Name: Texas Chili
Total time: 3 h 30 min
Yield: 11
Ingredients: 2½ lb Beef chuck roast, ½-inch cubes; 3 lb Coarse-ground beef (chili grind, or 80/20 ground chuck); 4 tbsp Neutral oil or beef tallow; 2 Large white onions, diced; 9 cloves Garlic; 4 Dried ancho chiles, stemmed and seeded; 4 Dried guajillo chiles, stemmed and seeded; 3 Dried pasilla chiles, stemmed and seeded; 2 Chiles de árbol, seeded; 2 Chipotle chiles, seeded (dried, or canned in adobo, chopped); 4½ cups Beef stock, for soaking the chiles; 1 cup Beef stock, for the simmer; 1 tbsp Better Than Bouillon beef base; 4 tbsp Tomato paste; 1 tbsp Mexican oregano; 1 tbsp Smoked paprika; 1 Cinnamon stick, 3-inch, toasted; 2 Dried bay leaves; 1 tsp Kosher salt, plus more at the end; 1½ cups Dark beer, or strong coffee; 3 tbsp Masa harina; 1½ tbsp Apple cider vinegar; 1½ tsp Brown sugar; 2 cans Red kidney beans (optional), 15 oz each, drained and rinsed; 3 tbsp Ground cumin (optional), added with the oregano and paprika

Texas Chili

by Matt KennardPublished October 21, 2026

A big-batch red chili built on dried chiles, with chuck and coarse-ground beef. Beans and cumin are optional.

Serves

Total

3h 30m

Pan

Dutch oven, 8 qt or larger

A big-batch red chili built on dried chiles, with chuck and coarse-ground beef. Beans and cumin are optional.

Notes

Heat is mild to medium because the árbol and chipotle are seeded. For more, add a pinch of cayenne or a spoonful of adobo at the end. It thickens as it cools, so keep stock on hand when reheating. Better the next day, and it freezes well. Add the masa last and in small amounts, since beans absorb liquid too.

Serve with

Skillet cornbread, sharp cheddar, diced raw white onion, pickled jalapeños, sour cream, cilantro and lime.

Method

Toast the ancho, guajillo, pasilla, árbol and chipotle (if dried) in a dry skillet over medium heat, about 30 seconds per side, until fragrant. Toast the cinnamon stick 30 to 60 seconds per side and set aside. Heat the 4½ cups stock until steaming, pour over the chiles, and soak 20 minutes.
Blend the soaked chiles with their stock, the garlic and the tomato paste until smooth. If using canned chipotle, blend it in.
Broil the chuck: rack about 6 inches from the element, broiler on high. Toss the dry cubes with 2 tbsp of the fat, spread in a single layer on rimmed sheet pans, and broil, turning once, until deeply browned, about 15 minutes. Keep the pan juices.
In the Dutch oven over medium-high, brown the ground beef in 3 batches, leaving large crumbles. Pour off all but about 4 tbsp of fat.
Lower to medium. Cook the onions in the fat until soft. Stir in the oregano and paprika (and the cumin, if using) and cook 1 minute.
Whisk the bouillon into the 1 cup stock. Add it with the beer and scrape up the browned bits. Return the chuck with its pan juices (deglaze the sheet pans with a splash of liquid), add the chile paste, bay leaves, toasted cinnamon and salt. Bring to a bare simmer, partly cover, and cook on low about 2 hours, until the chuck is fork-tender, stirring now and then.
Fish out the bay leaves and cinnamon. If using beans, stir them in and simmer uncovered 30 minutes.
Whisk the masa with a few tablespoons of hot liquid and stir it in a little at a time, with the vinegar and brown sugar, stopping when it is slightly looser than you want. Taste and adjust salt slowly, since the bouillon and reduced stock add salt.

Goes with

Also good with: Cornbread

From the journal

39 Degrees and a Pot of Chili — The first cold morning of the season, and a pot of chili.

Comments (0)

No comments yet.

Texas Chili

Notes

Serve with

Ingredients

Method

Goes with

From the journal

Comments (0)

More like this

Mushrooms with Thyme and Balsamic

Beef and Rotini Soup, From a Thin Pantry

Scrambled Eggs, When I Want to Show Off

Honey BBQ Finish