Cafeteria Chili
Cafeteria Chili brings back memories of school lunches! It combines classic ingredients like ground beef and beans with a spaghetti twist. It's an easy lunch or dinner to make with simple ingredients in just 45 minutes!
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 421kcal
Ingredients
Chili
- 2 pounds ground beef
- 1 ⅓ cup diced onion
- 27 ounce can chili beans kidney beans
- 26.5 ounce can tomato puree
- ½ cup Mexene Chili Powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Water amount as desired
- 2 ½ tablespoons sugar
- 6 ½ ounces spaghetti broken into thirds
Instructions
- In a large pot or dutch oven on medium-high heat, break apart and cook ground beef and onions until the beef is no longer pink and onions translucent. Drain off excess grease.
- To the pot, add the chili beans kidney beans, tomato purée, 2 cups of water, chili powder, salt, and sugar. Bring to a boil.
- Add the broken spaghetti and cook until al dente, stirring periodically. Taste and adjust seasonings as desired. Add 1-3 cups water to desired chili texture.
- Ladle and serve. If reheating, add additional water or tomato puree as needed. To create that lunch school memory, complete the lunch tray with a bowl of chili, crackers, grilled cheese or peanut butter and syrup sandwich, carrots and celery sticks, a no-bake cookie or cinnamon roll, and milk.
Video
Notes
Pro Tips and Substitutions
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- Protein Options: If you prefer a different protein, you can substitute the ground beef with ground turkey, chicken, or a plant-based meat alternative.
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- Beans: While chili bean kidney beans are traditional, you can swap them for a different kind of beans like black beans, pinto beans, or even chickpeas.
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- Spice Level: If you like your chili with more heat, add a pinch of cayenne pepper, red pepper flakes, or a chopped jalapeño. For a milder version, reduce the chili powder.
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- Seasonings: Add more seasonings to taste. Some popular additions are garlic powder, black pepper, red peppers, cumin, and onion powder.
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- Tomato Substitutes: If you don’t have tomato puree, you can use tomato sauce or crushed tomatoes as a substitute.
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- Add Veggies: For extra nutrition, consider adding chopped bell peppers, zucchini, or corn to the chili.
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- Sugar Options: The amount of granulated sugar can be increased, decreased, or omitted. You can also opt to use dark or light brown sugar instead.
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- Spaghetti Alternatives: If you’re not a fan of spaghetti in chili, feel free to leave it out or replace it with elbow macaroni, rice, or serve the chili over baked potatoes.
Storage:
Fridge: Once the chili has cooled completely, refrigerate in an airtight container up to 4-5 days. Freezer: Chili can be frozen in an air-tight, freezer-safe container up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating. You can also freeze in small batches so that you can pull a portion from the freezer one at a time. Reheating TIP: The pasta will expand when refrigerated, so upon reheating, add additional water or tomato sauce to your desired chili texture.Nutrition
Calories: 421kcal | Carbohydrates: 53g | Protein: 36g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 0.4g | Cholesterol: 70mg | Sodium: 736mg | Potassium: 1432mg | Fiber: 13g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 4864IU | Vitamin C: 13mg | Calcium: 115mg | Iron: 8mg
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