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HAM COOKING

Crockpot Texas-Style Beef Chili

No beans, no apologies. Chunks of chuck slow-simmered in a deep red chile sauce until spoon-tender. Thick, beefy and built for a cold night.

Ingredients

Ingredients for 8 servings

Original recipe serves 8. Ingredient amounts adjust automatically. Cooking times and pan size may need adjusting separately.

  • 3 lb beef chuck roast, cut in 1-inch cubes
  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil, divided
  • 2 tsp kosher salt, divided
  • 1 yellow onion, diced
  • 5 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/4 cup chili powder
  • 1 tbsp ground cumin
  • 2 tsp dried oregano
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste
  • 1 can crushed tomatoes, 15 oz
  • 1 1/2 cups beef broth
  • 2 chipotles in adobo sauce, minced, plus 1 tbsp of the sauce; use 1 for milder chili
  • 1 tbsp brown sugar
  • 3 tbsp masa harina, or fine cornmeal
  • 1/3 cup warm water
  • shredded cheddar, diced onion and sour cream, to serve

Gear

  • Slow cooker, 6 quart
  • Large skillet
  • Wooden spoon

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Steps

  1. Step 1: Pat the beef dry and season with 1 tsp of the salt. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a big skillet over medium-high heat and brown the beef in two batches, 4 to 5 minutes per batch. Move it to the slow cooker.

  2. Step 2: Turn the heat to medium, add the rest of the oil and the onion and cook 4 minutes. Add the garlic, chili powder, cumin, oregano, paprika and tomato paste and stir 1 minute, until it smells toasty.

  3. Step 3: Pour in the beef broth and scrape up every brown bit from the pan. Pour it all over the beef.

  4. Step 4: Add the crushed tomatoes, chipotles and adobo sauce, brown sugar and the remaining 1 tsp salt. Stir.

  5. Step 5: Cover and cook on Low 8 hours, until the beef is tender enough to cut with a spoon.

  6. Step 6: Stir the masa harina into the warm water and stir it into the chili. Cook uncovered on High 20 minutes to thicken. Taste and adjust the salt.

  7. Step 7: Serve with cheddar, onion and sour cream.

All recipes

Swaps

  • Beef: 3 lb ground chuck, browned and drained, if you want a classic texture.
  • Beans: Want beans anyway? Stir in 2 drained cans of pinto beans for the last hour. Nobody’s checking.
  • Masa: 2 tbsp cornstarch mixed with cold water thickens it too.

Tips

  • Cubes, not ground beef, are what make it Texas style. Each bite should be a tender chunk.
  • Toasting the spices in the pan with the onions makes them taste deeper and less dusty.
  • Chili is always better the next day. Make it ahead if you can.

The story

HAM Cooking. Let’s fire it up.

In some parts of the country, putting beans in chili starts arguments at the dinner table. I’m not here to settle it. I’m here to tell you this pot doesn’t need them.

Texas-style chili is all about the beef and the chile sauce. Instead of ground meat, you use cubes of chuck, and the slow cooker is perfect for that. After eight hours, the connective tissue in the chuck melts and every cube turns spoon-tender while it soaks up the sauce.

The few minutes at the stove are what separate good chili from great chili. Browning the beef builds flavor through the same browning reaction that makes a steak crust taste so good. Toasting the spices in the hot oil wakes up their flavor, which a cold slow cooker can’t do on its own.

Masa harina at the end is a classic thickener. It’s the corn flour used for tortillas, so it thickens the chili and adds a little sweet corn flavor at the same time.

Bowl it up, pile on the cheese, and let the bean debate rage without you.

HAM out.

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