Slow Cooker Momma’s Roadhouse Chili

5 from 1 vote

Momma's spicy chili recipe made healthy.

Our top-rated Momma’s Roadhouse Chili makes for a fantastic dinner on a busy weeknight! It’s a classic chili, packed with meat and beans that fill you up on a frigid winter’s night. It’s an easy chili recipe that requires little prep time. Just brown the meat and toss all ingredients in the slow cooker. It’s that simple. This chili version was created from an old family recipe that used sausage instead of ground turkey. We’ve included our recipe for spicy sausage if you’d like to try the original version.

5 from 1 vote

Slow Cooker Momma's Roadhouse Chili

With little prep time and exquisite taste, this slow cooker chili recipe will make your momma proud.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 8 hours
Total Time 8 hours 10 minutes
Yield 8 people
Serving Size 1.5 cups
Course Dinner, Soup
Cuisine Universal

Ingredients

  • 1 pound lean ground turkey about 93% lean (optional, lean ground chicken or beef)
  • 1 sweet onion small
  • 30 ounces kidney beans canned, drained
  • 15 ounces black beans canned, drained
  • 14 1/2 ounces diced tomatoes canned
  • 6 ounces tomato paste canned
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
  • 1 cup tomato juice or veggie juice
  • 3 cups water for a thicker chili, use 2 1/2 cups

Instructions

  • Cook turkey and onion in a skillet on medium 
heat, breaking up into small chunks. Cook until no longer pink. Drain off fat and discard.
  • Add cooked meat and all other ingredients to slow cooker, cook on low 6-8 hours. 4-6 quart slow cooker recommended. Add diced onions and cheddar cheese, if desired.

Notes

If you prefer spicier chili use our recipe for Turkey Sausage in place of using just ground turkey.
 

Nutrition Information

Serving: 1.5cups | Calories: 253kcal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 49mg | Sodium: 671mg | Fiber: 11g | Sugar: 7g |
SmartPoints (Freestyle): 7
Keywords Budget-Friendly, Kid-Friendly, Slow Cooker

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Gale Compton

Gale co-founded SkinnyMs. with a goal to provide women with delicious recipes, fitness routines, and ways to reach their ideal weight. Gale has been featured on the Today Show in which she won a cook off for the best Lasagna. Be sure to search for her winning recipe, Skinny Lasagna Rolls.

Guided by her firm belief in healthy eating and the power of exercise, Gale has written two cookbooks and several fitness ebooks. She earned her Fitness Training Certification from, National Exercise & Sports Trainers Association. Gale loves to run with her dog Maggie and has completed numerous half-marathons.

More by Gale

55 Comments

  1. Pingback: fab five Friday — miss lyon {soon to be mrs.}
    1. Jeanne, Thanks for letting us know…got that backwards! I must have been falling asleep when I calculated the points. lol 🙂

    1. Monica, Sure…just add all the ingredients to a large pot, cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cook about 1-2 hours.

  2. Mine is in crockpot now and smells delish. I didn't have black beans so I used Kidney and Canelli. Can't wait to try it.

  3. This was so good! Made it for dinner tonight and it's gone. My kids, ages 5 and 3, loved it!! Thank you! Better than my old recipe and healthier too. 🙂

  4. Made this chili last night for dinner this evening. LOVED IT! My kids totally loved it! I loaded several of your recipes and grocery lists! Made shopping a breeze!

  5. Chili is one of my favorite meals in the winter. We had a few friends over last weekend so I thought I would try your recipe and I have to say it was a big hit. It was so good, everyone wanted the recipe. Thanks, well done!

  6. Hi there is this very spicy? I have young children who don't tolerate food that is too spicy. Cheers

    1. Katie, If you omit the cayenne pepper it is not too spicy at all. Add half of the chili powder, and allow to cook for half of the time. Add the additional chili powder if necessary.

  7. I make this recipe at least once a month and my entire family LOVES it. Did this recipe change in the last few weeks? What happened to the sage and oregano that you add to the turkey? Also, I don't remember tomato or veggie juice in the recipe. Thanks.

      1. No. It was definitely Momma's Roadhouse Chili. I just used this recipe last month. You added sage, oregano, and pepper to the turkey and onion. I make it enough that I have it committed to memory. I just like to check the recipe to make sure I don't forget anything 🙂

  8. I think this recipe has been updated. The last recipe had you rub the spices, including oregano, sage, ground cumin (I think) into the ground meat, before cooking the meat. So disappointed this has been changed. It was certainly a favourite and I have no copy.

  9. SOOOOO yummy! Thanks for the recipe! I used this for one of my meal prep recipes this week and it is delicious and freezes really well. I like mine to have a little kick so i added diced jalepenos and used hot mexican chili powder. This is my new go to chili recipe!!!

    1. Cherie, Great! This was my mom's recipe with some tweaks. My all time favorite. 🙂 Thanks for the feedback.

  10. I am making it tonight for the first time.I am cooking it on high for 4 hrs..it has an hour to go. I tasted it and it has a spicy kick…With all the posts stating children love it I guess I did not expect it to be spicy hot….Can’t wait to have it for dinner tomorrow..we will let you know how we like it

    1. Joan, YAH!!! If you think it’s too spicy for the kids, try one of these tricks for toning down the “heat”:
      – add a little yogurt, sour cream, or milk to their bowls of chili
      OR
      – add a touch of honey to individual bowls

  11. I put this recipe into my food tracker and the calories don’t add up to what is here. It is significantly more than listed. Did this recipe have one can of kidney beans at one time? That’s the only way I could get the calories to add up to what’s listed here.

    1. Charley, The serving amounts/yield was wrong in the data but has been corrected. This recipe yields 8, 1-1/2 cup servings for 253 calories per serving and 7 SP.

    1. Hi Michelle,

      You can use tomato or vegetable juice. Which ever you prefer. The juice is added with all the ingredients to the slow cooker at the beginning of the recipe.

  12. Is it 16 or 6 oz can of tomato paste? It has an x symbol on my phone. I originally read six so bought six but am now looking to make it and don’t want to mess it up

    1. Hi Corrie! For a thicker chili you can reduce the amount of water. Try using 2 or 2 1/2 cups next time!

  13. Hi Gale and SkinnyMs friends,
    Is there a vegetarian version of this chilli. Im doing the 6week emergency makeover.
    Im getting married in October and just got back from a mini holiday in Eataly!
    Would love to hear from you

    CANDICE

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