(Almost)Award-Winning Chili

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Don't mean to brag, but this chili was an entry in a chili cook off at my parent's church...it didn't win, but I heard people liked it! I know, hold the applause.

• Serves up to 15, depending on your stomachs.

• Skill Level: 3

• Spice Level: 2 (Check notes as to how to change this.)

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Here’s what you need to make the thing:

• 1 lb ground chuck

• 1 lb ground sirloin

• 2 lb chorizo

• 3 strips of bacon, roughly chopped

• 1 Tbsp butter

• 1 large yellow onion, finely chopped

• 2 jalapeno peppers, diced

• 4 serrano peppers, diced

• 2 red bell pepper, diced

• 6 cloves of garlic, minced

• Dried Chile Blend (See notes about this)

  • 3 Ancho chilies

  • 1 Pasilla chile

  • 2 Mulato chilies

  • 2 Guajillo chilies

• ~16oz chicken stock

• Small can of chipotles in adobo sauce

• Small can of sun dried tomatoes

• 28 oz can crushed tomatoes

• 2 Tbsp cumin

• 2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

• 1 Tbsp of apple cider vinegar

• ½ Tbsp red pepper

• ~12oz Heineken 0.0 Non-Alcoholic Beer (optional)

• Kosher salt and black pepper to taste

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Here’s how to make the thing:

1. Seed and stem the dried chilies.

2. Heat them in enough chicken stock to cover the chilies and let them soak for 15 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, add bacon to cold Dutch oven, or large pot.

4. Place on medium-high heat and cook until crispy.

5. Once crispy, remove bacon from pot, reserving grease, and place on a paper towel for snackage. 

6. Add butter and let melt.

7. Add onion, jalapeno, and serrano. Cook for about 5 minutes, until the onions start to turn translucent. Add the garlic about halfway through this step.

8. Add the meats and cook until fully browned, breaking it up as it cooks.

9. Once chilies are soft, strain off the liquid and place the chilies in a blender along with the chipotles in adobo sauce and sun dried tomatoes.

10. Blend until nice and smooth, adding some of the beer or water to help move everything around.

11. Add pureed chilies, crushed tomatoes, spices and everything else to pot and stir well to combine.

12. Salt and pepper to taste.

13. Cook at a low simmer for 2-4 hours, stirring occasionally.

14. Serve to a group of church congregants who underappreciate your efforts.

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• Notes

  • For less spice

    • Seed and de-vein peppers

    • Don't use red pepper flakes

    • Sub bell peppers for serrano and jalapeno

  • The non-alcoholic beer

    • Feel free to use a full beer. A stout would work great here, as would a porter.

    • While alcohol will cook out, I still refrained from including something with it when cooking for a church, as I did when initially creating this recipe.

  • Dried Chiles

    • I used what I could find at my local Mexican market. You can use any combination of chilies, as long as they are dried and equal roughly 7 in quantity