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I have a passion for accurately recreating restaurant copycat recipes (such as my wildly popular Chipotle series), so tackling Skyline’s famous Cincinnati Chili was a delight. I worked with my brother-in-law, an Ohio native, to make sure I nailed the exact flavor that comes from unexpected spices and a surprise square of chocolate.
Nearly 800 5-star reviews later, the jury is in, and they LOVE IT! If you’re seeking a Skyline chili copycat recipe or just want to try something new, this is the recipe to try.
What is Cincinnati Chili?
Ever been to the Skyline Chili in Ohio?
If that’s a no, leave everything you thought you knew about traditional chili behind, because this recipe will turn it all upside down, but only in the most delicious way.
The (secret) recipe calls for a combination of spices and ingredients that you might find a bit odd, especially for a savory meat stew. Allspice? Cloves? Unsweetened chocolate?
Stick with me (and our friends from the Buckeye state) because this recipe is perfect for the slow cooker and freezes beautifully, so you can have Cincinnati-style chili any time, any place.
Table of Contents
Skyline Chili Recipe ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
- Unsweetened chocolate: Just one ounce is all you need, but the super fans swear it makes all the difference.
- Ground beef: You won’t have a chance to drain the fat from the beef in this recipe. I think 85/15 is ideal for maximum flavor without too much grease, but you can choose something leaner if you want to.
- Toppings: Build your bowl with spaghetti, chili, and cheese, then top it off with onions, kidney beans, or even oyster crackers if you want to. Here’s the official guide to the “ways” Skyline serves their chili:
- 2-Way: Spaghetti, Chili
- 3-Way: Spaghetti, Chili, Cheddar Cheese
- 4-Way: Spaghetti, Chili, Cheddar Cheese, Onions OR Beans
- 5-Way aka “the works”: Spaghetti, Chili, Cheddar Cheese, Onions AND Beans
How to make Skyline Cincinnati Chili
- In a Dutch oven or large pot over medium-high heat, heat oil until shimmering. Cook onions until softened, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in chocolate, garlic, chili powder, oregano, cinnamon, allspice, and cloves until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add broth, tomato sauce, vinegar, tomato paste, brown sugar, and Worcestershire sauce.
- Stir in beef and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until thickened, about 20 to 25 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper (I like 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper).
- Serve over cooked spaghetti with desired toppings such as cheese, beans, onions, and crackers.
Recipe tips and variations
- Yield: This recipe makes 10 generous servings of Cincinnati Chili.
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Freezer: Cool and portion into freezer-safe containers, label and date. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
- Slow cooker: Sauté the onions in olive oil over medium-high heat until softened. Add the unsweetened chocolate, garlic, oregano, chili powder, allspice, cloves, and cinnamon. Add to a slow cooker with the chicken broth, tomato sauce, vinegar, tomato paste, brown sugar, Worcestershire, salt and pepper, and beef. Cover and cook on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours or LOW for 6 to 8 hours.
- Coney Dog: If you’re thinking a hot dog smothered with chili might be just the thing, you’re not alone. Eat it in the bun, or topped with cheese, mustard, onion, beans, you name it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Cincinnati Chili is made with several non-traditional ingredients including chocolate, cinnamon, allspice, and cloves. It’s also a thinner chili overall, and it’s served over spaghetti noodles with a mountain of cheese on top.
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Skyline Cincinnati Chili
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 onions finely chopped (plus more for topping)
- 1 ounce unsweetened chocolate
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 3/4 teaspoon allspice
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 16 ounces tomato sauce
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons brown sugar packed
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 pounds ground beef (preferably 85/15, see note 1)
- cooked spaghetti for serving
- shredded cheese dark red kidney beans, finely chopped onions, and oyster crackers, for serving (see note 2)
Instructions
- In a Dutch oven or large pot over medium-high heat, heat oil until shimmering. Cook onions until softened, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in chocolate, garlic, chili powder, oregano, cinnamon, allspice, and cloves until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add broth, tomato sauce, vinegar, tomato paste, brown sugar, and Worcestershire sauce.
- Stir in beef and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until thickened, about 20 to 25 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper (I like 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper).
- Serve over cooked spaghetti with desired toppings such as cheese, beans, onions, and crackers.
Recipe Video
Notes
- Ground beef: You won’t have a chance to drain the fat from the beef in this recipe. I think 85/15 is ideal for maximum flavor without too much grease, but you can choose something leaner if you want to.
- Toppings: Build your bowl with spaghetti, chili, and cheese, then top it off with onions, kidney beans, or even oyster crackers if you want to. Here’s the official guide to the “ways” Skyline serves their chili:
- 2-Way: Spaghetti, Chili
- 3-Way: Spaghetti, Chili, Cheddar Cheese
- 4-Way: Spaghetti, Chili, Cheddar Cheese, Onions OR Beans
- 5-Way aka “the works”: Spaghetti, Chili, Cheddar Cheese, Onions AND Beans
- Yield: This recipe makes 10 generous servings of Cincinnati Chili.
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
As a former Cincinatti resident you left out the chocolate! Non sweetened cooking chocolate makes the difference. Try it
No, the recipe says 1 oz unsweetened chocolate.
I was also thrown off, because there’s no chocolate in the video…. but listed in the recipe.
Trying this tonight, in the slow cooker, while I work.
Hi Juli, sorry about that. I have reworked the recipe to include chocolate, now I just have to make a new video! Hopefully in the next couple months it will be ready. And I’m going to include all the measurements in the videos from now on, too, so if you want to actually just cook from the video, you’ll be able to (more or less). Thank you! -Meggan
Did you miss the cocoa in the recipe!?
Hi Dwight, I actually made a change to the recipe about a year ago. I previously didn’t have any chocolate in it, but many people thought I was crazy, so I tested it and added it to the recipe. 🙂 -Meggan
I’m making this tonight! Ironically, the first time I had Cincinnati style chili was in Milwaukee at Real Chili! Can’t wait for dinner:)
I have never heard of Real Chili! I need to find it. I’m a Waukesha native. I hope you liked the recipe, and thanks for the restaurant suggestion! 😀
I’m pretty sure Real Chili closed in the mid ‘90s 😔. The one I used to go to was near the Marquette campus. Dinner was delicious! Thanks for the great recipe.
Real Chili still exists…but I think you’re probably thinking of the Chili Bowl, which had an east-side location that indeed closed in the early ’90s. They definitely had Cincinnati-style chili (I worked there briefly), but I don’t think Real Chili does. The “regular” chili at both Real Chili and the former Chili Bowl is based on the recipes at Chili John’s in Green Bay, which (at least as of a few years ago) is still open and still has several varieties of chili, including Cincy-style.
You explanation of 3,4, & 5 ways are incorrect! A 3 way is noodles, chili, & cheese. A 4 way is the same as a 3 way with the addition of either beans or onions. A 5 way is the same as a 3 way with the addition of BOTH beans & onions.
You are so right! I was like… how did I get this wrong, I copied it from the Skyline website?! I totally got it wrong. It’s fixed now. Thank you so much!
I would like to try this as soon as I get paid. I am thinking since I am allergic to beef to use ground turkey. That should be browned up in a frying pan instead of boiled.
One more little clue is to those who say and like how skylines chili is a little more creamier than other cinncy chili. Corn starch. This recipe would use about two tablespoons.
Sorry. 2 teaspoons
Hi Meggan. Great discussion on chicken vs. Beef. Im actually related to the Lambrinides by way of my great aunt married johnny Lambrinides , son of Nicholas the founder. I can remember growing up my grandfather talking about how they would get together and he would make some skyline. Never telling what was in it thow. My grandparents would always make their on version and swear theirs was better. Very competitive. See my grandfather favored a version of cinncy chilly called Dixie chili which uses more garlic and vinegar and which is less sweet. No one would ever write down the resipe. They added everthing by memory. One thing they did do while mixing the spices is the meat was added to the marinade of tomato paste, vinegar and water and let rest so the vinegar would tenderize the meat before adding the remainder of ingredients. Then everything was simmered together for hours. I always tried to get my grandparents to give me the recipe and all they would ever say is come on over and we’ll make up a batch. I was to naive to realize to write it down. But then again, no one ever did. I’ve been trying my self for years to replicate this recipe and this is close. One thing i will say is i remember asking my grandparents about the use of cocoa powder in it and alls i remember is their big old grins. That meant yes. See the big argument on the web over chocolate or not stems from some who say chocolate is an allergen there for must be disclosed on their packaging. Since its not on there, people say its not in there. Wrong. Cocoa powder is not chocolate. It is made from cacoa bean. It is not a nut. Chocolate is made from cacoa and coconut oil. Introducing the nut .
Just a little known fact that i have found while researching this recipe.
I will have to try this. I live in Cincinnati and LOOOOVE Skyline and the other favorite Gold Star. We also dump it over fries with shredded cheddar on top. We put it on cheese coneys (bun, hot dog, chili, mustard, onion, shredded cheese). And Skyline dip, layered in a pan, bottom layer is cream cheese then a layer of chili topped with, as always, shredded cheddar. Heat in oven until cheese on top melts. Served with Fritos scoops or nachos
I’m just curious, why use chicken broth instead of beef broth?
Hi Chris! If you know Kenji from Serious Eats or have ever heard of his book The Food Lab, he talks about this sometimes. So the reason why I use chicken broth instead of beef broth is “because Kenji says so.” However, the reason HE says so is because, and I’m paraphrasing his book The Food Lab: “There is very little beef in canned beef broth. Food manufacturers are lazy and concerned about their bottom line… instead of simmering veal and beef bones, they use natural and artificial flavorings. According to the USDA’s guidelines, beef or pork broth only has to have 0.007 ounces beef protein present for every ounce of water. So beef broth doesn’t taste much like beef. Their flavor, if any, is enhanced with yeast and vegetable extracts. Chicken broth will have more/better flavor overall because it is cheaper to make.” I hope this is helpful! Here’s another article I found online which discusses this and also reference’s Kenji’s info on the subject. https://lifehacker.com/use-store-bought-chicken-broth-instead-of-beef-broth-fo-1755022375
I love all chili but try adding peanut butter its awesome.
Hi there!! Love Cincinnati Chili and super excited to try. I don’t mind boiling the beef. Just wondering if you skim off any fat as it simmers or if you leave it alone?
Hi Sean! So glad you found my recipe. Skimming fat is a personal choice. I would say a lot of flavor is in the fat, but I know it grosses people out too. I think it also depends on what type of beef you choose. In the recipe I recommend 85/15. To me, this is lean enough that I don’t feel compelled to skim the fat. If you were using 73/27, though, I’d probably skim some fat. Personal choice. Do what makes you happy! Thank you so much and I hope you love it, if you try it! Take care!