Prep time: 1 hr Cook time: 1 hr Rest time: 10 mins Total time: 2 hrs 10 mins
Makes: 2 servings (if serving a family, make a double batch**)
**Note: one batch filled a 12-inch cast-iron pan, so if doubling this recipe, you will need a larger pan for cooking, like this one or this one.
This delicious nightshade-free chili is animal-based, beanless, and is full of fat, flavor, and nutrient-dense ingredients.
What you need to make Nightshade-Free Chili (Animal-Based, Beanless)
Ingredients:
For the chili:
- Ground beef
- Bacon
- Beef bone broth
- Grass-fed ghee (or butter) (for pan-frying)
- Cucumber
- Kabocha squash
- ACV
- Sea salt (ASHLEYR for 15% off)
- Dried oregano
- Ground cumin (optional, but highly recommended if tolerated)
- Ground coriander (optional, but highly recommended if tolerated)
- Pureed garlic (optional, but highly recommended if tolerated)
To garnish (optional):
- Raw cheese (ASHLEY20 for 20% off)
- Avocado
- Lime
- Sour cream
- Chives
Equipment:
- Cooking pan
- Vegetable peeler
- Kitchen shears
- Vegetable grater (optional for shredding cheese)
How to make Nightshade-Free Chili (Animal-Based, Beanless)
Cook the bacon and the beef.
Using your kitchen shears, chop up the bacon into thin slivers (like 1/2 inch x 1 inch).
At medium heat, cook the bacon in your cooking pan.
Once the bacon is cooked to your liking (I recommend making it on the crispier side since it will be going into the chili and will naturally soften), remove it from the pan and place it on a plate to cool.
Add the ground beef to the pan with the bacon fat.
Cook the ground beef in the bacon fat until browned.
While the bacon and beef are cooking, chop the cucumber and kabocha squash.
Note: When I designed this recipe, I intended for the kabocha squash to serve as diced tomatoes and the cucumber to serve as onions for both size and texture.
Skin your kabocha squash with your vegetable peeler, remove the seeds, and chop into large chunks (similarly sized to diced tomatoes you would find in chili). I made them about 3/4 inch x 3/4 inch – some pieces larger and others smaller.
Skin your cucumber with your vegetable peeler, cut around the seeds, and chop into smaller chunks (think finely diced onions like you would use for guac). I made them about 1/4 inch x 1/4 inch.
Note: there is a picture of my pre-cooked, chopped kabocha squash/cucumbers in the “Tips to Make the Best…” section above for reference.
Once the beef is done, add the rest of the ingredients (aside from the bacon) to the pan with the beef.
Add the beef bone broth, ghee, chopped kabocha squash, chopped cucumber, ACV, dried oregano, sea salt, and ground cumin, ground coriander, and pureed garlic if using.
Bring to a boil then lower to medium heat. Simmer for 30-35 minutes at medium heat until the kabocha squash pieces swell and fully cook through. They should not be hard or crunchy, but rather keep their shape and be soft when bitten into.
Once the kabocha squash pieces are cooked through and the chili is done simmering, add the bacon pieces into the pan and stir.
Allow the chili to cool for 5-10 minutes, then serve with garnishes.
Once the chili is done cooling, scoop some into a bowl. Top with any garnishes you prefer. I wrote out some ideas in the ingredient list above.
This dish is best served fresh, but leftovers can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for 3-4 days. Enjoy!
**Note: one batch filled a 12-inch cast-iron pan, so if doubling this recipe, you will need a larger pan for cooking, like this one or this one.
Tips to make the best Nightshade-Free Chili (Animal-Based, Beanless)
- One batch of this recipe filled a 12-inch cast-iron pan, so if doubling this recipe, you will need a larger pan for cooking, like this one or this one.
- When I designed this recipe, I intended for the kabocha squash to serve as diced tomatoes and the cucumber to serve as onions for both size and texture, so cut the pieces accordingly. For kabocha squash, think large chunks, similarly sized to diced tomatoes you would find in chili. I made them about 3/4 inch x 3/4 inch – some pieces larger and others smaller. For the cucumber pieces, think finely diced onions like you would use for guac. I made them about 1/4 inch x 1/4 inch.
- Reference this photo if looking for a size guide to cutting the kabocha squash and cucumbers:
Other favorite dinner ideas:
Cobb ‘Salad’ with Duck Fat Ranch Dressing
Nightshade-Free Chili (Animal-Based, Beanless)
Nightshade-Free Chili (Animal-Based, Beanless)
Ingredients
For the chili:
- 1 lb ground beef
- 5 strips bacon
- 1.5 cups beef bone broth
- 1 large cucumber, chopped (seeds and skin removed)
- 2 cups kabocha squash, chopped
- 1 Tbsp ghee or butter
- 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 Tbsp dried oregano
- 1/2 Tbsp sea salt (ASHLEYR for 15% off)
- 1 Tbsp ground cumin (optional, but recommended)
- 1/2 Tbsp ground coriander (optional, but recommended)
- 1 tsp pureed garlic (optional, but recommended)
To garnish (optional):
- raw cheese
- sour cream
- avocado
- lime
- chives
Instructions
- If you’re interested solely in the recipe, skip this bullet point and keep on reading. For those interested in sourcing nutrient-dense food, low-toxic household products, and discounts on brands that may support your AB journey, you may find value in my product guides. Head over to this page if you’d like to check them out. All are free (and always will be).
- Note: if you follow me on Instagram, you know that I make this dish multiple times per week. The version I usually make is much simpler than how the recipe is written. I often use only beef, ACV, water instead of broth, sea salt, kabocha squash, and cucumber, plus I sometimes add a zucchini/use ghee. I actually prefer it much simpler like this. Still has a great flavor and is much easier on my stomach.
Cook the bacon and the beef.
- Using your kitchen shears, chop up the bacon into thin slivers (like 1/2 inch x 1 inch).
- At medium heat, cook the bacon in your cooking pan.
- Once the bacon is cooked to your liking (I recommend making it on the crispier side since it will be going into the chili and will naturally soften), remove it from the pan and place it on a plate to cool.
- Add the ground beef to the pan with the bacon fat.
- Cook the ground beef in the bacon fat until browned.
While the bacon and beef are cooking, chop the cucumber and kabocha squash.
- Note: When I designed this recipe, I intended for the kabocha squash to serve as diced tomatoes and the cucumber to serve as onions for both size and texture.
- Skin your kabocha squash with your vegetable peeler, remove the seeds, and chop into large chunks (similarly sized to diced tomatoes you would find in chili). I made them about 3/4 inch x 3/4 inch - some pieces larger and others smaller.
- Skin your cucumber with your vegetable peeler, cut around the seeds, and chop into smaller chunks (think finely diced onions like you would use for guac). I made them about 1/4 inch x 1/4 inch.
- Note: there is a picture of my pre-cooked, chopped kabocha squash/cucumbers in the "Tips to Make the Best..." section above for reference.
Once the beef is done, add the rest of the ingredients (aside from the bacon) to the pan with the beef.
- Add the beef bone broth, ghee, chopped kabocha squash, chopped cucumber, ACV, dried oregano, sea salt (ASHLEYR for 15% off), and ground cumin, ground coriander, and pureed garlic if using.
- Note: if you go through tons of salt in your household like we do, check out this salt purchasing hack that will save you money + make things more efficient. We started this last year, and I'm so happy we did!
- Bring to a boil then lower to medium heat. Simmer for 30-35 minutes at medium heat until the kabocha squash pieces swell and fully cook through. They should not be hard or crunchy, but rather keep their shape and be soft when bitten into.
- Once the kabocha squash pieces are cooked through and the chili is done simmering, add the bacon pieces into the pan and stir.
Allow the chili to cool for 5-10 minutes, then serve with garnishes.
- Once the chili is done cooling, scoop some into a bowl. Top with any garnishes you prefer. I wrote out some ideas in the ingredient list above.
- This dish is best served fresh, but leftovers can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for 3-4 days. Enjoy!
What I used for this recipe:
Other favorite dinner ideas:
Cobb ‘Salad’ with Duck Fat Ranch Dressing
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Ashley Rothstein develops tasty, whole food, animal-based recipes that include a moderate amount of “minimally toxic” plant foods. To fix her own health issues, she bounced around between the carnivore, keto, and paleo diets for a few years. After experiencing and studying each diet philosophy, she learned she feels her best by merging the three and following an animal-based diet. As a glut at heart, she likes to channel her creativity and create meals that are healthy but also satisfy her inner gluttonous spirits.
Thank you for this recipe! I was struggling with palette fatigue after simplifying my diet for health reasons and this was such a tasty treat!!
So yummy! The whole family loved this!
Made this exactly with all of the toppings included! I recommend if you’re just using regular cheap grocery store ground beef, to drain some of the grease AFTER cooking it in the bacon grease. Mine turned out very greasy and when I put the leftovers in the fridge, there was soooo much white solidified grease—but doing like this should fix that and keep the bacon fat flavor! Also be careful with adding too much avocado haha I went all in without even trying it first and it made it really rich! Such a great healthy alternative recipe to chili though! One of my bf’s fav foods!