Chili con carne is a Spanish phrase that literally translates to "chili with meat". Originating from Tex-Mex cuisine, it is a spicy stew typically composed of chili peppers, meat (usually beef), tomatoes, and often beans.
Ingredients
- 2-2.5 lbs. chuck roast
- 3 Ancho dried chiles
- 3 Guajillo dried chiles
- 1 onion
- 4 garlic cloves
- 3-4 Roma tomatoes
- 1 chipotle in adobo (optional)
- 1-2 (15) oz. cans black beans or kidney (optional)
- 4-5 cups beef or vegetable stock
- 1 tablespoon Mexican oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon salt (plus more to taste)
- freshly cracked black pepper
- 4 TBSP oil for cooking
- Optional garnishes include Mexican Crema or sour cream, shredded cheese, freshly chopped cilantro, tortilla chips, and a squeeze of lime.
Instructions
1. Rinse the dried chiles and remove the stem and seeds. Roast the chile pieces in a 200F oven for 1-2 minutes or until warm and fragrant. Put the roasted chiles into a bowl and cover them with the hot tap water. Set them aside and let them reconstitute for 20 minutes.
2. Rinse the tomatoes and remove the cores. Roast them in a 400F oven for 20-30 minutes; turning once.
3. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat along with a 3 TBSP of oil. Chop up the chuck roast into 1-1.5 in. chunks and salt it. Sear the beef chunks in the pot until they are brown on all sides. Once browned you can set the beef pieces aside. They will finish cooking when later added to all the other ingredients.
4. In the same pot, add a finely chopped onion along with a little more oil. Cook the onion over medium heat until softened. Then, add the 4 minced garlic cloves and briefly cook for 1 minute. Scoop half of the onion-garlic mixture into the blender where it will become part of the chile puree. Now add the 4-5 cups of stock to the skillet and hold at a low simmer.
5. Before draining the reconstituted chiles take a taste of the soaking liquid. If it tastes bitter to you then use stock to combine the chiles. If you like the flavor you are welcome to use the soaking liquid in place of the stock.
6. Drain the water from the roasted chiles and put them into the blender along with a single roasted tomato and a single chipotle in adobo (optional). I usually cut off the stem and scrape out the seeds of the chipotle. Half of the onion-garlic mixture should already be in the blender. Add a single cup of stock and blend the mixture until it is combined. Add more liquid if it won't combine readily.
7. Pour the chile puree into the skillet along with 1 tablespoon Mexican oregano, 1/2 teaspoon cumin, 1 teaspoon salt, and freshly cracked black pepper. Combine well and then add the seared beef pieces (along with their juices). Chop up the remaining roasted tomatoes and add them too.
8. Bring this up to a simmer, cover, and let cook for 1.5-2 hours or until the beef is tender. Towards the end of the simmer, you can add the rinsed and drained beans (optional).
9. The beef chunks can be shredded into smaller pieces using two forks if desired. The consistency of the Chili can be adjusted at this point if needed. To thin it out, simply add 1-2 cups of stock. To thicken it up you can use a cornstarch slurry. In a small bowl whisk together a few tablespoons of cornstarch and equal parts cold water. Once combined add the mixture to the Chili and it will thicken up considerably.
Serve immediately with the optional garnishes. 5 Servings.
Note: Many combinations of chiles can be used, so don't worry about the exact combination listed in the recipe. One example is using New Mexican chiles to replace the Guajillos.
Instead of using chuck roast beef, 2 lbs. of ground beef can be substituted.
