurring glutamates, but not as much as MSG.”
The one thing that my recipe does not have is celery and I doubt you will even miss it. Actually, there are a few other ingredients missing in my Wendy’s Chili clone, such as Disodium Inosinate, Disodium Guanylate, Yeast Extract, Modified Corn Starch, Milk, and Soy. I don’t think anyone will miss those ingredients.
What goes with Chili? Cornbread, naturally. Check out these different cornbread recipes at Southern Kissed:
📖 Recipe
Easy Wendy’s Chili Copycat Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground beef
- 1 onion diced
- 45 ounces chili beans or tri-colored beans
- 2 cans Ro*Tel
- ¼ cup chili powder
- 2 – 4 Tablespoons cumin
- 8 ounces tomato sauce
- 1 cup water
Instructions
- Brown ground beef and onion in an Instant Pot using the Sauté function. Cook until the beef is no longer pink.
- Stir in chili beans, Ro*Tel, tomato sauce, spices, and 1 cup of water.
- Press SLOW COOK and cook for 4 – 8 hours on LOW.
- Remove lid from the Instant Pot, stir, and enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Be sure to come back and tell us how your chili turned out!
Holly says
Do you drain the beans before putting them in?
Lynda says
I don’t.