Homemade copycat Skyline Cincinnati chili… unique and flavorful, this regional delicacy is easy to make at home for way less than the restaurant charges!
Have you ever had Cincinnati chili? It’s totally unique, and NOT like a traditional chili, but it’s an absolutely delicacy here in the Midwest. It’s also really easy to make at home, freezes wonderfully, and can be served in so many ways!
I love hometown things, and growing up in the suburbs of Cincinnati, that means Cincinnati-style chili!
It’s definitely NOT like any chili you’ve had before. To most people, chili is something like this. For us Cincinnati-ans… this is our chili:
A meat sauce full of unique seasonings that is served on top of spaghetti and topped with cheese (which we call a 3 way), and sometimes onions and/or beans will be added with the cheese (4 or 5 way).
Another classic way we enjoy this chili is on top of a hot dog, with some mustard and onions and a mound of cheese.
That delicious looking dog is called a coney. And they are heavenly… seriously.
I know… the term chili is confusing, because this dish is completely different… but wonderful (as most Cincinnati-ans are as well!).
I urge you to try it, at least once. Most people who try it, love it!
Around here, you can buy Skyline (and Gold Star) chili in cans, packets, and frozen trays. Which is convenient, but p-r-i-c-e-y! So I wanted to find a recipe that starts from scratch… for a few reasons.
- The price. I’m a cheap you know what, and refuse to pay that much for one can of chili.
- I don’t want the preservatives and whatever is in those packets.
- The most important reason… unless you live here, you probably won’t be able to find those cans, trays or packets in your grocery store. Bummer huh? Everyone should be able to enjoy this fabulous chili, no matter where you live!
It’s really simple to make too, just add water, tomato paste and chocolate to a large pot and cook over medium heat for a few minutes.
That’s right, you read that correctly… chocolate. Not the milk chocolate we all love to snack on mind you, but unsweetened 100% cacao bakers chocolate. My turkey chili uses this chocolate as well!
Add your spices, vinegar, and your beef. Crumble it using your fingers, then use a potato masher, whisk, or mash the beef against the side of the pan. Basically you want the meat all broken up into fine pieces. I mainly used the fork and went to town with my whisk. Get mad at it, break up that meat!
Now just bring it to a boil, reduce heat to medium low and let it cook, uncovered for 1 – 1 1/2 hours (you want a low boil). It will thicken up and become a wonderful meat sauce. And the smell that fills your house…. incredible!!
It’s up to you how you would like to serve up your chili… do you want coneys? A “way”? Or just chili in a bowl with cheese and oyster crackers?
It’s your house, your rules! I typically go for “ways” and coneys. Remember, here’s the breakdown.
CINCINNATI CHILI “WAYS”:
- 2-way = spaghetti and chili
- 3-way = spaghetti, chili, cheese
- 4-way = spaghetti, chili, onions OR beans, cheese (my fav is with onions!)
- 5-way = spaghetti, chili, onion AND beans, cheese
CINCINNATI CHILI CONEYS:
- Bun, hot dog, chili
- Bun, hot dog, chili, cheese
- Bun, hot dog, chili, mustard OR onion, cheese
- Bun, hot dog, chili, mustard AND onion, cheese (my fav!!)
Traditionally, people top their “ways” with oyster crackers and hot sauce. They’re great additions, I use them both!
This chili is also fantastic over crispy french fries or even a baked potato!! You can also use it in an amazing Skyline Chili Dip for your next party.
This chili season, I hope you give this non-traditional Cincinnati chili a try! Let me share this piece of my hometown with you all… I think you’ll LOVE it 🙂
Here are some other versions of chili to try too!
- Slow Cooker Beef and Bean Chili
- Slow Cooker Creamy White Chicken Chili
- Beef and Poblano Chili
- Healthier Turkey Chili
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!
Ingredients
- 5 cups water
- 6 oz can of Tomato paste
- 1/2 oz baking chocolate (unsweetened - I use Baker's brand)
- 1/4 cup chili powder
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1/4 tsp allspice
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes, or less, depending on your desired heat level
- 1/8 tsp black pepper
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp sugar
- 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 1/4 lb lean ground beef
Instructions
- Add the water to a large pot. I like to use my dutch oven for this.
- Add the tomato paste and chocolate and heat over medium heat stirring to combine for about 3 minutes. (I stir with a whisk to really break up the tomato paste)
- Add chili powder, cinnamon, garlic powder, cumin, allspice, cloves, red pepper flakes, black pepper, salt, sugar and vinegar.
- Next, crumble the raw ground beef into the pot with your fingers, then use a potato masher, whisk or fork to break up the meat into very fine pieces.
- Turn heat to high to bring to a boil.
- Once boiling, turn the heat down to med-low.
- Cook, uncovered, for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, at a low boil.. stirring occasionally until sauce has thickened quite a bit.
- Serve over thin spaghetti or a hot dog.
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Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
NolaGuy says
How long do you recommend this can be stored(frozen) for?
The Chunky Chef says
I would say about 2-3 months.
Jennifer Moore says
This was DELICIOUS!!! I would say pretty much a spot on clone of Skyline…added a little hot sauce because… well its Skyline! We love our Skykine here in the Midwest. 😍
Thanks for this recipe!
Kim K. says
It’s a HOT, sticky summer night here in the Midwest, but for some reason I was hankering for chili. We have a place here in Milwaukee called “Real Chili” that is essentially Cincinnati style. (there is even some debate that ‘ours’ is the original version of this style.) Anyway, it has been a MKE staple for 75+ years now and the place to go for late night eats. Always excellent. BUT, what hasn’t been so excellent is how much they are charging for it nowadays. The last time my hubby and I went it cost us almost $40 for 1.5 servings each. I can’t justify that price for some greasy college food, but it’s so good!
This morning I came upon your copycat recipe and decided to give it a try. I just finished eating a serving and it did not fail to satisfy my craving! It was delicious. Hubby is still on the fence.. he says it’s not exactly like R.C., but it’s pretty darn close. (sigh) He ate it all though and tomorrow after it sits overnight, I’m sure it will be even better for lunch. Thank you for sharing this recipe. I’ll be making this again and again for sure!
Karen Floyd says
My kids are not huge fans of Skyline because they find it too spicy, so I toned down the red pepper flakes and my entire family loved it. Will be making this often!! As you noted, it is so much more cost-effective to make it ourselves than drive through the Skyline drive-thru!
Sean Jacquillard says
Amazing recipe!! It’s almost robbery what they charge for can or freezer chili. Another tip that I use with the ground beef is use your potato masher to stir it while it’s simmering. Breaks it apart more and more each time. Thank you for putting the recipe out.
mama Cass says
Good , really GOOD wish I could leave a picture … It was that GOOD
Kim says
Ridiculously good!
Served 2 with pasta cheese and onions and coneys for me! I did watch the temp and it thickened up quite a bit but just added some water and tomato paste to thin it back out. I’d have a hard time telling them apart in a blind taste test. 🙂
Deb says
Ate at the Skyline when our daughter went to UC, her favorite place, and your recipe is spot on. Thanks for sharing.
Bud T. says
Best Skyline recipe ever!
Anne says
Made it with ground turkey and couldn’t tell the difference… its so so so close… I think its a smell difference rather than a taste difference. My 10 year old helped me (this is his favorite thing ever on earth to eat)… and he couldn’t tell the difference! Great recipe.
Maureen Tuzza says
Love it!
Maureen Tuzza says
I am from Illinois and never knew that the Chili I grew up on was Cincinnati Chili. And never would have guesses I was a 3-way! But your recipe looked very interesting so I had to try it. Eureka!! Chili like I remember. Even my New York Italian husband thought it was great. It is now in my dinner rotation. Thanks
Sondra Leslie says
I am born and raised an Ohioan…after 55 years my husband and I moved to TN last year. He has mentioned on more than 1 occasion how much he misses Skyline. After paying an obscene amount for the frozen skyline and him not being overly impressed I started searching Pinterest. After reading many of the reviews your recipe seemed like the perfect one to try and PERFECT it is. I can’t wait for my husband to get home tonight to try it. Only changes I made was I used 2 pounds of ground beef and added just a slightly more salt. Great Job
Linda Wingerter says
A friend made this for yesterday’s Super Bowl party and I thought it tasted familiar. Now looking at the ingredients I see why. It’s got a lot of the same ingredients (chocolate, cinnamon, allspice) that are used in Mexican Mole sauce. Still good!!
Megan J Whittle says
Thank you for the recipe! I made it with morning star meatless crumbles and it was delicious! We’re in California for work and there is no Cincinnati chili here. It was nice to have a taste of home. Thank you so much! ☺️
Patsy Parker says
This is very similar to what is called Chilli Mac in Illinois at Steak and Shake restaurants.Ingrediants are a little different,but it is servided over spagghetti the same.You can also order it in numbers 1-5 with same options.I make my own at home and everyone who tries it,loves it!!
Barbara says
LOVE Skyline chili. A friend from the area introduced me to it when she moved to the Akron area. But you are so right…people either love it or hate it. I told my son to get some when he was working in Cincinnati, and he was NOT a fan!
Susan says
Really a 1/4 cup of chili powder I don’t think the jar comes close to a 1/4 cup?
The Chunky Chef says
Yes, the 1/4 cup is correct. I don’t know what size jar you have, but 1/4 cup is the same as 4 tablespoons.
Kaos says
I’ve always had a love/hate relationship with Ohio in general but I’ve always loved Skyline chili.
A couple of caveats though. Don’t worry about melting the chocolate first just put everything together the tomato paste, water, spices… Then add the hamburger breaking up with your hands. You can make it smaller that way. I always wear latex glove whenever I’m dealing with raw meat but that’s a personal thing you could use your bare hand if you want to LOL.
Then go ahead and start heating it up add the chocolate and stir. Also replace one cup of water with a cup of beef stock it makes it … heartier.
Great recipe though!
Erin Steverson says
I made this chili last weekend and it was everything I thought it would be! I made corn bread to go with it and it totally hit the spot. This recipe will now have a permanent place in my recipe book. Thanks!