Chili con carne
Texas Beef and Pork Chilli with Dried Chillies
Texas chilli is a stew of meat and dried chillies, with no beans and, in this version, no tomatoes. The sauce comes from soaked guajillo and de arbol chillies blended smooth, and the meat is cut in small cubes rather than minced.
Chilli is a regional dish, with Skyline chilli in the Midwest and a bean-free version in Texas.
One recipe browns 450 g each of cubed beef and pork shoulder in bacon fat, adds a purée of 12 dried chillies, spices and 360 ml of stock and simmers for an hour. The other uses beef chuck smoked briefly, with tomatoes, carrots, chocolate and tortilla chips, and simmers about 3 hours.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 6 large dried guajillo chillies
- 6 dried chiles de arbol
- 950 ml boiling water
- 2 tbsp bacon fat or lard
- 450 g beef shoulder, in 6 mm cubes
- 450 g pork shoulder, in 6 mm cubes
- 5 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 small yellow onion, minced
- 1 tbsp dried oregano
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- 1 tbsp plain flour
- 360 ml beef stock
- Fine sea salt and black pepper
Method
- Soak the chillies Remove the stems and seeds from both kinds of chilli and soak them in the boiling water for 30 minutes, until soft. Blend them with the soaking water until smooth.
- Brown the meat Heat the fat in a large heavy pot over a medium-high heat and brown the beef and pork for about 12 minutes, stirring now and then, until deeply coloured.
- Add flavour Push the meat aside, add the garlic and onion to the centre and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in the oregano, cumin and flour and cook for 2 minutes.
- Simmer Add the chilli purée and the stock and bring to the boil. Lower to medium-low, partly cover and simmer for about 1 hour, stirring now and then, until the meat is tender and the sauce has reduced. The pork must be cooked through, with no pink.
- Season Season with salt and pepper and serve in bowls.
Food safety
Check that the pork is cooked through, with no pink. Dried chillies irritate eyes and skin: wear gloves and wash hands. Cool leftovers quickly and reheat until piping hot.
The chilli improves overnight.
Add more stock if it gets too thick.