Several elements go into making a quick chili in the slow cooker. The fastest way to make chili in a slow cooker is to use a vegetarian recipe or precook the meat. Use canned or precooked beans for your chili to eliminate the long cooking times needed for dry beans. Following these criteria, three hours on high will get your chili cooked and allow the flavors to mix well.

For less time spent in the slow cooker, you are required to do a little more work up front. Saute onions and spices in a frying pan, and cook ground beef or turkey until cooked through. Add all of the additional ingredients to the slow cooker and set it to high. For a vegetarian chili, cook the onions, oil and spices in the microwave until they are soft and add them to the slow cooker with the other ingredients.

The nice thing about a slow cooker is that you are able to shape the cooking time to your schedule. While it is possible to quickly cook a chili in three to five hours on high, you are also able to set the same chili for up to eight hours on low. For slower-cooking chili that starts with raw meat in the cooker, plan on five to seven hours on high or as long as 11 hours on low.

While a slow cooker is convenient for long cooking, it produces a quality product in a short time as well -- when you follow a few key steps. Brown the meat in advance to lock in flavor. Follow cooking times and specific instructions on the recipe to ensure that the correct temperature is achieved and the chili is thoroughly cooked. Refrain from removing the lid of the slow cooker until the chili is complete to avoid a sudden drop in temperature.