Blackwell Chili
Beef and sweet Italian sausage, three chili powders, San Marzano tomatoes, and a can of golden ale. Tex-Mex with an Italian accent.
Ingredients
Meat
- 1–1.5 lb ground beef (or ground veal or pork)
- 1–1.5 lb sweet Italian sausage, ground or uncased and chopped
Vegetables
- 2 medium Vidalia (sweet) onions, diced
- 4–6 cloves garlic, finely diced (more if you like garlic)
- 1 red bell pepper, finely diced
- 1 yellow bell pepper, finely diced
- 1 green bell pepper, finely diced
- 2 large or 3 small jalapeño peppers, cleaned and diced
Spice Mix
- 3 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 tablespoon chipotle chili powder
- 1 tablespoon ancho chili powder
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon cracked black pepper
The Pot
- 1 (12–16 oz) can golden or blonde ale: Athletic Brewing Company’s Upside Dawn (non-alcoholic) or Boddingtons Pub Ale
- 2 (15-oz) cans dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed (or 1 dark red + 1 light red)
- 2 (28-oz) cans whole San Marzano tomatoes
- 1 (4-oz) can tomato paste
To Serve
- Lime wedges and sliced scallions
- Shredded cheddar and sour cream, on the side (optional)
- Cornbread
Method
Mix the spices
Combine all the spices in a small bowl or plastic bag and blend well. Set aside.
Sauté the onions and garlic
In a Dutch oven over medium-high heat, sauté the onions, stirring occasionally, until softened and starting to brown, 4–5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute, stirring. Don’t burn it; burnt garlic adds a bitter taste that will ruin the chili.
Bloom a quarter of the spices
Add ¼ of the spice mix. The rest goes in a little at a time later, as the chili simmers. Add all the bell and jalapeño peppers and cook 3–4 minutes, stirring occasionally. The result will be a moist paste; be careful not to burn it.
Brown the meat
Reduce heat to medium and add the beef and sausage. Break it up and cook uncovered until no longer pink. Skim the fat if you must. I leave it in. Fat equals flavor.
Add the beer and beans
Pour in the beer and scrape up any residue on the bottom of the pot. (Chef’s golden rule: taste the beer before it goes in.) Add the beans and stir to mix well.
Squeeze in the tomatoes
Squeeze the whole San Marzanos by hand directly into the pot, crushing them as you go, and add the juice from the cans. Stir to mix well.
Bring to a boil
Turn the heat back up to medium-high and bring to a boil, stirring until it boils steadily. Stir in the tomato paste.
Simmer
Cover and reduce the heat until you just barely get a simmer. Simmer over medium-low to low heat at least 1 hour, ideally 3. The longer it goes, the better the flavors come together. Stir occasionally and taste regularly, adding salt and pepper as needed.
Season to taste
After about an hour of simmering, taste. Add more of the spice mix a little at a time. After each addition, stir well and simmer 10–15 minutes before tasting again. This is the part no recipe card can do for you.
Serve
Ladle into bowls and garnish with lime wedges and scallions, with cheddar and sour cream on the side. Serve with cornbread.
Notes
Game day: Make it a day ahead. Like most chili, it’s better the second day, and it reheats beautifully in a pot on the grill.
Beer: Stick with a golden or blonde ale. A hoppy beer like an IPA can turn bitter over a long simmer.
Beans: Dark red kidney beans, or a can each of dark and light red. Kidney beans hold their firm bite through hours in the tomatoes. Just don’t use navy beans.
Heat: If you overdo the spices, sour cream and cheddar on the side help cut the heat.