Name: Halloween Chili Bar (The 40-Minute Crowd-Feeding Party Spread)
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 10-12 servings (about 10 cups)
Cuisine: American (Tex-Mex)
Ingredients: Ground beef, 2 lb (900 g); Yellow onion, 1 large (300 g), diced; Garlic, 4 cloves, minced; Chili powder, 3 tbsp (24 g); Ground cumin, 2 tsp; Smoked paprika, 1 tsp; Dried oregano, 1 tsp; Crushed tomatoes, 28 oz (800 g, 1 can); Tomato sauce, 15 oz (425 g, 1 can); Kidney beans, 2 cans (15 oz / 425 g each), drained and rinsed; Light brown sugar, 1 tbsp (12 g); Fine sea salt, 1 1/2 tsp, plus 1/2 tsp black pepper; Toppings bar: shredded cheddar, sour cream, tortilla chips, sliced jalapeños, red onion, lime wedges, cilantro, candy eyeballs

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Prep: 15 min · Cook: 25 min · Total: 40 min · Serves: 10-12 (about 10 cups)

Halloween chili bar with a pot of smoky beef chili and topping bowls

This Halloween chili bar is the Halloween party dinner that feeds a crowd without frying the host. One big pot of smoky, beefy chili — thick enough to stand a spoon in — surrounded by bowls of melty-cheese fixings so every guest builds their own bowl. It’s 40 minutes start to finish, 12 pantry ingredients, and it makes Halloween dinner feel like an event. Pipe sour-cream spiderwebs and scatter candy eyes over the toppings and the whole spread goes spooky with zero extra effort.

Round out your Halloween spread with our Monster Halloween Cookies, Mummy Hot Dogs, Halloween Candy Bark, Bat Wing Chicken Wings, and Air Fryer Mummy Jalapeño Poppers.

What You Need

Ground beef, 2 lb (900 g)
Yellow onion, 1 large (300 g), diced
Garlic, 4 cloves, minced
Chili powder, 3 tbsp (24 g)
Ground cumin, 2 tsp
Smoked paprika, 1 tsp
Dried oregano, 1 tsp
Crushed tomatoes, 28 oz (800 g, 1 can)
Tomato sauce, 15 oz (425 g, 1 can)
Kidney beans, 2 cans (15 oz / 425 g each), drained and rinsed
Light brown sugar, 1 tbsp (12 g)
Fine sea salt, 1 1/2 tsp, plus 1/2 tsp black pepper
Toppings bar: shredded cheddar, sour cream, tortilla chips, sliced jalapeños, red onion, lime wedges, cilantro, candy eyeballs

How To Make It

Brown the beef: Heat a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high. Add the beef and cook, breaking it into crumbles, 6-7 minutes until browned. Drain off excess fat.
Soften the aromatics: Add the diced onion and minced garlic. Cook 3-4 minutes, stirring, until the onion turns translucent.

Browning beef and softening onions for Halloween chili

Bloom the spices: Stir in the chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, and oregano. Cook 1 minute, stirring constantly, until dark and fragrant.
Build the chili: Pour in the crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, and kidney beans. Stir in the brown sugar, salt, and pepper. Bring to a gentle simmer.

Adding tomatoes and beans to the chili pot

Simmer it down: Cook uncovered 20-25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until thick enough to mound on a spoon. Taste and adjust salt, sugar, or heat.
Set the bar: Keep the chili warm in the pot or move to a slow cooker on WARM. Arrange toppings in small bowls. Pipe sour-cream spiderwebs over the chili, scatter candy eyeballs, and let guests build their own bowls with tortilla chips for scooping.

Halloween chili bar with sour cream spiderweb and candy eyes

Tips & Variations

Make-ahead: chili tastes better the next day — refrigerate up to 3 days, freeze up to 3 months.
Slow-cooker version: brown the beef and onion first, then cook on LOW 6-8 hours or HIGH 3-4 hours.
Heat control: keep the jalapeños and hot sauce on the toppings bar so kids and heat-lovers are both happy.
Thickener trick: mash a ladleful of beans against the pot and stir back in for body without flour.
Vegetarian swap: swap the beef for 2 extra cans of beans plus 1 lb (450 g) diced sweet potato.
Estimated nutrition per serving: ~390 cal | protein 27 g | carbs 26 g | fat 19 g.