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About This Classic Ground Beef Chili Recipe with Beer
This easy recipe is simply a sequence of flavor developing steps that merge traditional ingredients for a chili with ground beef and beans. At the same time you will find the line-up to be carefully calibrated to create a balanced, yet exceptionally rich flavor base.
We go lighter on the tomatoes and add grated carrot in order to achive a natural thickening for the chili. And whereas beer is a commonly used flavoring to chili we purposefully leverage the merits of a rich dark beer to infuse the chili with extra flavor. In terms of the chile part we combine the richness of chiles in Adobo with a generous amount of fragrant, earthy-sweet chili powder and the spicy boldness of a fresh jalapeño.
What is the Best Beer for Chili with Ground Beef?
The best beer to add to beef chili is stout ale or porter ale. Hands down. These two styles offer a number of complementary flavor notes such as soft mocha, chocolate and coffee which enhance the spices in chili and create complexity of flavor. Their malty character and roasted barley/roasted malt derived bitterness offset the acidity of tomatoes and introduce a savory earthiness to the broth.
If you do not feel comfortable discerning and choosing among the merits of various stouts and porters you will always do well if you use Guinness extra stout.
You may have heard that one of the secrets of competition chili is adding cocoa powder to it. This is also done to impart a complexity of flavor by enhancing the other spices without making the chili broth taste like chocolate. Rather, cocoa powder infuses the chili with savoriness that makes it taste as if it was simmered all day. The logic behind using a beer with chocolaty notes is precisely the same.
Ingredients
Below we explain the essential ingredients we recommend that you use to make this recipe and also add a few suggestions for optional additions.
Ground chuck beef. Work with what you have, but keep in mind that if using lean beef you will miss out on the flavor of beef's natural fat while you are browning it. We like to use an 80/20 chuck beef blend even though it is necessary to remove most of the rendered fat at the end of browning. We like it because during the searing the beef absorbs more flavors that remain in the chili.
Cooking oil. To saute the ground beef - use olive oil or vegetable oil.
Aromatics. Yellow onion, one large or two smaller carrot(s), garlic and fresh jalapeño. Be sure to dice the onion smallish and grate the carrots so they can both dissolve into the chili as it simmers. The carrots will both help thicken the chili and infuse it with their characteristic sweetness. For the fresh jalapeño you may remove the seeds and white ribs before you dice it in order to tune down its heat.
Spices and seasonings. Chili powder (we suggest one that has deep flavor, low in heat and sweet), cumin, diced chiles in Adobo sauce, tomato paste, brown sugar, kosher salt and black pepper.
Beer and beef broth. Use a chocolaty dark lager (ex. dunkel) or ale such as a stout or a porter (if in doubt Guinness Extra Stout is always a great choice). Use beef broth that is rich - homemade or prepared with a generous amount of beef base (paste).
Tomatoes and beans. Use one 15 oz can of crushed tomatoes, if you have fire roasted crushed tomatoes even better. Pinto beans are a classic choice for chili while kidney beans add extra earthy sweetness and a different texture. We like to add both. Be sure to rinse and drain the beans you use.
OPTIONAL INGREDIENTS:
- corn - about a cup frozen or canned (drained), add towards the end of the simmering time
- cocoa powder - add 1 tablespoon along with the other spices for noticeably deep, complex notes
- dried Mexican oregano - about 2 tsp, when you add the other spices
- black beans - substitute for the kidney beans or add as extra
- heavy cream - about ¼ to ⅓ cup if you want to chili to feel extra rich and creamy, add along with the beef broth
Step-by-Step Process
- Brown the beef first and do so in two batches. Remove it from the pot and then discard all the fat rendered but about 1 tablespoon in which you will saute the onions and other aromatics to coax more flavor out of them.
Browning the ground beef first has two key advantages:
- the beef sears instead of steams and develops deeper savoriness and these umami-rich notes simmer into the chili
- the beef renders its fat and you can easily remove excess fat before you add the other ingredients and ensure the chili does not end up greasy.
- Saute the aromatics, add back the beef and follow with the stout. Begin with the onion first, cook it until translucent and then add the grated carrot, diced jalapeño and minced garlic and saute for another minute or so. Instead of deglazing with the beer first, add back the browned ground beef, stir and then add the beer. There will be enough time for the alcohol to cook off as the chili simmers yet most of the flavors of the dark ale will imbibe the beef right away.
- Add the spices and seasonings. Add the chili powder, tomato paste, diced chiles in Adobo, cumin, kosher salt, black pepper, and brown sugar. Stir well.
- Finish assembling and simmer. Add the crushed tomatoes, the rinsed and drained pinto and kidney beans and finally the beef broth. Stir well and bring to a gentle boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and let simmer for about an hour. Periodically stir. Taste check for tenderness and seasonings adjustments at that time.
NOTE: Because this recipe is lighter on the tomatoes you can confidently simmer with the lid closed to make sure moisture remains. When you check on the chili as it simmers stir it a bit every time, if needed add a little extra beef broth.
How to Make this Chili in a Slow Cooker
Complete the beef browning and aromatics saute steps in a large, deep pan on the stove top.
Then transfer the aromatics to a pre-heated slow cooker, add in the ground beef, follow with the beer and stir; add the flavorings, beans, tomatoes and beef stock and stir again. Cook on the low setting for about 6 hours (or until beef is really tender) or on the high setting for about 3 hours (or until the beef is tender).
Toppings and Serving Ideas
The classic toppings for a bowl of steaming ground beef chili are: sour cream, finely chopped green onions, grated cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese, cilantro, avocado, a sqeeze of lime to cut through the richness.
Serve the chili with freshly baked cornbread, beer bread or biscuits - try these massive Cathead biscuits or these lazy Butter swim biscuits.
Make a chili baked potato like the one you see below for a complete dinner or enjoy chili fries or chili nachos.
Prepare a chili cheese dip and serve with tortilla chips.
Store, Freeze and Reheat
Store cooled down chili in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Freeze cooled down chili in an airtight container or vacuum sealed bags for up to 3 months. Allow it to thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
Reheat in a pot over medium-low heat. If the chili has thickened considerably add beef broth or simply a bit of water to thin it out as needed.
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Recipe
Rich Ground Beef Chili with Stout Ale
Ingredients
- 3 lbs ground chuck beef*
- 1.5 tablespoon olive oil or vegetable oil or as needed
- 1 yellow onion diced small
- 1 large carrot grated
- 1 jalapeno seeded, ribs removed and diced small
- 5-6 garlic cloves minced
- 12 oz dark beer stout, porter or dunkel
- 2 tablespoon tomato paste
- 3 tablespoon chiles in Adobo diced
- 2 tablespoon chili powder or to taste
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 2 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt or to taste
- ½ teaspoon black pepper or to taste
- 1 15 oz can pinto beans, rinsed & drained
- 1 15 oz can kidney beans, rinsed & drained
- 1 15 oz can crushed tomatoes
- 1.5 cup beef broth
Instructions
- In a Dutch oven or a heavy bottomed pot over medium-high heat add half of the oil and brown half of the ground beef breaking it up with a wooden spoon so it crumbles. Once nicely browned, about 3-4 minutes, scoop it out with a slotted spoon and repeat with the rest of the beef. Remove all the beef, lower the heat to medium and carefully scoop out most of the rendered fat but 1 tbsp.
- Saute the diced onion until it just begins to turn golden, then add the carrot, jalapeno and garlic. Saute another minute and add back all the browned beef. Mix together.
- Add the dark beer and stir.
- Add the tomato paste, chipotles in Adobo, cumin, chili powder, kosher salt and black pepper and brown sugar. Stir well.
- Add the pinto beans, the kidney beans and the crushed tomatoes. Finally, add the beef broth and give a good final stir.
- Bring to a gentle boil and then reduce the heat to low. Cover with lid and simmer for about an hour, or until the beef is very tender. Periodically give the chili a stir and if it appears that it can use a bit more beef broth add some.
- When the ground beef has become tender to your satisfaction, turn off the heat and allow the chili to sit for a couple of minutes uncovered. Taste and season as needed. Serve with sour cream, thinly sliced green onions, shredded cheddar and pickled jalapeno slices.
John
Great for topping baked potatoes! Easy to make and delicious.
Bella
Made this with porter ale. I like that it uses 3 pounds of ground beef, other recipes I have tried produce a thinner and less meaty chili. This one is outstanding.
Emana
Probably the best beef chili I have tasted and I have made a few in my life. The carrot was new to me and I like how it thickened the broth. I had a chocolate stout that in my opinion was undrinkable but it worked so perfectly for beer chili. Great recipe:)
Pat
Lovely flavors, I did use my crock pot and indeed smelled tempting aromas all day. Almost magical. The beef is so tender and saturated with flavor. A real treat. Thank you!
santa
Got the recipe in my e-mail this morning. Done!!!! Thank you for sending, the chili was absolutely delicious. Had an actual Guinness in the fridge and even carrots:) I am planning to make this AGAIN for Super Bowl and let people approach it as they will - will have baked potatoes, avocados, tortilla chips and corn bread.
Milena Perrine
Glad to hear that the timing was good and even better that the outcome so pleasing!