Habanero Chili with Honey (made in the slow cooker!) - India from Indiana (2024)

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This post was last updated on March 14, 2021 by India

This Honey Habanero Chili is spicy, smokey, and slightly sweet and is made in the slow cooker! I love how the flavors from the spicy chipotle peppers are balanced by the sweet honey. You’ll love making this chili on crisp fall days and cold winter nights.

This Honey Habanero Chili recipe has evolved with Neal and I since we began dating back in 2013. The original recipe is from Slow Cooker Revolution by America’s Test Kitchen and has morphed over the years into something completely different.

About Honey Habanero Chili

It sounds weird to put honey in chili, but it really works here. There is a lot of spice and strong flavors in this chili from habanero peppers, chipotle peppers. The honey helps balance all the spicy flavors without being overly sweet and plays well with the fruity flavor of the habanero peppers. As written, the honey only adds a hint of sweetness, but feel free to increase the amount of honey to make it sweeter. The first time I added honey to the chili, Neal said it was the best batch of chili we’ve ever made at home!

Ingredients in Honey Habanero Chili

Here is what you need to make this Honey Habanero Chili recipe:

  • Onions and Garlic.
  • Ground Beef.
  • Chipotle Peppers in Adobo Sauce.
  • Habanero Peppers.
  • Tomatoes. In the form of tomato paste, tomato sauce, and diced tomatoes. We need allll the tomatoes for this recipe.
  • Spices.
  • Kidney Beans.
  • Gluten Free Soy Sauce/Tamari.
  • Honey.

How to Make Honey Habanero Chili

This chili is a little heavy on the prep work, especially for a slow cooker meal, but it is so worth it. This is the best way to make Honey Habanero Chili:

  • Cook the onions and peppers. You’ll cook the onions and habanero peppers in a large skillet until they’re lightly softened before adding tomato paste and spices.
  • Brown the ground beef. Once the vegetables and tomato paste is cooked, add the ground beef and cook until its brown and no longer pink. This will add depth of flavor and prevent the meat from getting too clumpy.
  • Add tomato sauce and transfer to the slow cooker. Stir in the tomato sauce and scrape up any brown bits on the bottom of the pan. That is where all the flavor is at! Transfer everything to the slow cooker and add the remaining ingredients.
  • Cook. This chili will take 4 – 6 on high or 6 – 8 hours on low to cook through.
  • Serve with your favorite toppings. I love to serve Honey Habanero Chili with fresh avocado, shredded cheddar, creamy sour cream, or crispy tortilla chips!

make this chili vegetarian!

I haven’t personally tested this, but to make this vegetarian you can use a mixture of lentils and finely chopped mushrooms in place of the ground beef and double the amount of kidney beans. If you make this vegetarian, let me know how it goes in the comments below!

Habanero Chili with Honey (made in the slow cooker!) - India from Indiana (1)Habanero Chili with Honey (made in the slow cooker!) - India from Indiana (2)Habanero Chili with Honey (made in the slow cooker!) - India from Indiana (3)Habanero Chili with Honey (made in the slow cooker!) - India from Indiana (4)

Honey Habanero Chili

This Honey Habanero Chili is spicy, smokey, and slightly sweet and is made in the slow cooker! I love how the flavors from the spicy chipotle peppers are balanced by the sweet honey. You'll love making this chili on crisp fall days and cold winter nights.

CourseMain Dish, Soup, Soups

CuisineAmerican

Keywordbeef chili, chili, stew

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 8 hours 20 minutes

Total Time 8 hours 40 minutes

Servings 4 people

Calories 481 kcal

Author India

Ingredients

  • 1poundground beef
  • 2tablespoonsavocado oil
  • 2white onionsdiced
  • 2 - 3habanero peppersseeds removed and minced
  • 1/4teaspoonsalt
  • 3tablespoonstomato paste
  • 2tablespoonschili powder
  • 3garlic clovesminced
  • 2teaspoonsground cumin
  • 1/2teaspoondried oregano
  • 1/4teaspoonred pepper flakes
  • 115-oz cantomato sauce
  • 1 14.5-oz candiced tomatoes
  • 115-oz cankidney beansdrained and rinsed
  • 2 tablespoonsgluten free soy sauce/tamari
  • 2canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauceminced
  • 1/4cuphoney

Instructions

  1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add onions, habanero peppers, and salt and cook until lightly softened. Add tomato paste and cook until it becomes rust in color.

  2. Add chili powder, garlic, cumin, oregano, and red pepper flakes, cooking until fragrant (about 30 seconds).

  3. Add ground beef and cook, breaking up larger pieces as needed. Cook for about 5 minutes or until no longer pink.

  4. Add the tomato sauce, scraping up any brown bits that have developed on the bottom of the skillet. Transfer mixture to the slow cooker. Once in the slow cooker, add the remaining diced tomatoes with juices, kidney beans, soy sauce, c

  5. Add diced tomatoes, kidney beans, soy sauce, minced chipotle peppers, and honey.

  6. Cook on low for 4-6 hours or on high for 6-8 hours.

  7. Serve with your favorite chili toppings.

Recipe Notes

  • Habanero peppers are very spicy! Take care when handling them and use gloves or wash your hands immediately after chopping.
  • If you're sensitive to heat, only use 1 or 2 habanero peppers.
  • Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce can be found in the Mexican aisle of most grocery stores. This recipe only calls for two peppers, so reserve the remaining peppers and adobo sauce for another recipe like Chicken Tinga! They will keep in a sealed container in the refrigerator for about two weeks.
store it in the fridge

This will keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

store it in the freezer

This will keep in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Make This Vegetarian

I haven't personally tested this, but to make this vegetarian you can use a mixture of lentils and finely chopped mushrooms in place of the ground beef and double the amount of kidney beans. If you make this vegetarian, let me know how it goes in the comments below!

Make this Gluten Free

The recipe as written is gluten free! Just make sure you use gluten free soy sauce or tamari instead of traditional soy sauce which contains wheat.

DID YOU MAKE THis recipe for honey habanero chili?

If you’ve tried this recipe or any other recipe on the blog, please rate this recipe and let me know how you liked it in the comments below, I love hearing from you! You can also like me on facebook and follow me on Instagram and Pinterest to see more delicious meals I’m cooking! You can also mention @indiafromindiana or tag #indiafromindiana on Instagram so I can see what you’re making in the kitchen

HELPFUL RECIPE INFORMATION

All recipes are tested and developed in my home kitchen. Unless otherwise stated, I always use extra virgin olive oil and this Himalayan pink salt in my recipes

Habanero Chili with Honey (made in the slow cooker!) - India from Indiana (2024)

FAQs

How many habaneros should I put in my chili? ›

Ingredients
  1. 1 pound ground beef.
  2. 2 tablespoons avocado oil.
  3. 2 white onions diced.
  4. 2 - 3 habanero peppers seeds removed and minced.
  5. 3 tablespoons tomato paste.
  6. 2 tablespoons chili powder.
  7. 3 garlic cloves minced.
  8. 2 teaspoons ground cumin.
Jan 16, 2018

Why add honey to chili? ›

Honey adds a tasty balance to your bowl, but maybe the sweetest part of making chili is how adaptable it can be.

What color habanero is the hottest? ›

The peppers change colour as they ripen. Green and white pods are milder than orange ones, and black, or “chocolate,” ones and the Red Savina are the hottest.

What does habanero mean in English? ›

habanero in American English

(ˌɑbɑˈnɛroʊ ) nounWord forms: plural ˌhabaˈneros. a kind of chili pepper that is small, orange when ripe, and extremely hot: it is used esp. in Latin American cooking. : in full habanero pepper.

Are habaneros too hot for chili? ›

Nowadays, the habanero sits firmly in the extra-hot zone of the scale, rated 100,000–350,000. It dwarfs mild chilies like the much less spicy poblano (1,000 to 1,500 SHU), but it still falls well short of the super-hot chili pepper range.

How much hotter is a habanero than a jalapeno? ›

The most notable difference between habanero and jalapeno peppers is their heat level. Habaneros are considerably hotter than jalapenos. On the Scoville Heat Scale, jalapenos typically range from 2,500 to 8,000 Scoville Heat Units (SHU), while habaneros can range from 100,000 to 350,000 SHU or even higher.

Why should not we mix honey with hot things? ›

Honey is packed with antioxidants and essential nutrients, but mixing it with hot water is believed to reduce its efficacy. As per Ayurveda mixing honey with hot water can release toxins like Ama, which impacts health in long run and causes digestive and respiratory ailments.

What is the secret to really good chili? ›

Only Add Flavorful Liquids

Instead of adding water to your chili, add some more flavor with chicken or beef broth, red wine vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, or even beet or wine. Each one of these options brings out different notes and levels of sweetness that will enhance your culinary creation.

What secret ingredient will deepen the flavor of your chili? ›

Stir some puréed pumpkin into your chili just after sautéing your aromatics (onions, garlic, etc...) and before adding any liquid. This will deepen and sweeten its flavor, making it a great balance for all the chile peppers and heat.

Is habanero good for your stomach? ›

Despite what you might have heard, hot peppers don't cause ulcers but might actually help prevent ulcers by helping the stomach build up bile and killing harmful bacteria and parasites. Capsaicin seems to regulate insulin levels, especially in overweight individuals, which might help diabetics.

What pairs well with habanero? ›

The habanero, one of the spicier of the capsicum pepper genus, can be described as “fruity, citrus-like, and floral” despite its heat. It's considered an “excellent aromatic match” with bell pepper, apricot brandy, and pineapple.

Can I eat raw habaneros? ›

If you don't want your first experience to be aggressive, you can eat it cooked instead of raw. People often remove the pepper's seeds and the white inner membranes before cooking with it, and since this is where capsaicin is most concentrated, cooked peppers are much less intense than raw ones.

What is habanero called in India? ›

Bhut Jalakia , King Chilli The Bhut jolokia, also known as ghost pepper, ghost chili pepper, ghost chili and ghost jolokia, is an interspecific hybrid chili pepper cultivated in the Northeast Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Nagaland and Manipur.

What is a smoked habanero called? ›

Hot chili peppers are used primarily as a condiment, and common types include: Anaheim - Long and thin, red or green, the Anaheim is a Mexican cuisine staple. Chipotle - A smoked habanero is called a chipotle.

What is a dried habanero pepper called? ›

The Habanero pepper (ha-ba-NEH-ro), a member of the Capsicum chinenese botanical family, is also called habanero chile or chile habanero. Habaneros are known by the same name whether they are fresh or dried.

How much habanero to use in cooking? ›

One single pepper, or even part of one, may be enough for your taste. Follow your recipe as well as your tolerance level (and that of your guests). You don't want the dish to become so hot and painful that no one can enjoy it. Even a small amount of habaneros can add a hefty amount of spice.

How many habaneros per pound of meat? ›

you have to remember that Habernero is one of the spicies chilis you can find in a regular grocery store. If you are not used to it, i would even recommend less than 1 pepper/lb. It depends what else is in the chili. Meat has a lot of fat and the capsaicin dissolves into it nicely.

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