I’ve been making this chili for several years, and its our family’s favorite chili. It’s based on a recipe from Serve It Forth
This chili takes a long time to make – about an hour to get everything prepped, cooked and into the pot for simmering, so it’s a good thing to make ahead or on a day where you’ve got lots of time. Death Chili is usually a Sunday meal in our house.
I’m also going to apologize now. A couple of the ingredients don’t have a measurement listed for them. That’s because I use the “that looks about right” measurement. If you like the taste of chili powder, put a bunch in. You’ll also see that there’s curry powder and ground cloves listed. Not things you’d usually see, but it gives the chili a taste no other I’ve had does.
Death Chili
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 lbs chuck or round roast/steak, cut into 1/4″ cubes
garlic powder
1 lb ground beef (chuck is preferred)
1 large onion, diced
1/2 tsp salt
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 can chili beans
1 can black beans, drained & rinsed
1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 – 28 oz can fire roasted diced tomatoes
1 jar spaghetti sauce with peppers (we use Newman’s Own Sockarooni)
red wine, about 1/4 to 1/2 a cup
2 – 3 tbsp chili powder
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp curry powder
dark chocolate syrup
In a medium to large frying pan, heat 2 tbsp of vegetable or canola oil over medium-high heat.
As you’re cutting up the steak, or just before you put it in the frying pan, give it a generous sprinkling of garlic powder. Brown the steak in small batches (about a handful at a time), then transfer to a large (5 quart or larger dutch oven or other heavy-bottomed pot). Add a little bit of oil if needed as you go.
Brown the ground beef in the same pan you did the steak in. Cook until there’s no pink left in the meat. Transfer to the pot with a slotted spoon and discard all but about a tablespoon of fat in the pan.
Put the onions in the frying pan, sprinkle with the salt and cook until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Transfer to the pot.
Add the rest of the ingredients to the pot, in the order they are listed. For the chocolate syrup, I usually do a zig-zag pattern across the pot in a single direction (i.e. left to right). At a guess, I use about a quarter cup or less.
Once the chocolate syrup is in, give the pot a careful stir to combine everything. Bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for at least half an hour, but an hour (or more) is best.
Serve with whatever you like – sour cream, cheese, sliced scallions, whatever floats your boat.
Note: the total amount of meat needed for the chili is 3 lbs, but it can be any combination of steak/roast and ground beef.
