Another chili cook off and the first thing that comes to mind? I probably will lose because my chili always comes out too spicy! Lol! True story. I have entered only a handful of cook off competitions, but never won…until now! It was not a national or official, but hey, I will take the win. I have placed first for my texas-style tomato jalapeño salsa though. Who knew? Salsa prepared from canned tomatoes and everyone loved it, ha, ha, ha! It is kind of addicting, especially with homemade chips. For today’s recipe, my better half, Richard wanted to enter the chili cook off at his place of work. Lucky for us, they allowed the spouses to prepare the chili if need be. Well, he would need it because, he doesn’t cook at all. Ok, maybe toast, Lol! I am no authority on cooking chili. I just just know that I like it and I know what flavors I like and how spicy I like it. Lucky for me, there were several categories to enter your chili. They had a “hot” and “very hot” category, so I went into this recipe with no worries, lol! I figured if I lost, that at least my husband’s co-workers would enjoy a “hot” bowl of chili no matter what. So armed with my ingredients at 4 a.m., I prepared my “somelike it hot” version of beef chili. We had to give our chili an official name. I decided to create this blog post after being asked for the recipe by several people. My best advice is you should prepare the chili a few days before you serve it. The flavors are so much better!
Beef Chili with Roasted Jalapeños and Pasilla Chile
A good chili, just like a good mole sauce requires layers of flavors! I know it looks like alot of ingredients, but in the end you will have a robust and flavorful pot of chili!
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 3 chile pasilla or chile guajillo stems and seeds removed
- 2 pounds ground chuck
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh ground pepper
- 11/2 teaspoon granulated garlic
- 1 cup red or white onion diced
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- 1 large poblano diced
- 4 to 5 large jalapeños previously dry roasted and diced fine
- 1 large stalk celery chopped
- 1 large carrot sliced
- 1 (28 oz) can of crushed tomatoes
- 2-3 cups beef broth
- 1 (14 oz) can fire roasted tomatoes
- 1 (8 oz) can of El Pato Salsa a Mexican-style tomato salsa
- 3-4 TBS chile ancho powder or your favorite chili powder
- 1 tablespoon granulated garlic
- 1 tablespoon granulated onion
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 tablespoon black pepper
- 2 teaspoons oregano
- 1 teaspoon chile de arbol powder or chipotle powder optional
- 2 tablespoons Maggi seasoning-sauce or Worcestershire
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 4 cups of red, kidney or pinto beans previously cooked and drained
- 1/3 cup finely chopped cilantro
Instructions
Directions
Place the chile pasilla in a pot of simmering water and cook for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Preheat large pot to medium heat for a few minutes. Add beef and season with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, 1 1/2 teaspoons pepper and 1 1/2 teaspoons granulated garlic. I don’t typically add any oil to the beef, but if it seems a bit dry, go ahead and add 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Cook the beef until it’s nice and seared.
Move the beef to the outer edges of pot and add the onions, garlic, poblano and jalapeños to the center of pot. Season veggies lightly with salt and pepper. Saute for 5-7 minutes.
While the veggies saute, add the celery, carrot, crushed tomatoes and softened chile pasilla to the blender. Blend on high until smooth. Add to the pot. Add a pinch of salt and pepper, stir well to combine all ingredients. Cook for 6-8 minutes.
Add all of the remaining ingredients, minus the cilantro. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and taste for seasonings. At this point I will re-season to my taste. Continue cooking at a low simmer for 20-30 minutes.
Fold in the cilantro, cover and let sit for a few minutes before serving. If you don’t like the chili to be so thick, you could add some more broth. Garnish with your favorite toppings.
Recipe Notes
When I need to thicken the chili, I mix a little masa harina slurry. It also adds a subtle corn flavor. You could also use 2 corn tortillas, diced and blended until smooth with some of the warm broth from chili. Add it in to simmering chili for thickening. Roast jalapeños on the stove top in a nonstick skillet at medium heat. Add just 1 teaspoon of oil and char, turning as needed. To cook beans from scratch, I soak by beans overnight. Drain water and add fresh water to cover. Add onion, garlic, bay leaves and peppercorns. Cook at a steady simmer for 2 or more hours or until beans are tender. Add salt once beans are cooked. You will have to add more hot water as they cook.
Tips~ I like adding a little Maggi to many of my soups, stews and chili recipes. It enhances the flavors of the broth. If using, go light on the regular salt.
Below, my chili is garnished with sharp cheddar, fritos, onion and sliced jalapeños.
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