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Chili Recipe for Hot Dogs and Hamburgers

This Chili Recipe for Hot Dogs and Hamburgers is quick, simple, and perfect for all your cookout chili as a condiment needs. Lots of flavor – NO BEANS!

Chili made for topping Hot Dogs and Hamburgers

I live in North Carolina where we top all the things with a good dose of chili and some slaw. Two popular recipes here on Sugar Dish Me continue to be Carolina Style Hot Dogs and Carolina Style Burgers.

Those recipes are not without controversy though!

A quick scroll through the comments will turn up a whole bunch of people that love my Carolina-style recipes and then a whole bunch of dudes that want to mansplain things like chili and cole slaw.

How to make Chili for Hot Dogs and Hamburgers

If you know me at all, you know that having rando dudes with no credentials try to explain my own recipes to me on the internet will basically get you nowhere. Fast.

But to assuage some of their troll-ey food blog concerns, I have some credentials to share!

  • I’ve lived in North Carolina for most of my life. My parents moved here before I was 2!
  • I like hot dogs and hamburgers with chili and slaw.
  • My restaurant experience dates back to 1995.
  • My husband was born and raised in Cleveland County, North Carolina, and grew up on a working farm. It doesn’t get much more Carolina than that.
  • My Chili Recipe for Hot Dogs and hamburgers kicks all the ass.

Chili Recipe for Hot Dogs and Hamburgers

Important things to note!

This chili recipe does not have to simmer all day to taste good. This is basically just chili as a condiment. If you wanna cook it low and slow for hours then that’s your prerogative. But if you wanna start it while you heat up the grill and make some slaw THAT’S OKAY TOO.

Mansplainers be damned.

This chili recipe doesn’t have onions. That’s because in NC we add raw chopped onions to the slaw AND to the actual hot dogs (or hamburgers). If you want onion, FINELY DICE IT and add it after you drain excess grease from the ground beef.

Carolina Style Burgers recipe

We just made Carolina Style Burgers with this chili earlier this week! Hot dogs are on the horizon.

And chili on all.

Carolina Style Hot Dogs with Chili and Slaw

Chili made for topping Hot Dogs and Hamburgers
Yield: serves 10 - 12

Chili Recipe for Hot Dogs and Hamburgers

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes

This Chili Recipe for Hot Dogs and Hamburgers is quick, simple, and perfect for all your cookout chili as a condiment needs. Lots of flavor - NO BEANS!

Ingredients

  • 1 pound lean ground beef
  • 2 tablespoons chili powder (see note for chili seasoning)
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1 teaspoon oregano
  • 1 teaspoon brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • cayenne or red chili flakes to taste
  • 1 cup broth (chicken, beef, or vegetable)
  • 1 (15 ounce) can of crushed tomatoes

Instructions

Brown the ground beef in a large pan. Drain excess grease.

Add all the seasonings to the ground beef and pour in the broth. Turn the beef and seasonings over in the skillet a few times to coat the meat. You also want to break the beef up as much as possible.

Add the tomatoes, reduce the heat to medium, and let is simmer, stirring occasionally.

Notes

You can use a package of chili seasoning in place of all the seasonings and spices listed here. I always have everything on hand to make my own, but if you have to go out and buy the items listed, it will be much more cost effective to grab a chili packet and go.

 

Chili Recipe for Hot Dogs and Hamburgers

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Rob

Wednesday 8th of May 2024

This is perfect. I wish you would link your coleslaw recipe; it looks delicious as well and I can’t find the recipe with the search you offer.

Heather Tullos

Saturday 22nd of June 2024

Thanks, Rob! I think the trouble might be that I am not sure I posted it 🤦🏻‍♀️ Here's my favorite slaw recipe - 2 cups finely chopped cabbage 1 cup finely chopped tart apples 2 tablespoons finely chopped onions 4 slices bacon, cooked, drained on paper towels, and crumbled (2 tablespoons bacon grease reserved) 1 tablespoon granulated sugar 1/2 cup mayonnaise 2 tablespoons cider vinegar 1 teaspoon dijon mustard

TM

Friday 7th of July 2023

This chili recipe is delicious! I don’t particularly like beans and the spices are perfect! I’ve made it at least six times and it always comes out great…even with diced tomatoes, lol!

Jerry

Saturday 27th of May 2023

The comments here are hilarious. Jeez folks.

Thanks for this recipe! Sometimes I leave out the onion powder because it's bad for a family member's migraines. Still delicious!!!

Alisha

Sunday 11th of December 2022

I just had a delicious chili topping on fries from a restaurant here in Oregon. It was pretty sweet. Is this a sweet chili recipe?

Heather Tullos

Thursday 15th of December 2022

Not particularly, but you could up the brown sugar if sweet is your preference! Start with 1 tablespoon.

Luke

Wednesday 18th of May 2022

I've been in NC for 1/2 a century now and I have never seen a diner or homemade hotdog/ hamburger chili with tomato chunks in it. Having worked at several diners in my younger days, and eaten in at least 100, we always used tomato sauce and paste and I've never seen tomato chunks of any size in the chili.

Now homemade chili with beans and such, yea, I've seen tomatoes in that.

Michelle

Thursday 2nd of June 2022

@Luke, Crushed tomatoes don’t have chunks... because they’re.. CRUSHED. lol

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