Recipe: Lotsa Chili Texas Chili con Carne

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This Texas Chili recipe amps up the chili peppers to bring plenty of flavor and some good heat to the dish.

Ingredients:

2 ½ lbs Ground Beef or Chuck Roast (Cut into ½ Cubes)
1 Pasilla Chili
1 Guajillo Chili
1 Cascabel Chili
4 to 6 Chilis de Arbol
1 Tbsp Oil
2 Jalapenos or Serranos (Minced)
4 Sweet Peppers (or ⅓ Cup Red Bell Pepper) Diced
1 Medium Sweet Onion (Diced)
5 Cloves Garlic (Minced)
¼ Cup Chili Powder
1 to 2 tsp Black Pepper
3 to 4 Bay Leaves
1 to 2 tsp Honey or Hot Honey
2 tsp Pickapeppa Sauce (or 1 Tbsp Worcecestire Sauce)
Salt to Taste
Water
½ Cup Tortilla Chips (Crushed)
NO BEANS

Directions:

Preheat oven to 275 degrees.

Remove the seeds from the Pasilla, Gaujillo, and Cascabel chilis and place those in a skillet with the Chilis do Arbol at Medium heat. Toast for 30 seconds to one minute, until fragrant. Place the dried chilis in a bowl and cover with boiling water. Cover the bowl and let the chilis rehydrate for about 30 minutes.

Place the crushed tortillas in a bowl and add in enough hot water to make a paste then set aside. This can also be done with Masa Harina if you have that available.

Heat the oil in a Dutch Oven and add the Jalapenos/Serranos, Sweet Peppers, and Onion. Saute until tender. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Remove the vegetables from the pot.

Add the meat to the Dutch Oven and cook until just browned. Pour the rehydrated chilis and water into a blender and blend well (an immersion blender also works well). Add that to the pot along with the rest of the ingredients up to the water.

Add just enough water to barely cover all the ingredients in the pot and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat and slowly add the tortilla paste a little at a time so that it does not clump. (This will help to thicken the chili.)

Review the very last ingredient on the list. THERE ARE NO BEANS IN TEXAS CHILI!!!

Cover the Dutch oven and place in the oven for two hours to let the chili cook and all the ingredients blend together. If you are using the chuck roast, this will help that meat get nice and tender.

Remove from oven and taste. Adjust the seasonings as needed and allow to sit at least thirty minutes. Serve with shredded cheese, avocado, diced onions, diced chilis, or just eat the bowl of red as it is. DO NOT serve with beans, there are NO BEANS in Texas Chili!

The heat for this will be about the Medium level on my scale and you can amp that up by adding more Chilis de Arbol and/or Serranos (or a Habanero).