Brews and Blues Beer and Smokin’ Blues

Drunken Chili

I decided I wanted to make some more chili this afternoon, so I started thumbing through "The Ultimate Chili Cookbook" by W.C. Jameson to find a recipe that I thought sounded interesting. I came across a recipe called Bob's Drunken Chili that looked interesting to me mainly because the ingredients list didn't have a few items that I consider to be staples of a chili recipe. This recipe contains no tomatoes or tomato sauce, and chili powder is also not on the list. Here's the recipe which include a few modifications I made on my own:

Drunken Chili

2 tbsp olive oil
3 fresh poblano chiles, chopped and seeded
3 fresh anaheim chiles, chopped and seeded
1 jalapeno pepper, chopped and seeded
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 lbs lean beef, cubed 1/4"
1 bottle of beer (I used Samuel Adams Boston Lager)
1 can beef broth
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp oregano
salt and pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in a stock pot. Add peppers, onions, and garlic and saute over high heat until the onions start to clear. Add the beef and saute until brown. Add the beer and beef broth, bring to a boil, and then simmer for 30 minutes. Add cumin, paprika, oregano, salt and pepper and stir. Simmer for an additional 60 minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste test and adjust salt and pepper to your requirements. I added a pinch of salt when I added the beer, and then added about a teaspoon with the rest of the dry ingredients...

The taste of this chili was excellent. I am a fan of the anaheim/poblano/jalapeno combination. This chili is not overly spicy and I can't call it HOT at all. It has the consistency of a stew and would probably serve very nicely over a bed of spanish rice.

I think this recipe has a lot of room for some modifications, so I might experiment with it more later...