Hillbilly Chili with Cinnamon Rolls

Sharing is caring!

Hillbilly Chili with Cinnamon Rolls is an easy homemade chili spaghetti we suggest serving with classic midwestern cinnamon rolls.

Cinnamon Rolls and Hillbilly Chili Spaghetti

If you’re from the Midwest, you already know that every classic chili in the land is served with a cinnamon roll – all you need is one bite of the combination, and you’ll be hooked. 

My whole family loves this Hillbilly Chili that includes spaghetti with a side of these Tik Tok Cinnamon Rolls with Heavy Cream.

At first, I thought spaghetti was an odd ingredient for chili, but we have fallen in love with it.

Be warned – many people have said they think adding spaghetti is just WRONG.

When you make this chili, you will notice that it has the consistency of soup rather than a thick chili. 

This is a good thing because of the spaghetti.  Pasta tends to soak up the broth, so this chili lends itself well to the spaghetti.

The combination is pretty yummy with Speedy Cinnamon Rolls and Maple Cinnamon Rolls, too.

What to Love About this Recipe

• This is an easy, tried-and-true recipe that your family will ask for again and again.
• You can use any ground meat to make this chili.
• The addition of spaghetti makes this a fun and extra hardy version of chili.

Ingredients for Hillbilly Chili

• Chili powder: If you’d like to make this chili on the spicy side, use a hot chili powder or just stir in a few red pepper flakes.
• Ground beef: We use ground beef in this chili, but any type of ground meat is delicious, such as ground bison or ground venison.
• Diced onion: Substitute 1 tablespoon of dehydrated onion in place of the diced onions. Or, substitute 1 tsp. onion powder.
• Spaghetti or angel hair pasta: Use what you have on hand. I like the texture of the angel hair pasta in the chili better than spaghetti since it tends to get “fat” as it absorbs liquid.
• Chili beans: I prefer to add the chili beans undrained to get all the big chili flavors. However, you can drain and rinse the chili beans if you prefer.
• Tomato juice: Using tomato juice instead of tomato sauce makes this chili closer to soup in consistency, instead of your typical thick chili with beans. Once the chili simmers a bit and the pasta absorbs some of the tomato juice, everything comes out just right.
• Granulated sugar: This is an optional ingredient but I do think it makes a difference in the flavor of the chili. Add more or less sugar as desired.
• Beef broth: This is an optional ingredient.
• Garnishes: We like shredded cheddar cheese, Chili Cheese corn chips, and sour cream. If I’m feeling fancy, I’ll add some chopped scallions as a pretty garnish, too.

Recipe Tips

• Ground venison is delicious in this chili and I use it all the time. You could also use ground bison or ground turkey in this recipe, too.
• Breaking the spaghetti or angel hair pasta into pieces makes it easier to eat! I break my dry spaghetti into thirds or sometimes even into quarters before stirring it into the chili.

How to make chili spaghetti on the stovetop

In a Dutch oven over medium-high heat, heat the chili powder, stirring to keep it from scorching, 20-30 seconds, until very fragrant.

This technique is called “blooming,” and the heat brings out the essence of the chili powder.

Add the ground beef and diced onion to the Dutch oven; use a wooden spatula to crumble the ground beef.

Sauté until the ground beef is nicely browned and cooked, and no pink remains.

Remove the ground beef from the heat.

Use a rolled up hot pad to prop it up on one side.

Move the ground beef mixture to the high side of the pan so the fats can run down to the lower side.

Use paper towels to absorb the fats, tossing them away.

Add the broken spaghetti pieces to the cooked ground beef, gently stirring them in so they can absorb some of the meat juices and spices.

Add the chili beans, tomato juice, sugar, salt, and pepper to the Dutch oven, giving it a stir.  Bring the chili to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer, cooking the chili for 25-30 minutes.

Serve the chili in deep bowls, garnished with shredded cheese, tortilla chips, and sour cream, as desired, alongside warm cinnamon rolls.

How to make chili spaghetti in the instant pot

Using the saute setting on the Instant Pot or any electric pressure cooker, heat the chili powder, stirring to keep it from scorching, for 20-30 seconds, until very fragrant.

This technique is called “blooming,” and the heat brings out the essence of the chili powder.

Add the ground beef and the diced onions to the Instant Pot, continuing to cook until the beef is nicely browned and cooked throughout and no pink remains.

Drain any excessive fats from the cooked beef, then stir in the broken spaghetti pieces, letting them cook together for a minute or two.

Stir in the chili beans, tomato juice, sugar, salt, and pepper, then give the chili a quick stir.

Lock the Instant Pot securely lid into place.

Choose the high-pressure setting for 3 minutes, bringing the Instant Pot to full pressure.

When the timer sounds, perform a quick release to remove all pressure from the pot. 

Carefully unlock the IP lid and remove it. Give the chili a quick stir. 

Serve the chili in deep bowls, garnished with shredded cheese, tortilla chips, and sour cream as desired, alongside warm cinnamon rolls. 

Do cinnamon rolls go with chili

In the Midwest, we think they do. You should try it!

Where did chili and cinnamon rolls originate

No one seems to know how the Midwestern love for chili and cinnamon rolls began.

Even the Smithsonian can’t give us a history of it.

We know that the love of cinnamon rolls and chili has been adopted by schools throughout the Midwest and is now a tradition that has lasted for generations.

Everyone here in northeast Kansas thinks it’s a crime if you eat chili without a side of cinnamon roll. 

Not kidding, either.

Can I leave the beans out

My boys are weenies, too! They prefer Hillbilly Chili without the addition of chili beans… ridiculous.

What to do?  Well, I make a big batch of chili without the beans, then I serve the weenies first.

Next, I add warm chili beans to the chili bowls for me and Pa…delicious! This keeps everybody happy and it’s an easy fix.

If I make this chili on the stovetop instead of in an Instant Pot, will it still be as flavorful?

I’ll admit that I do think that nearly everything made in the Instant Pot is more flavorful. 

I believe it’s due to being cooked under pressure – how can whatever you cook NOT be more flavorful when all the ingredients are force-ably infused into every part of your cooking?

Before I got my Instant Pot, though, I made this chili on my stove top all the time and it is still a delicious experience – not to worry.

Can I substitute other canned beans from my pantry?

Yes, and I’ve had to do this several times when I’ve gone to the pantry and found I was out of chili beans. 

I’ve substituted plain pinto beans and black beans for the chili beans, which work fine. 

Just keep in mind that you may need to use a bit more chili seasoning since canned chili beans typically come packed in a chili sauce.

Do I have to drain the chili beans when making this recipe?

No. If you have a particular brand or type of canned chili beans that come in a deliciously seasoned sauce, you do not have to drain them.

Can I use any kind of ground beef in this recipe? I don’t always have ground sirloin on hand.

You can use any type of ground beef that you have on hand. 

You’ll want to be sure that you drain the fats from the ground chuck once it’s been cooked, as quite a bit could accumulate. 

Otherwise, ground chuck works perfectly for this chili.

Can other pasta be substituted for the spaghetti in this chili?

Great question, and YES. 

For whatever reason, my boys prefer spaghetti or angel hair pasta in this chili, but you could definitely substitute macaroni, small shell, or penne pasta very successfully.

Why does this chili recipe call for sugar as one of the ingredients?

Tomato products, such as diced or crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, or even tomato juice, are acidic in nature.

A pinch of sugar (or a tablespoon as in this recipe) cuts that acidity quite nicely, rounding out all of the flavors in the process. 

Try it!

Can I make this chili using ground venison instead of ground beef?

My sons are hunters, so we often have ground venison in the freezer. 

I’ve used it in this chili recipe and these Meat Burritos with Cheese and Tex Mex Cauliflower Rice with Ground Beef just recently.

I like to use ground venison in my recipes that use Mexican ingredients, such as chipotle peppers, adobo sauce, chili powder, etc. 

More Recipes to Enjoy

We especially enjoy Instant Pot Sausage, Bacon and Potato Soup, Instant Pot Chicken and Orzo Soup and Vegetables, and Tex Mex Corn Chowder, just to name a few.

Are you looking for fun appetizers that feature the flavors of a good hearty chili? Well then, try this Chili Cheese Tamale Dip and Chili Cheese Super Bowl Dip made with pork sausage and black beans.

We also enjoy Chili-Cheese-Dog Tater Tot Bake as a casserole that’s pure comfort food as well as BACON-WRAPPED Chili Dogs…..a real guy-favorite at my house.

• NO-BAKE CHOCOLATE BUTTERFINGER PIE
• TASTY TEX MEX CHICKEN CORNBREAD CASSEROLE
• CHEESY HASH BROWN MEATLOAF PIE
• INSTANT POT BROCCOLI CHEESE NOODLE SOUP
• ARTICHOKE OLIVE CHEESE BREAD
• HOT AND CREAMY PIZZA DIP
• BEEF AND CHEESE SANCHILADAS
• CRUMBLED BUTTER BRICKLE ICE CREAM DESSERT