Texas chili
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I love chili. All kinds; whether it’s a simple chili con carne, or a bright and spicy pork chili verde.
This Texas-style chili is as big and bold as the state it belongs to. It has a well-rounded heat and a robust flavour that is both rich and decadent.
Here are the surprises: there are no tomatoes or beans in this chili. Neither is there any ground meat in this dish. This is a recipe with a few ingredients, but combined with a low and slow cooking method, provides a chili that is different, but surprisingly familiar.
You can serve this with rice, but my preference would be with a slab of cornbread and a generous spoon of crème fraîche.
Texas chili
Texas chili
Servings: 6
Ingredients
3 lbs stewing beef, cubed
3 ancho chilies, dried
5 guajillo chilies, dried
1/2 cup vegetable oil, lard or ghee (ghee is my preference)
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 tbs cumin
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
2 cups beef stock
3 cups water
2 tbs masa harina
1 tbs packed brown sugar
2 tbs apple cider vinegar
Instructions
Preheat oven to 320°F (160°C).
Soak the chilies in 3 cups of very hot water for 30-40 minutes.
Once the chilies have rehydrated a little, remove the stems and place in a blender with a cup of the soaking liquid (keep the remaining liquid for later). Blitz until smooth.
Add the oil to a Dutch oven or oven proof dish with a tightly fitting lid. Fry the beef in batches until browned. Remove to a plate.
Add the chopped onion to the pot and fry until translucent. Add the garlic and stir for one minute.
Add the cumin, salt and pepper and stir to combine.
Pour in the beef stock and blended chilies and stir to deglaze the pan.
Add the browned beef to the pot, and top up with the remaining soaking liquid until the beef is covered by an inch of liquid.
Place the lid on the pot and braise in the oven for 2 hours, or until the meat is fork tender.
Once the chili has finished cooking, put on a low heat. Mix the masa harina with a 1/4 cup water, the brown sugar and vinegar and stir into the chili.
Simmer for 5 minutes until the masa thickens the liquid.
Serve with rice, cornbread or with corn tortillas.
