Few dishes bring out the passionate arguments like Cincinnati Chili. As a Cincinnati native and life-long resident, I grew up on chili spaghetti and have a distinct bias in favor of this savory, crave-worthy (yes, I said it, crave-worthy!) dish. The wars for and against will wage on, but I’m going to side-step all of that and show you how to order Cincinnati Chili like a true Cincinnatian, and how to serve it at home. So, break out the napkins, and let’s dig in!
What is Cincinnati Chili?
Cincinnati chili is a thin meat sauce that was created and perfected here in Cincinnati by the Kiradjieff brothers in the 1920s. It features a spice palate with Macedonian roots, with spices such as cinnamon, cloves, and allspice. It was a success, and there were numerous spinoffs from their original recipe. I won’t rehash the whole history here, when it’s been done so well by others. Instead, I want to stay on point about today’s topic, which is how to order it like a native when you’re visiting our fair city, and how to serve it at home.
Today, Skyline Chili is probably the biggest household name here, but it’s far from the only option. There’s also Gold Star Chili (Skyline’s head-to-head competitor), Dixie Chili, Empress Chili, Camp Washington Chili, Blue Ash Chili … and so many more. Each makes their chili slightly unique by tweaking the spice mix and texture, while staying true to the chili’s unique heritage.
For the record, my favorite is Dixie Chili. I’m lucky that they also sell their chili in cans so that I can have it at home whenever the craving strikes. Dixie Chili is what you’ll see in the photos here. (Was I sad about having to cook up chili spaghetti on a sunny Sunday afternoon just to take photos for this blog post? And then eat what I cook because I don’t waste anything? No, I was not. Lol.)
Why all the fuss?
As someone who grew up loving Cincinnati chili, it’s a head-scratching puzzle why this meaty, carby, crave-worthy dish inspires so much argument. There seem to be two main factors that get people riled up:
- Calling it “chili”: Most Americans think of Texas chili, or chili con carne, when hearing the word “chili.” In that context, chili is a very thick meat dish, with chunks of beef, and sometimes pork, and a chile pepper spice palate. It’s hearty enough to eat with a fork, and most consume it by itself in a bowl, with toppings. When beans are added, they’re mixed into the chili, like a stew. Cincinnati Chili, on the other hand, is very thin and runny. And most importantly, it’s not meant to be eaten by itself.. Instead, it’s ladled over spaghetti or over a hot dog on a bun. Further, Cincinnati Chili – however you order it – is always served in layers. The beans, onions, and cheese toppings are never mixed into the meat sauce during cooking.
- Serving it over spaghetti: I’m guessing this is one of the most controversial aspects of Cincinnati Chili. Folks are probably thinking, “Texas chili served over pasta. Ew.” And yeah, that’s weird. But most people forget that one of the world’s most famous meat sauces, Bolognese, is traditionally served over pasta. So, there’s a clear Mediterranean precedent for chili spaghetti. And again, Cincinnati Chili is not a standalone meat dish: It’s meant to be served over something else.
So, if I had to do a quick summary of our famous chili to someone, it would be that (1) we don’t eat this chili by itself in a bowl, so if that sounds gross, yeah, that’s not how it’s done. And (2) if you’re getting hung up on the word “chili,” think “meat sauce” instead, which might make the meat-and-spaghetti combo make more sense to American ears.
How to Order Cincinnati Chili
It’s a rite of passage for visitors to Cincinnati to try our famous chili spaghetti. There’s a Skyline Chili at the CVG airport in Northern Kentucky, so even if you just have a layover in Cincinnati, you can try it on the fly (so to speak). Whatever chili restaurant you chose, use these tips for ordering.
Cincinnati Chili has an unusual ordering system that is broadly known as “ways.” And actually, talking about it like this – breaking it down into specifics – feels kind of weird as a native, as though “ways” is some kind of standard measurement. Lol. ANYWAY.
Okay, so, each “way” represents a specific set of ingredients, starting with a 3-way. Cincinnati Chili comes with a few main ingredient options: chili, spaghetti, shredded cheese, onions, and beans.
And let me just break in here to correct all of the major food and magazine sites out there: There is no such thing as a “one-way” (a bowl of plain chili) or a “two-way” (just chili over spaghetti).
If your order a 2-way at a restaurant, yes, of course your server will know what you’re talking about but will internally roll their eyes, knowing you’re an outsider who’s been fed misinformation. You can absolutely order chili over spaghetti with nothing else, but don’t call it a 2-way.
Simply ask for “just chili and spaghetti, no toppings.” (Note that some restaurants have tacked on a 2-way to the end of their menus in capitulation to outsiders, but if you want to sound like you know what you’re doing, don’t ask for it that way.)
I’ll also emphasize again that no food-allergy-free adult here eats just the chili in a bowl. Cincinnati chili is built to be served over something, whether spaghetti or a hot dog on a bun. Kids might eat it plain, but if you’re traveling here and worried about options for your kids, know that there are always lots of other non-chili things on everyone’s menus, including burgers, hot dogs, and fries. And restaurants often have their own speciality items, such as chili cheese burritos and chili dip (my recipe).
Your food will arrive with a bottle of hot sauce and bowls of oyster crackers (if they’re not already brought to you before you order).
Okay, let’s get to the good stuff!
3-Way
A 3-way is hot spaghetti on a plate, covered completely with the chili, and then topped with an impressive mound of finely shredded cheddar cheese.
4-Way (2 options)
OR
There are two variations of the 4-way, one with beans, and one with onions.
So, a 4-way is hot spaghetti on a plate, covered completely with the chili, followed by a layer of cooked light red kidney beans OR diced raw white onions. And then capped with finely shredded cheddar cheese.
When ordering, say, “I’d like a 4-way with beans” or “I’d like a 4-way with onions.”
For the official internet record: SoupAddict’s standard order now and forever is a 4-way with onions.
5-Way
A 5-way is the whole shebang: Hot spaghetti on a plate, covered with the chili, topped with a layer of kidney beans, then diced white onions, and finally, loads of shredded cheddar cheese.
Customize
Most chili parlors offer other toppings that you can request for your chili: chopped garlic, sliced jalapeños, sometimes habaneros (or habanero cheese, yum), and sour cream are commonly available, usually served on the side. Bottled hot sauce is served by default on every table, if you want to give a few shakes over the cheese.
My personal preference is sour cream, which my friend Chris turned me onto when we met for weekly lunches at the Skyline in East Walnut Hills. A big dollop of sour cream in the middle of the mountain of cheese is a beautiful thing. At home, I love pickled jalapeños, too.
You can order your chili spaghetti “dry,” which means they’ll drain off the liquids before adding the meat to your dish, or “wet,” where they’ll spoon extra juice from the pot on the chili.
Over the years, die-hard fans of Cincinnati chili have created their own personalizations (much like what’s happened with pizza and Starbucks). Some interesting combos: Chili cheese fries made like a 5-way. Order garlic bread as a side to a coney bowl (below), and then move all of the coney ingredients over to the garlic bread. Ask for an extra plate, spread out a layer of oyster crackers, sprinkle with hot sauce, and then when your order arrives, slide your Way – spaghetti and all – on top of the crackers.
Coneys
A popular offshoot of the chili spaghetti dish is the coney: a beef hot dog on a bun, covered with chili and your choice of toppings, say, onions and cheese. A schmear of mustard is particularly delicious. It’s a popular choice for kids, but I love them, too.
When you order coneys to-go, they pack them in square styrofoam containers, and by the time you get home, it’s all a glorious melty mess. Best food-cravings food ever!
You can also order a chili cheese sandwich, which is a coney without the hot dog. Or a coney bowl, which is the chili, hot dog, and toppings of your choice, no bun.
Oyster Crackers and Hot Sauce
If you want the full retro restaurant experience, you have to do the oyster cracker thing: Fish through the dish of oyster crackers and find one with a hole in it. Drip one drop of hot sauce into the hole. Pop in your mouth and enjoy.
If none of the crackers have a hole – or if you’ve run through the stash of them – take your fork and quickly and decisively poke a crater into the puffy side of the cracker.
Scoff now if you must, but try it once and you’ll be addicted!
How do you make Cincinnati Chili at Home?
As a Cincinnati native, I’m super snobby about my Cincinnati chili. Lots of food content creators have tried to recreate this uniquely charming concoction, but none really come close. The original spice mix is a closely guarded secret, and most people don’t really want to cook the beef the way it needs to be cooked — watery and crumbly.
So, my answer to this question is: I personally don’t make homemade Cincinnati chili, because I’m completely surrounded by the real thing, both in restaurants and grocery stores, so I don’t feel any need to recreate it in my kitchen. But, I do understand the curiosity of cooks outside of Ohio wanting to try it out in their own kitchen. I don’t have a recipe for you (see above re: snob lol), but I do have some broad tips:
First of all, it’s a complete urban myth that there’s chocolate in the chili. Neither chunks nor cocoa powder. I don’t know where that rumor started. I suspect that someone wanted to drive home their dislike of the dish by claiming it contains a desserty ingredient that sounds sort of gross in the context of chili. And this is where many homemade recipes veer off course: They insist on including the chocolate, as though to prove they can use it to make the chili taste authentic.
Chocolate is actually not an unreasonable ingredient in chili in general. It’s not gross. It adds richness and sweetness … but that’s the problem here. Even dark chocolate is too much for Cincinnati chili (which is neither sugar-sweet nor rich). If you want to make Cincinnati chili at home, then as a fellow homecook, I support and applaud that effort. But leave out the chocolate. It has no place here.
Second, cinnamon is an ingredient in Cincinnati chili. Yes, it leans sweet, but it’s spice-sweet, not sugar-sweet. And more importantly it’s also savory and zesty and is an awesome ingredient for most chilis, including this one. So if you’re making this at home, yes, to the cinnamon.
Next, most Cincinnati chilis stop at tomato paste, in terms of tomato products. I’ve seen too many recipes with an overload of tomato sauce and (worse) diced tomatoes. Tomato paste is an amazing umami ingredient, and for most cooking applications – including soup, btw – it’s meant to turbocharge savory flavors, not to specifically add tomato flavoring. So, sure, use tomato paste. Skip the rest.
Finally, I’ll point out that Cincinnati Chili is a thin meat sauce. I realize that that’s difficult for some folks to wrap their minds around. The meat used in the sauce is very finely minced and not at all like chunks of Texas chili. It’s thicker than a soup … but not by much. Most of the photos I see from other food bloggers show meat that is far too chunky, which impacts the intended texture of the dish.
But, I have to say this: I’m always pro-home cooking, so if you’re using a recipe you find on the interwebs (and that includes the big recipe aggregators and food magazines), just know that it’s not going to be authentic Cincinnati Chili. That doesn’t mean it won’t be delicious and worth doing. It’s simply not the real thing. But that’s okay.
Serving Authentic Cincinnati Chili at Home – Where to Buy It and How to Prepare It
If you’re traveling to Cincinnati, or the surrounding Greater Cincinnati area (e.g., Northern Kentucky, Dayton), all grocery stores carry the canned chili. And yes, it tastes just like it does in the restaurants. Just pop into a local Kroger or Target or Walmart and buy a few cans to stash away in your luggage. Even some gas stations carry it!
Most stores stock it in their canned tuna or canned soup aisles. Here’s the Wall o’ Chili at my neighborhood Kroger:
If you won’t be heading this way any time soon, Amazon does carry it for national shipping. You can buy just about all of the major restaurant brands’ chilis there. For the authentic experience, ignore the seasoning packets, the mixes, and the pouches, and go for the cans (note that some canned chili comes with beans, so read the label before ordering).
I also need to mention that Cincinnati chili spaghetti is served in distinct layers. Don’t mix everything into the pot. Not even the beans. I can’t explain it, but it just turns my stomach when I see food bloggers mix everything together and then dump it all over spaghetti. Yes, it’s bizarrely specific. But authentic Cincinnati chili is layered. I said what I said. Cincinnati chili truth be to power! Lol.
What you’ll need
- The chili, heated on the stove top until steaming. When ordering by the can, figure about 8 ounces per person.
- Medium or sharp cheddar cheese, finely grated. It’s always better to buy a block of cheese and grate it yourself, because commercial shredded cheeses have fillers.
- Kidney beans, for a 5-way or optional 4-way. If you have the choice, go for the light red kidney beans. Unless you have a super bean-lovin’ kidney bean lover at your dinner table, one 15-ounce can should be plenty for 4 people.
- One white onion, chopped into small dice, for a 5-way or optional 4-way.
- Your favorite brand of spaghetti, cooked slightly beyond al dente and drained well. When the box says 10 minutes, I go for 12.
The Order of Operations
A little random math humor there. Lol. Here’s how you assemble the chili spaghetti. Remember, everything is layered, so you add one at a time. Restaurants serve it on a plate (usually an oval plate). I serve it in a big pasta bowl (except in the photos here, to match what you’ll see in a restaurant).
- Add the spaghetti to the plate. Don’t mound it up in a pile. Keep it flat so the other layers stay put.
- Ladle the chili over the spaghetti from edge to edge.
- Optional: spoon the kidney beans over the chili (review the info above re: Ways)
- Optional: spoon the onions over the chili or the kidney beans, if using (review the info above re: Ways)
- Pile the shredded cheese top, covering everything in a luxurious mound.
And there you have it: the perfect serving of Cincinnati Chili spaghetti.
I hope you’ll get the chance someday to try it. And whether you enjoyed it not, you’ve participated in one of the more unique American traditions that we Cincinnatians are proud of.
