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This is the real deal Wendy's chili recipe. It tastes just like the original chili, and is very easy to make.

Copycat Wendy's Chili Recipe

Todd Wilbur
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 3 hours
Total Time 3 hours 10 minutes
Servings 12 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 2 pounds ground beef
  • one 29-ounce can tomato sauce
  • one 29-ounce can kidney beans with liquid
  • one 29-ounce can pinto beans with liquid
  • 1 cup diced onion 1 medium onion
  • 1/2 cup diced green chili 2 chilies
  • 1/4 cup diced celery 1 stalk
  • 3 medium tomatoes chopped
  • 2 teaspoons cumin powder
  • 3 tablespoons chili powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 2 cups water

Instructions
 

  • Make beef patties from ground beef and brown in a large skillet over medium-high heat, flipping once. The meat will brown much better if you brown it as patties as much less water will be released during browning.
  • Drain the fat from the meat and crumble it with a work into pea-size pieces.
  • In a large pot, combine the browned beef with the rest of the ingredients. Bring the pot to boil, lower the heat to low and simmer the chili for 2 to 3 hours, stirring every 15 minutes or so.

Notes

For spicier chili, add 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper.
For much spicier chili, add 2-3 teaspoons of cayenne pepper.
For extreme real heat add 5-6 jalapeno or 1-2 red serrano peppers.
The chili can be frozen for up to 3 months if necessary.