Indulge yourself in a bowl of Paleo Sweet Potato Chili that is spicy and full of beef. It’s thick, rich and slightly sweet while being grain free, sugar free and dairy free.
Slow Cooker Sweet Potato Chili
There’s nothing that says “fall” like a bowl of chili. It hasn’t always been this way for me. When I was younger, I was never a chili lover. I remember my mom making a pot of chili and making a small pot of the same chili without beans for us kids. Chili was tolerable. Chili with beans was not tolerable.
Times have certainly changed. I’d make a big pot of chili to eat on every week if it were up to me. What made me fall in love? Our favorite sweet and spicy chili recipe that you can find here. It’s thick. It’s meaty. It’s full of beans and tomatoes. And it’s slightly sweet. I love my chili just a tad bit sweet.
Is chili on the paleo diet?
Well…that depends on how it is made. We love sweet chili but obviously not many sweet things are on the paleo diet. This chili has sweet potatoes but everything is A.OK. for both the Whole30 and the Paleo diet. As always, check recipes and the ingredient labels to be sure the recipe and ingredients are compliant.
Paleo Chili Recipe without Beans
Since we are trying the best we can to eat a paleo diet at meal times, my favorite, most-loved chili recipe was off-limits. One of my goals this fall was to take that recipe and make it fit into a paleo, clean-eating diet. With no beans and no sugar, how did we do it? We added in veggies! Carrots and sweet potatoes to be exact.
When I took the first bite of this paleo sweet potato chili after it had simmered in my slow cooker all day, I was so pleasantly surprised. It actually tasted sweet! You see, those wonderful little sweet potatoes baked right into this chili and gave it the perfect amount of sweetness. Learning how to cook without sugar, grains and dairy hasn’t been easy, so when I have a victory like this, it makes my week!
Homemade Chili Powder
Sometimes sugar can be hiding in store-bought spice mixes. We’re crazy for our homemade, sugar free chili powder that seasons this chili perfectly. Find our recipe here.
Healthy Slow Cooker Chili
And it can easily be made in the slow cooker, making it easy for you to throw together in the morning and have it calling your name when you get home at night. Instead of simmering the chili on the stove, you can brown the ground beef, drain off the fat and place it into the slow cooker. Add the other ingredients and let it simmer on low all day (6-8 hours on high for 4-5 hours).
What vegetables can I add to chili?
We’ve had questions about what else you can add to this chili. We’ve heard zucchini, cauliflower, and butternut squash. We love all of these ideas to help make it a little more low carb.
Can I use ground turkey in chili?
Yes! We’ve used both ground beef and ground turkey in this Whole30 chili. You can even use ground chicken if you’d like. Each meat will change the flavor of the soup so pick whichever you like best.
You added 1/2 cup of chili powder? That has to be wrong!
Nope! It’s not. This chili gets RAVE reviews using this amount of chili powder. As with any other spice, you can always use less if you’d like!
What to Serve with Chili
Do you need a grain free bread to go with this soup? Try it with these dinner rolls. If you’re not limiting grains, may I suggest this Asiago Cheese Bread? It’s simply amazing with a bowl of hearty soup.
A delicious Whole30 Sweet Potato Chili recipe!
This paleo sweet potato chili recipe will make a decent sized batch of chili, so you’ll be sure to have leftovers for a busy night or for lunches.
Read our Ultimate Guide to the Whole30 Challenge here.
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Paleo Sweet Potato Chili
Ingredients
- 2 lbs hamburger
- 1 red onion chopped
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 can tomato sauce 29.5 ounces
- 2 cups petite diced tomatoes with juice
- 3 cups beef stock
- 1 cup carrots sliced
- 5 cups sweet potatoes peeled and cubed
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon thyme
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper
- 1/2 cup chili powder
- dash of oregano
- dash of red pepper flakes
Instructions
- In a large saucepan, brown hamburger, onions and garlic. Drain off the fat.
- Add the remaining ingredients to the saucepan. Mix well, bring to a boil and simmer, covered, for about 30-40 minutes or until the sweet potatoes and carrots are cooked through.
- Remove and discard the bay leaves. Then serve!
- Slow Cooker Option: Instead of simmering the chili on the stove, you can brown the ground beef, drain off the fat and place it into the slow cooker. Add the other ingredients and let it simmer on low all day (6-8 hours on high for 4-5 hours).
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Nutrition
Tracy says
I’ve made this chili several times now- My family and I love it!! Thank you for the recipe!
Rita G Miller says
Wonderful choice for a large hungry family with some hot crusty bread or rolls. Especially on cold days!
Mary says
Delicious. Made exactly per recipe.
Tera says
This chili is so delicious! The potatoes are better than beans ever were and my husband and I are the pickiest people you will meet, so pleasantly surprised with the taste. Thanks so much for the recipe!
Tera says
I made it exactly as written, but I cut the recipe in half, except for the garlic, because I forgot I was cutting it in half, but It was still delicious!
Denise Ann Drabeck says
Delicious. Used half the chili powder and it was still spicy, but a very tasty delicious chili!
Andrea says
This tastes great! Really easy Sunday lunch. We are not spicy people so I used just 2 tsp of chili powder.
Sally says
I had this at a community event the other night. It was so fabulous I begged the organizer of the event to send me the recipe. Just got it and will be making it tonight for my family. It’s delicious!
Teresa Medeiros says
This recipe is so yummy! I modified it slightly by using lean ground chicken instead of beef and I used only 1/4 cup of chili powder. The first time I tried this recipe I used the 1/2 cup that the recipe calls for but found it a bit spicy. So good!!
Mo Willis says
How do you think this would freeze for ahead of time prep?
Julie Clark says
Yes! We have frozen this and it is still good.
Jane says
Tried it last night. My husband wasn’t enthused about sweet potatoes instead of beans. But, he changed his mind. We both loved it!! I used ancho chili powder from New Mexico—delicious. Will make again.
Linsey says
We LOVE this recipe in our house! I have high blood pressure so I use low sodium/reduced salt ingredients. It’s still so delicious. Idk if I’m not seeing it but curious what the size is for a serving?! Thanks!
Jennifer says
I made this recipe, and used fresh venison chili meat, from a deer my brother harvested. This was my first time making chili and it came out AMAZING!!!! I shared it with a few friends (who are used to eating chili with beans) and they went crazy over it!!
Thank you sooo much for this recipe!! I can’t wait to make it again!
Julie Clark says
Wonderful! Thank you so much!
Deborah I. says
I just wanted to share that I just won a chili cook-off with this recipe! There were 16 total entries, and I didn’t even tell anyone that it was a whole30 recipe. My entire family loves this chili. It is so easy to cook. I NEVER leave comments on pages, but this time I had to!
Julie Clark says
Awesome!! I love it!