The Absolute Best Canned Chili, According To Our Taste Test

Chili is a source of pride in many regions with competitive cook offs and secret recipes with 50-ingredient spice blends. But for those of us who just want to eat a tasty bowl of chili without putting in the time and effort it takes to develop a recipe, canned chili will do the trick. Chili is a great candidate for canning as a well-spiced stew that gets more and more flavorful the longer it sits. And canned chili brands abound, many of which are delicious! We taste-tested the absolute best canned chilis on grocery store shelves and ranked Tony Packo's Cafe chili with beans as the best of the best.

Tony Packo's is an Ohio-native company that has celebrated 90 years of serving its name brand specialties: Hungarian Kolbasz sausage hot dogs and the chili and pickles that top them. It offer chili with and without beans, but the beans offer a tender, pillowy textural contrast to the meaty chew of ground beef while also absorbing liquid for the perfect consistency. Not only does Tony Packo's chili with beans have the ideal ratio of meat to beans, but the spices and aromatics used in the recipe really shine through. The bright red hue of the stewing liquid with pops of green chilies translated into just the right amount of heat, smokiness, and spice. Considering that all of the brands we tasted were popular and more than halfway decent, a top ranking speaks to a truly excellent can of chili.

While Tony Packo's chili with beans tops our ranking, there are plenty of other runner-ups to suit different tastes and dietary preferences. A high-scoring honorable mention worth trying if you're not a fan of beans in your chili is Stagg no-bean chili full of jalapeños, pork, beef, and chile de arbol that bring a Mexican twist to this classic Southwestern dish. Vegans and vegetarians will be happy to know that plant-based bean chilis from the famous Hormel brand as well as Amy's are also ranked among our favorites, using a blend of beans and soy for a very meaty texture.

Still, Tony Packo's Cafe chili with beans is worth trying, whether you want to use it for its intended purpose as a hot dog topping or in a hot bowl of its own. The heat and smokiness of this chili would work well with a sweet cornbread recipe, like this honey sweet potato cornbread. A classic topping of shredded cheddar cheese or a dollop of sour cream and chives would also cool off the heat of the chili with tangy and sharp flavors. Transform a can of Tony Packo's Cafe chili into a spaghetti sauce to make our recipe for classic Cincinnati chili to top with kerneled corn and thinly diced white onions. Pour the beans over a tray of Fritos or 365 restaurant style corn tortilla chips with shredded cheese, sour cream, guacamole, and pico de gallo for the ultimate game-day appetizer.