This rich and deep flavored chili uses chunks of beef and is slow cooked until it’s melt in your mouth tender.
OK, I’m going to level with you here, this is an involved recipe, both in terms of ingredients and time. This is far from a weeknight breezy dish, but most of the cook time is hands off, and I promise it’s all worth it.
This recipe is a near and dear one to my heart though because it took me roughly 5 years to perfect and was the first dish I made for my now husband. They say a way to a man’s heart is through his stomach and that’s what I was hoping for haha. Needless to say, this is a favorite of his as well and was even the dish of choice for his most recent birthday dinner.
Now some of the ingredients may seem a bit odd, the cinnamon, chocolate, and coffee to name a few, but I promise this won’t come out tasting like a cake and those flavor are not prominent at all. Other ingredients, such as the ancho chili powder, roasted poblano pepper, and Mexican oregano, may be hard to come by, especially if you’re trying to make this outside the US. I’ve put substitutes in the recipe in case they’re needed, but if you can find each ingredient I really recommend it.
Nerdy notes:
On a nerdy and analytical note, I’ve been fascinated by the image generating AI available and have jumped in to give it a try. The images for this post were created using OpenAI’s DALL-E and Midjourney. I really enjoy photography and can’t wait to grow that skill, but it’s been so fun exploring DALL-E and Midjourney. They’ve been so helpful, providing beautiful pictures so I can post more recipes more often. More to come in this space I’m sure!
Chili Con Carne
Author: Natalie Smith
Equipment
- 1 Slow Cooker
Ingredients
- 3 Pounds (1.3 Kg) Chuck roast cut into 1.5 to 2 inch pieces ** Trim off large pieces of fat *** Maybe try 4 lbs next time
- 8 Slices Bacon chopped ** Look for high fat and low sugar bacon
- 2 Medium Yellow onions chopped
- 5 Cloves Garlic minced
- 2 Poblano peppers roasted, peeled, seeded, and chopped ** Roast fresh poblanos under the grill/broiler until black, place in a heat proof bowl and cover with foil until cool enough to touch. *** Can replace with green bell peppers if you can't find poblanos
- 2 Jalapeños minced
- 4 Cups Beef stock
- 2 Cups Brewed black coffee ** Want a nice coffee here
- 1 Cup Crushed canned tomatoes
- ¼ Cup Ground corn tortillas ** Grind 4, 6 inch corn tortillas using either an immersion blender or food processor)
- 1 Tbsp Tomato paste
- ¾ to 1 Tbsp Light brown sugar
- 2 Tbsp Ancho chili powder ** Replace with either more chipotle chili powder, or another chili powder available, but check and taste for spice level before adding the full 2 Tbsp (especially if using cayenne chili powder)
- 1 Tbsp Chipotle chili powder
- 1 Tbsp Ground cumin
- 2 tsp Cocoa powder
- 1½ tsp Dried Mexican oregano ** Can use regular oregano if you can't find Mexican
- 1 tsp Ground coriander
- ½ tsp Ground cinnamon
- 1½ Squares Lindt Chilli Dark Chocolate ** Can use 50% dark chocolate and a pinch of cayenne chili powder if you can't find this
- 1 Tbsp Salt for beef
- ½ tsp Salt for sautéing onions
- 2 Tbsp corn starch/flour
- 2-6 Tbsp Ground corn tortillas ** For thickening at end
- 1 Can Pinto beans drained and rinsed
- 1 Can Black beans drained and rinsed
- 1-2 Tbsp Olive oil
- 1 Tbsp Butter ** Can be salted or unsalted
Instructions
- Cut meat into 1.5 to 2 inch pieces and sprinkle salt all over them. Ideally, do this the day before, cover and refrigerate until next day.
- Add a small amount of the olive oil to a large, heavy bottomed pan over medium high heat
- Once olive oil is hot add bacon and cook until starting to crips, but not completely crispy. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon to a bowl for later.
- Drain off some of the bacon fat if you have more than a Tbsp worth, also saving this for later.
- If there are a lot of small bacon bits in the bottom of the pan, remove these so they don't burn while searing the beef
- Add ½ Tbsp the butter (or if you have leftover bacon grease, you can use ½ Tbsp of that instead) to the pan and increase the heat to almost high heat
- Once butter has melted, or bacon grease has heated up, sear the beef in batches (careful not to overcrowd the pan) for 1-2 minutes on top and bottom sides. (I find searing on all sides of the beef overcooks it and doesn't add a noticeable amount of additional flavor)Add the other ½ Tbsp of butter, or another ½ Tbsp of bacon grease if you have have it, for second batch of searing. I find I can usually get all the beef seared in 2 batches. If a 3rd batch is needed use another ½ Tbsp of butter or bacon grease if needed.** If you have the patience and time, pat the beef dry with paper towel before searing to get a better sear.
- Remove seared beef to a plate for later
- Add the onions with the remaining ½ tsp of salt. Sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes
- Add the poblanos, jalapeños, and garlic to the pan, sautéing for about 1 min, but being careful not to burn the garlic.
- Add the tomato paste, spices, cocoa, light brown sugar, and the ¼ portion of ground corn tortillas to the pan, mixing well for 30 seconds, but being careful not to burn anything.
- Add the coffee, beef stock, and crushed tomatoes. Mix well and deglaze the pan by getting all the fond off the bottom of the pan.
- Return the bacon bits and beef along with any juices released from the beef while resting to the pot and bring everything up to a simmer.
- Transfer everything to a slow cooker and add the chili chocolate.
- Cover and cook on low for 5.5 hours stirring every couple of hours.
- After 5.5 hours of cooking, remove the lid and allow the chili to cook for another hour on low. (The remainder of the cooking will be without the lid)
- After that hour (so at the 6.5 hour mark) add the drained beans.
- Create a slurry with the corn starch/flour and 2 Tbsp of the remaining 6 Tbsp ground corn tortillas using liquid from the chili. Once the slurry is really runny, add this to the chili, stirring as you pour it in to help avoid clumps.
- Continue cooking for another 30 minutes.
- After 30 min (so at the 7 hour mark) turn the slower cooker up to high for the final 30 minutes of cooking.
- If after the final 30 min (so at the 7.5 hour mark) the chili is still too runny, add more ground corn tortilla, 1 Tbsp at a time giving it a couple of minutes between additions to see if it's thickened up enough to your liking.
- Serve and topped with sour cream, diced avocado or guacamole, chopped cilantro, and optionally shredded cheese, spring onions or diced red onion, and tortilla chips.
- Pairs really well with corn bread and guacamole. Enjoy!
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