This is my attempt at recreating the infamous Fred and Red chili recipe. I have talked to former employees and experimented with this recipe for quite a while. I also grew up on it. Please leave suggestions in the comments. I would love to hear from you so we can make this recipe better. One of the ingredients you will find missing from this list is suet. It was in the original recipe but I have left it out here. The chili suffers from not having it because you don't get the same mouth-feel. It's also not quite as rich as the original, but it's close. If you want to add some suet, I suggest getting it ground very finely and adding maybe 4 ounces when you're browning the ground beef. This chili is also good if not better if it has spent some time in the freezer. So feel free to make a big batch and freeze it in blocks like they did at Fred and Red's.
***UPDATED 2-22-2026***
Cook time: 20 minutes (a little longer if cooking spaghetti too)
Servings: 2
Calories per serving: 750
Ingredients:
1 lb - Ground beef, 80/20 Chuck preferred
1 ounce - Williams chili seasoning, about 1/4 cup (Sam's Club sells it in a big container for SUPER cheap) Link to buy online
1/2 tbsp - Kosher salt
1/2 sleeve (about 20) - Saltine crackers crushed (Lance brand if you can find them, that's what's served at Fred and Red's)
Directions:
1 - In a medium pot, brown the ground beef until it's just brown. You don't want it crispy. Make sure to break up the meat into a very fine texture. You don't want big chunks.
2 - Don't drain the grease!! As it cooks there will be a lot of fat at the top, but don't drain it.
3 - While beef is browning, get the crackers ready. If you have a food processor, add the sleeve of crackers to it and pulse until there are no pieces bigger than a pea. If you don't have one, mash the crackers with your hands or a potato masher until they are in really small pieces. I put mine in a gallon bag and use a rolling pin to crush.
4 - Add the chili seasoning, crackers, and salt to the beef. Stir well to combine.
5 - Add 2 cups of warm/hot water.
6 - Stir well and bring to a boil.
7 - As soon as it is boiling, stir well so the chili doesn't burn at the bottom and reduce heat to a low simmer. Simmer at least 5 minutes, the longer you simmer the more grease will come to the top. Stir often so the bottom doesn't burn.
8 - After the chili has been cooking for a while, there will be a nice layer of red grease at the top. If you are making spaghetti to go with this (this is the proper method), ladle off a couple tablespoons of the grease and save to mix in with the spaghetti after it's cooked.
9 - Check consistency and serve, it should be thick and fluid but not runny. Add a little water if the chili is too thick. Add more crushed crackers if too thin.
This chili is served over a bed of spaghetti to make Spaghetti Red. You can also serve it over Fred and Red tamales (recipe coming soon). It's also good just by itself. Typical toppings are pickles, white onion, ketchup, saltine crackers, Parmesan cheese, hot sauce and/or vinegar. You can also lay down some pinto beans on top of the spaghetti before adding the chili. The picture above shows a typical place setting.
If making spaghetti:
Cook the spaghetti until al dente. Don't let it get mushy. Drain well then add to a bowl and dump the reserved grease over. This keeps the spaghetti from sticking. Mix well and keep warm.
This recipe easily scales up, however, add less water if making much larger batches.
