This easy slow cooker paleo chicken chili recipe is a real crowd pleaser! It’s loaded with vegetables—and it has a secret ingredient standing in for the beans.
How to make chili without beans
This crock pot chicken chili recipe uses one of the most versatile ingredients for paleo cooking—cauliflower. I’ve used cauliflower in everything from hummus to gravy to making cauli rice. In this cauliflower chili recipe, the cauliflower is standing in for the beans.
And replacing the beans makes this chili an easy paleo and Whole30 dinner. Just dump everything in the slow cooker, and let it cook all day.
I use my simple homemade chili powder in this chicken chili. It’s a mix of just five spices that creates that classic chili flavor. And unlike store-bought chili powder, I know it doesn’t contain any processed food chemicals or fillers. The only other spice I add to the chili is chipotle chile flakes for a little extra smoky heat.
I would call this chili medium-hot. It has three different types of heat—smoked hot paprika in the chili powder, chipotle chile flakes, and fresh poblano pepper. The poblano is a mild to medium-hot pepper.
Of course, you can always adjust the heat to your taste by adding more or less of the dried chile. You can also substitute a green bell pepper for the poblano pepper if you want a milder chili. Or use a hotter pepper to add more heat. Here’s a guide to popular hot pepper varieties.
As for the tomatoes, be sure to use organic tomato puree with no sugar added. Look for one packaged in a BPA free can or glass jar.
Homemade chicken stock is easy to make in the slow cooker and has the best flavor. But you can always substitute a good quality organic chicken broth. Just make sure to check the label for ingredients that are not real food. If it’s not something you would put in chicken stock if you were making it at home, it doesn’t belong in your chili.
This slow cooker chicken chili is my go-to for football watching. It’s so easy to make and you can set the slow cooker to keep it warm for serving. Don’t forget to top the chili with avocado, lime, and cilantro when you serve it. It really takes it up a notch.
Crock Pot Cauliflower Chicken Chili
Ingredients
Chili
- 1/2 head of cauliflower diced
- 1 onion diced
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 1 poblano pepper diced
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 28- ounce can organic tomato puree
- 1/2 cup chicken stock
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon chipotle chile flakes to taste
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 6 boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut in large chunks
Toppings
- 1 avocado
- 1 lime
- fresh cilantro
Instructions
- Add all chili ingredients to crock pot and stir to combine.
- Cook on low for 8 hours. Taste and adjust seasonings.
- Cube avocado, cut lime into wedges and chop fresh cilantro.
- Serve chili topped with avocado, a squeeze of lime juice, and cilantro to taste.
Equipment
Nutrition
More Easy Slow Cooker Recipes
Crock Pot Turkey Bolognese Sauce with Zucchini Noodles
Looking for more healthy slow cooker recipes? Check out these 30 paleo crock pot recipes.
What’s your favorite slow cooker recipe? Let me know in the comments below!
Bri
This looks delicious!! My sister is currently eating Paleo so this will be a good recipe to cook for her. I’ve never see Chipotle chile flakes but they sound good. Can you get them just at any grocery store?
Lisa
Bri, you will probably find them at a store that has a good selection of gourmet spices. I’ve seen them at Williams Sonoma, local gourmet stores, and lots of online retailers.
Sara
Could I use ground meat? If so, how? Thanks!
Lisa
Hi Sara, I haven’t tried this recipe with ground meat so I don’t know how it will turn out. If you try it, I would brown the meat before adding it to the slow cooker. Also, you may need to adjust the amount of liquid and the spices. Hope this helps!
Lisa
Thanks Sarena!
Cheri
Looks delicious and cannot wait to try it. Could you tell me where you got the bowls in the pic
Lisa
Thanks Cheri! I’ve had the bowls forever. The brand is Syracuse China. I don’t think they make them anymore, but you might find them on ebay.
Jillian
This looks so yummy. would I be able to use leftover turkey for this recipe? Would the cooking time need to be adjusted if the meat is already cooked?
Lisa
Hi Jillian, I haven’t tried it with leftover turkey, but I think you would need to adjust the cooking time. If you try it, let me know how it turns out!
Cor
Should the 28-ounce tomato puree perhaps be diced tomatoes or a lesser amount of tomato puree? 28 oz (793 grams) seems an awful lot of (concentrated) tomato puree.
Lisa
Cor, the tomato puree is like tomato sauce. It is not concentrated.
Cor
Thanks. Then it makes sense!
Rose
This is by far one of my favorite paleo recipes! Perfect for winter! It’s delicious!! 5 stars
Lisa
Thanks Rose! It’s one of my favorites too – I have it in the crock pot now. 🙂
Alicia
How would you adjust this for stovetop cooking? Thanks!
Emily
I love the idea of substituting cauliflower for beans! Thanks for sharing your recipe with Merry Monday 🙂
Luda
This was good alternative to a traditional chill, i cooked this for my husband who is sensitive to beans and he liked it. However i would prefer traditional bowl of chili i guess i was missing the beans =)
Kenia Brown
I am not a Paleo eater but I saw this recipe while browsing decide to give it a try and I must say it was pretty good. I will be making it again.
Lisa
Thanks Kenia! I’m so glad you like it 🙂
Justine
Hey! I am new to Paleo and I am looking for recipes that freeze well. There are only two of us and I like a little more variety I wouldn’t want to have this 3 days in a row. Do you know if this freezes well?
Lisa
Hi Justine, I freeze any leftovers in single servings for those days I need a quick meal.
Kris
is the chunked chicken raw/uncooked? or do you cook it first and then put in?
Lisa
Hi Kris, the chicken goes in uncooked. It cooks with the vegetables in the slow cooker.
Melanie
How large is a serving size?
Lisa
Hi Melanie, the serving size is about a cup and a half.
allie
what is the calorie count?
Dina Uldall
Have you used an instant pot for this recipe?
Tammy
How many lbs of chicken, if I use boneless skinless breasts, ballpark estimate of course.
Lisa
Hi Tammy, I would ballpark about 1.25 to 1.5 pounds.
Aimee
I am keto and was wondering if you could tell me is the carb count you gave for the entire recipe and the sugar also?
Thanks so much I cant wait to try this.
Lisa
Hi Amy, all the nutrition info is for one serving. Hope this helps!
Sarah
Can you place in ninja foodi?
Lisa
Hi Sarah, I haven’t used a Ninja Foodi, but if it has a slow cooker setting I think it should work.
Kathy
It is diced cauliflower now fresh riced cauliflower you can find in the grocery stores?
Lisa
Hi Kathy, the cauliflower is diced so it is similar in size to the other vegetables.
Mandy
The chicken chili looks like something I’ll want to try. A word of caution for those unfamiliar with poblano peppers. One of my favorite recipes is a southwestern chopped salad; I learned the hard way to gingerly taste the poblano before adding it. They can vary wildly in heat, from mild to set-your-eyebrows-on-fire. It’s no fun picking chopped peppers out of a big bowl of salad after you’ve got the thing all nicely tossed together.