Chili is two subjects. To most Americans it is a pot of meat, chiles and argument. To a Mexican kitchen a chile is a pepper, the ingredient that gives salsas, moles and adobos their character. Books on both are sold under nearly the same word, and that makes shopping for one harder than it should be.
The category is also crowded with thin, self-published titles, and many of the best-known older books are hard to find new. This page sets out eight in-stock print books from named authors at established publishers, says which have a published review and which rest on publisher details, and helps you find the best chili book for what you actually want to cook.
Julia’s earns a commission on purchases made through links on this page, at no cost to you. Recommendations are based on what a Mexican kitchen looks for in a book on chiles, publisher and author information and published reviews, which we name.
Quick verdict: which chili book to buy
The best chili book for most people is Brian Baumgartner’s Seriously Good Chili Cookbook, a lay-flat collection of 177 recipes that includes cook-off winners. If you mean the pepper and not the bowl, choose David Floyd’s The Hot Book of Chilies, with 97 varieties. If you cook over fire, choose Brad Prose’s Chiles and Smoke, which Publishers Weekly praised as a winning collection.
The rest of this page explains why, and how far the evidence goes for each. Three of the eight have a Publishers Weekly review, one of those for an earlier edition only, and the others rest on publisher, listing and author details. Each entry says which. Two have third-party lead offers on Amazon, and those entries say so as well.
Five chili books side by side
Five books, one for each kind of cook, with details from each listing, publisher or review. All eight are described in full below.
| Book | Best for | Subject | Length | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Seriously Good Chili Cookbook, Brian BaumgartnerBest overall
|
A whole book of bowls of chili | Chili itself, many styles | 252 pages, lay-flat hardcover | View on Amazon |
The Hot Book of Chilies, David FloydBest for peppers
|
Learning the peppers themselves | 97 varieties, 51 recipes | 160 pages, paperback | View on Amazon |
Chillies, Sophie Dupuis-GaulierBest new book
|
Cooking by heat level | 20+ varieties, nearly 80 recipes | 208 pages, hardcover | View on Amazon |
Chiles and Smoke, Brad ProseBest for the grill
|
Backyard cooks who like heat | Chiles on the grill and smoker | 192 pages, hardcover | View on Amazon |
Chili Crisp, James ParkBest for chili crisp
|
Fans of the crunchy condiment | 50+ recipes around chili crisp | 176 pages, hardcover | View on Amazon |
Cover images from Amazon. Page counts and formats are for the editions linked; other editions differ.
Our picks for the best chili book, one by one
The eight are in order of how closely they fit and how much we can stand behind them. We have not cooked from these books. Where we describe a strength, we say whose view that is.
1. Seriously Good Chili Cookbook, Brian Baumgartner – 177 Bowls, Cook-Off Winners Included
If by chili you mean the thing in the bowl, this is the book to buy. Nothing else we found in stock is this large and this strictly about chili, and it comes from an established publisher, Fox Chapel.
Brian Baumgartner is the actor the listing identifies as Kevin Malone from The Office, so this is a celebrity cookbook, and it helps to know that going in. The Amazon listing gives 177 recipes in 252 pages, in a lay-flat hardcover with a hidden spiral, which is a practical format for a book you keep open beside the stove. A library record credits a foreword by Oscar Nunez.
What sets it apart is where the recipes come from. Booksellers’ copies of the publisher’s description say they are drawn from world championship cook-off winners, celebrities, chefs, restaurant owners and Baumgartner himself, with 50 World Champion Chili Cook-Off winners going back to 1967. That spread suits a subject where people argue about beans, tomatoes and the right cut of beef. You get many answers, not one.
This pick rests on the publisher’s and listing details. Our search found publicity quotes and reader comments but no critic’s review, and Publishers Weekly’s page shows none. Early readers on NetGalley were mixed: some liked the organization, while one felt the book was more than a family that eats chili now and then would need.
Why we like it
- 177 recipes, per the listing’s title
- 50 world championship cook-off winners, per booksellers
- Lay-flat hardcover with a hidden spiral
- Single-subject book from an established publisher
Key specifications
| Author | Brian Baumgartner |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Fox Chapel Publishing |
| Year | 2022 |
| Pages | 252 |
| Format | Lay-flat hardcover with hidden spiral |
| Recipes | 177 |
| Focus | Chili, from cook-off winners to home cooks |
| Best for | Cooks who want every kind of bowl |
Why we recommend it
It suits anyone who makes chili often, enters a cook-off at work or wants to settle the bean question by trying both ways.
Skip it if you want one trusted recipe and a lesson in chiles. This is a big collection, not a course.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Largest single-subject chili collection we found
- Includes cook-off recipes
- Stays open on the counter
Cons
- Celebrity book first, so expect jokes alongside the recipes
- No critic’s review to cite
- One subject, so it can be more than you need
2. The Hot Book of Chilies, David Floyd – 97 Peppers, Mild to Super Hot
If by chili you mean the pepper, start here. The listing sets out the book in its title: history, science, 51 recipes and 97 varieties from mild to super spicy, running from jalapeño to Carolina Reaper.
Fox Chapel publishes this third edition as a 160-page paperback under its CompanionHouse line. Booksellers’ listings describe a gallery of varieties with notes on heat and history, and say David Floyd runs a UK chili business and has appeared on BBC television as a chili expert.
There is a review to mention, with a caveat. Publishers Weekly reviewed an earlier edition, The Hot Book of Chillies from New Holland, in 2013. It called that edition useful but uneven, liked the opening material on history and on taming chili burn, found the recipes a mismatched mix, and thought it better for beginners than for experts. That was an older edition with about 100 varieties, and we did not find a review of this one, so treat it as a guide to the book’s general character and not as a verdict on the 2019 text.
For a Mexican kitchen, a variety guide like this is most useful alongside our own guide to Mexican chiles, which covers the dried and fresh chiles that do most of the work in salsas and moles.
Why we like it
- 97 varieties and 51 recipes, per the listing’s title
- Covers both history and science
- Third edition, per the listing
- An earlier edition was reviewed by Publishers Weekly
Key specifications
| Author | David Floyd |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Fox Chapel Publishing (CompanionHouse Books) |
| Year | 2019 |
| Pages | 160 |
| Format | Paperback |
| Recipes | 51 |
| Focus | Chili pepper varieties, history and science |
| Best for | Cooks and growers learning the peppers |
Why we recommend it
It suits curious beginners who want to know what they are buying, and anyone who has started growing peppers and needs help with what to do next.
Skip it if you are mainly after recipes. Publishers Weekly found the recipe section of the earlier edition the weak part.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Broad survey of varieties
- Paperback, easy to keep near the stove
- Comparatively short
Cons
- Recipes were the weak point of the earlier edition, per Publishers Weekly
- No review of this edition to cite
- Mexican chiles are only part of a global survey
3. Chillies, Sophie Dupuis-Gaulier – Twenty Varieties Sorted by Heat
This is the newest book here, and the one most clearly built around cooking by heat level. Hachette, the parent of Mitchell Beazley, describes a guide to more than 20 varieties, each classed on the Scoville scale from mild to very hot, with nearly 80 recipes across all the heat levels.
The range runs from a mild Basque-style piperade to a fiery sausage rougail, which tells you this is a global book written from a French point of view, not a Mexican one. Sophie Dupuis-Gaulier is a cookbook author and food stylist who has worked with Elle France and Saveurs, according to a bookseller’s description.
That heat-first structure is a good idea for a mixed table. You can choose by how hot you want dinner to be, then learn which chile gets you there. Our guide to Mexican chiles does the same job for the chiles you will find at a Mexican market.
This pick rests on the publisher’s details. We searched and found no review of it yet, and Publishers Weekly’s page shows none. It is also a British edition with British spelling, so look at the sample pages to see which measures it uses before you buy. Listing dates differ slightly: Hachette gives May 2026 and Amazon July 2026.
Why we like it
- Over 20 varieties, ranked on the Scoville scale, per the publisher
- Nearly 80 recipes at every heat level, per the publisher
- Hardcover from an established UK imprint
- The newest book on this list
Key specifications
| Author | Sophie Dupuis-Gaulier |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Mitchell Beazley (Hachette) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Pages | 208 |
| Format | Hardcover |
| Recipes | Nearly 80 |
| Focus | Chili varieties and recipes by heat level |
| Best for | Cooks feeding people with mixed tastes |
Why we recommend it
It suits cooks who want a modern book that treats chiles as a set of flavors, and who like to eat beyond one cuisine.
Skip it if you want Mexican or Texan chili. This is a global book, and the bowl of red is not its subject.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Organized around heat, which is useful at a mixed table
- Published in 2026
- Named food writer and stylist
Cons
- No review to cite yet
- British edition, so check the measures
- Not focused on Mexican food
4. Chiles and Smoke, Brad Prose – Heat Meets the Grill
The pick for anyone who cooks outdoors. Harvard Common Press published it in 2023 as a 192-page hardcover, and Publishers Weekly reviewed it in December 2022, describing the debut as a winning collection.
Brad Prose brought the book out of his barbecue website, according to that review. It covers chili varieties, rubs and sauces, and it leans into fusion. The reviewer’s examples include a gochujang chili con carne, harissa beef tacos and a Nashville hot chicken, so a real bowl of chili does appear, though on the cook’s own terms and not as tradition.
The review’s conclusion is that backyard cooks will find plenty of unusual and good ideas. That makes this a second book for someone who already grills, not a first book on chiles. If you are building that shelf, our guides to grill cookbooks and smoking cookbooks cover the technique side.
One buying note: when we checked, the lead offer on Amazon was a new copy from a third-party seller, Page With Pine, and not Amazon itself. Read the seller details before you order.
Why we like it
- Praised as a winning collection by Publishers Weekly
- Covers chili varieties, rubs and sauces
- Built around live-fire cooking
- Hardcover from an established publisher
Key specifications
| Author | Brad Prose |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Harvard Common Press |
| Year | 2023 |
| Pages | 192 |
| Format | Hardcover |
| Recipes | Not stated |
| Focus | Chile-driven grilling and barbecue |
| Best for | Backyard cooks who like spice |
Why we recommend it
It suits grill owners who are tired of the same rub, and who like their chiles mixed with ideas from everywhere.
Skip it if you cook only indoors. The book is built around the grill and the smoker.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Named review in Publishers Weekly
- Fresh, wide-ranging recipes
- Adds fire to the subject
Cons
- The lead Amazon offer was new, but from a third-party seller (Page With Pine) and not Amazon, when we checked, so read the seller details first
- Fusion recipes, not tradition
- Recipe count not confirmed
5. The Spicy Food Lovers’ Cookbook, Michael Hultquist – Weeknight Meals With Real Heat
Michael Hultquist runs Chili Pepper Madness, a website devoted to cooking with chiles, so chiles are his everyday subject. Page Street published this 192-page paperback in October 2018.
Booksellers’ listings describe 75 recipes for spicy food lovers of every level, including seafood, slow cooker and pressure cooker meals and pasta, along with notes on the differences between pepper varieties and how to make your own spice blends. The subtitle promises no-fuss meals, and that is its appeal. It is about getting chiles into ordinary dinners, not about a project.
Library Journal ran a review, but we could not open it, so we are not citing what it says. This pick rests on the publisher’s listing and the author’s own site. Publishers Weekly’s page shows no review. One reader complaint worth mentioning: a buyer on a retail page found the print too small.
If you like the idea but want it in a sauce or a jar first, see our guides to Mexican hot sauce and salsa macha.
Why we like it
- 75 recipes, per booksellers’ listings
- Written by the creator of Chili Pepper Madness
- Includes spice blends
- Covers slow cooker and pressure cooker meals
Key specifications
| Author | Michael Hultquist |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Page Street Publishing |
| Year | 2018 |
| Pages | 192 |
| Format | Paperback |
| Recipes | 75 |
| Focus | Everyday spicy cooking |
| Best for | Weeknight cooks who like heat |
Why we recommend it
It suits people who put hot sauce on everything and want the heat built into the dish instead.
Skip it if you want a deep study of chiles or a set of Mexican classics. This is a broad weeknight book.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Practical everyday recipes
- Author specializes in chile cooking
- Paperback, easy to use
Cons
- We could not read the Library Journal review
- A reader found the print small
- Less focused on the bowl of chili than the top pick
6. Chili Crisp, James Park – One Condiment, Many Dishes
A narrow book with a clear purpose. Chili crisp, the crunchy Chinese oil-based condiment, now sits in plenty of American kitchens, and many of those jars get used only as a topping. James Park’s book, a 176-page Chronicle hardcover from 2023, is about using it more fully.
Publishers Weekly reviewed it in August 2023 and said Park “joyfully explores the possibilities of chili crisp,” working it into dishes instead of treating it as a garnish. The review’s conclusion: this “exuberant exploration will inspire chili crisp aficionados.” It also notes that some recipes would benefit from photos.
Chronicle says it has more than 50 recipes for snacks, weeknight meals, sides and desserts, along with no-recipe ideas and a build-your-own formula, and that Epicurious and The Kitchn named it a best cookbook of the year. Park is a Brooklyn recipe developer and food writer trained at the International Culinary Center, according to Chronicle.
It is here because a search for a chili book often means this kind of chili too. Mexico has its own crunchy relative, and our guide to salsa macha covers it if you want to compare.
Why we like it
- Reviewed by Publishers Weekly
- More than 50 recipes, per Chronicle
- Includes a build-your-own formula
- Named a best cookbook of the year by Epicurious and The Kitchn, per Chronicle
Key specifications
| Author | James Park, photographs by Heami Lee |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Chronicle Books |
| Year | 2023 |
| Pages | 176 |
| Format | Hardcover |
| Recipes | 50+ |
| Focus | Cooking with chili crisp |
| Best for | Cooks with a jar in the fridge |
Why we recommend it
It suits anyone who goes through chili crisp quickly and wants to do more than spoon it over eggs.
Skip it if you want chili con carne or a pepper guide. The subject here is one condiment.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Named review in Publishers Weekly
- Clear single idea
- Teaches you to build your own
Cons
- Narrow subject
- Some recipes lack photos, per Publishers Weekly
- Korean and Chinese leaning, not Mexican
7. The Authentic History of Cincinnati Chili, Dann Woellert – A Regional Bowl, Told as History
The only book here that you read at the table instead of cooking from. It belongs to the American Palate series from The History Press, published in 2013, and it covers one of America’s most distinctive regional chilis: the spiced meat sauce served over spaghetti in Cincinnati’s chili parlors.
The book’s library record lists chapters on Empress Chili, Dixie Chili, Camp Washington Chili and Gold Star. Cincinnati CityBeat, in a 2013 preview of an author talk, praised it as well researched and pointed to its photos and its interviews with the families behind the parlors. Woellert writes that the city has more than 250 parlors. That short preview is the closest thing to a named review we can point to, and Publishers Weekly’s page shows none.
Dann Woellert writes a food etymology blog, according to booksellers’ listings, so the angle is where the dish came from. We could not confirm whether the book includes recipes, so do not buy it expecting a cookbook. One reader’s comment we saw found the history decent but the editing mediocre.
Cincinnati chili owes much to immigrant cooks adapting a dish to a new place. The same is true of Tex-Mex, and our list of Tex-Mex cookbooks includes The Terlingua Chili Cookbook for the Texas side of the story.
Why we like it
- Published in the American Palate series
- Interviews with the parlor families, per CityBeat
- Chapters on the best-known parlors, per the library record
- A chili book with a true regional subject
Key specifications
| Author | Dann Woellert |
|---|---|
| Publisher | The History Press |
| Year | 2013 |
| Pages | 176 |
| Format | Paperback |
| Recipes | Not stated |
| Focus | History of Cincinnati chili |
| Best for | Readers curious about food history |
Why we recommend it
It suits people from the Ohio Valley, chili obsessives and anyone who wants a gift for a cook who already owns every recipe book.
Skip it if you want recipes. Treat this as history and any recipes as a bonus.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Rare depth on one style
- Named local coverage
- Short, readable paperback
Cons
- History first, not a cookbook
- Editing faulted by one reader
- Of narrow interest outside Cincinnati
8. Cooking With Chillies, Elizabeth Young – A Picture-Led Global Collection
Our last pick, and the one we know least about. Lorenz Books published this 224-page hardcover in 2011, and its full title promises hot and spicy dishes from around the world, with 150 recipes shown in 250 photographs.
That many photographs is the reason to look at it. New cooks can see what a finished dish should look like, and a global book gives you plenty to browse. The Open Library record confirms the title, publisher and year.
It rests on the listing and library details. We have no publisher’s description or biography for Elizabeth Young, and Publishers Weekly’s page shows no review. It is also the oldest cookbook here. We have included it as a picture-led alternative, so it comes last.
The same buying note applies as for Chiles and Smoke: when we checked, the lead offer was a new copy from a third-party seller, allnewbooks, and not Amazon itself.
Why we like it
- 150 recipes, by its title
- 250 photographs, by its title
- Global range of spicy dishes
- Hardcover from Lorenz Books
Key specifications
| Author | Elizabeth Young |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Lorenz Books |
| Year | 2011 |
| Pages | 224 |
| Format | Hardcover |
| Recipes | 150 (per title) |
| Focus | Spicy dishes from around the world |
| Best for | Cooks who like to see every dish |
Why we recommend it
It suits cooks who learn from pictures and want a wide tour of spicy food in one volume.
Skip it if you want a named author you know or a review to lean on. We have neither to offer here.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Very well illustrated, by its title
- Large recipe count
- Wide range
Cons
- The lead Amazon offer was new, but from a third-party seller (allnewbooks) and not Amazon, when we checked, so read the seller details first
- Published in 2011
- Rests on listing and library details
How to choose a chili book
Start with the word itself, because the same search brings up very different books. These four questions sort them out.
1. Do you mean the bowl or the pepper?
In Texas and most of the United States, chili means the stew. In Mexico, a chile is the pepper. Seriously Good Chili Cookbook and The Authentic History of Cincinnati Chili are about the dish. The Hot Book of Chilies and Chillies are about the pepper. Spelling varies by country, so read the subtitle, not the title.
2. Recipes or reference?
If you want to cook tonight, choose by recipes and the way you cook. If you want to know why a guajillo tastes nothing like a habanero, you want a variety guide. For the chiles used in Mexican cooking, our guide to Mexican chiles covers the essentials, and where to buy dried chiles online tells you how to get them.
3. How do you cook?
Chiles and Smoke needs a grill or smoker. The Spicy Food Lovers’ Cookbook is for the stove and the slow cooker. A pot of chili needs a heavy pot and time, so if you are shopping for that too, see our guides to the best Dutch oven and the best stock pot. The lay-flat binding on the top pick also helps when your hands are covered in chile.
4. How much heat is on your table?
If you cook for mixed tastes, Chillies is the one organized around heat levels. The Hot Book of Chilies also runs from mild to super hot. If everyone at your table likes it hot, The Spicy Food Lovers’ Cookbook is likely to suit you better. Be careful with the seeds and membranes of any hot chile, and wash your hands well after handling them.
How we picked these eight chili books
We went through the Amazon book listings, kept only print editions that showed plain in-stock status with a new lead offer, and required a named author and an established trade publisher or press. We left out the many anonymous, self-published and AI-looking titles in this category, and anything on our other cookbook pages. We checked each listing’s binding, condition and seller. Six of the eight were sold by Amazon when we checked. Two, Chiles and Smoke and Cooking With Chillies, had third-party lead offers, and we say so in each entry.
Some names you may expect are not here, because new copies were scarce, on back order or only used when we checked. That includes Dave DeWitt’s The Mexican Chile Pepper Cookbook and his Pepper Pantry series, Mark Miller’s The Great Chile Book, Paul Bosland’s The Official Cookbook of the Chile Pepper Institute, Jane Butel’s Chili Madness, Gary Paul Nabhan’s Chasing Chiles and The Big Book of Hatch Chile. They may be worth finding if you are willing to buy secondhand or wait, but they did not meet our test for this list.
Three picks have a named review of the book itself, all in Publishers Weekly: Chiles and Smoke, Chili Crisp and, for an earlier edition only, The Hot Book of Chilies. Cincinnati CityBeat ran a short preview of The Authentic History of Cincinnati Chili. The others rest on publisher, listing, library and author details. We have not cooked from these books, and where we describe a strength we say whose view it is. Page counts, dates and recipe counts come from the listings and publishers.
Chili book questions, answered
What is the best chili pepper cookbook?
For peppers alone, The Hot Book of Chilies is the fullest guide we found in stock. If you care more about recipes than a survey of varieties, choose Chillies, which sorts its dishes by heat, or The Spicy Food Lovers’ Cookbook.
What is the difference between chili and chile?
In American usage, chili usually means the stew and chile the pepper, especially in the Southwest, while chilli is the common British spelling. Publishers are not consistent, so check what a book actually covers. Our guide to Mexican chiles uses the Mexican spelling.
Is there a good book on Mexican chiles?
The best-known specialist titles were hard to find new when we checked, so none of the books above is mainly about Mexican chiles. For Mexican cooking with chiles, start with our lists of the best Mexican cookbooks and the best salsa cookbooks.
Do any of these books include cook-off chili?
Seriously Good Chili Cookbook does. Booksellers’ listings say it includes 50 World Champion Chili Cook-Off winning recipes going back to 1967.
Is chili a Mexican dish?
Chili con carne as most Americans know it is usually treated as a Texan and Tex-Mex dish, though it is built on Mexican chiles. Our list of Tex-Mex cookbooks goes further into that history.
Our final pick for the chili shelf
Buy Seriously Good Chili Cookbook if you want to make better chili, and The Hot Book of Chilies if you want to understand the peppers. Most kitchens need only one. Before you start, read our guide to Mexican chiles and check the basic kit in Mexican cooking tools.
And if you would rather leave the chiles to someone else tonight, see the menu or call to order.