Chili is one of our family’s favorite comfort foods, we love to make it during the cooler months and it’s also perfect for family get togethers. The other day as I was making my regular beef chili I wanted to give it some new life so I decided to add some red chorizo that I had in my pantry and gave it a bit of a kick by adding chipotles in adobo sauce.
You can play around with the amount of chipotle to make it more or less spicy, I personally love the smoky flavor the chipotle adds, it’s not so much about the heat but about bringing out those flavors in the chili.
Spicy Chipotle And Chorizo Beef Chili
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large onion chopped
- 2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce minced
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 pound ground chuck browned and drained
- 2 red chorizos
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoons sea salt
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
- 1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 15-ounce can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 15-ounce can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
- grated Cheddar cheese
- crumbled queso
- Mexican crema
- fresh cilantro
Instructions
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In a large saucepan heat oil and add onion.
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Reduce heat to low and cook until soft and translucent, about 10 minutes.
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Add chipotle pepper and garlic; cook about 1 minute.
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Add beef, chili, salt, cumin and pepper.
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Stir in chicken broth and simmer about 2 minutes.
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Stir in Worcestershire sauce, diced tomatoes, tomato paste and bay leaf. and Bring to a low boil, and reduce heat to low. Simmer, uncovered, 30 minutes.
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While chili is cooking remove casings from chorizos, cut into large pieces and put them food processor. Pulse 10-15 times until crumbled.
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Stir in beans and crumpled chorizo and simmer for 10 minutes or until liquid has reduced slightly.
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Remove bay leaf.
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Garnish with cheddar cheese, crumbled queso fresco, crema and fresh cilantro.
You can use my recipe or just add a couple of tablespoons of chipotles in adobo sauce and the chorizo to your favorite beef chili to give it some new life. My kids love chorizo as much as I do so I did make a separate batch for them without the chipotle and they loved it.
I feel that the crema and the fresh cilantro combined with the crumbled queso really balance the spiciness and give it a fresh and cool layer of flavors that, combined with the spicy, strong flavor of this chili really make for a wining combination.
Do you have a favorite chili recipe?
Paula studied architecture and now makes a living as a freelance writer,traveler and amateur photographer.She started her writing & publishing career as the editor of Bebé y Mamá, the first parenting magazine in Guatemala.She is the founder of www.GrowingUpBilingual.com and www.365thingsswfl.com and writes articles in Spanish and English for both magazines and the web on travel,food and bicultural and bilingual parenting .
When she is not on a plane or road trip she likes to create recipes inspired in the flavors of her native Guatemala.
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