Cowboy Chili Recipe

Cowboy chili topped with sliced jalapenos and grated cheddar cheese

Vibrantly red and earthy with kidney beans, New Mexico Chile Powder and tomato paste, this chili is a perfect balance of Southwestern flavors. Hearty and robust, keeping ingredients simple and pure gives this Cowboy Chili Recipe its unique layers of flavor.

Course Soup, Stews and Chilis

Cuisine Southwestern

Diet Gluten Free

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 30

Soaking Dried Beans 12

Servings

Calories 258kcal

Author Lea Ann Brown

Ingredients

1 pound dried kidney beans Cooked
3 cups Beef broth or water
2 Tablespoons lard or bacon grease
1 Pound lean ground beef 93% lean - 7% fat works well here
1 large sweet onion chopped. About 1 - 1 1/2 cups
3 cloves garlic minced
3 Tablespoons cumin powder
2 Tablespoons Chile Powder Preferrably New Mexico Chile Powder, And Chimayo Chile Powder even more preferred. Add more if your heat tolerance will allow.
6 ounces tomato paste Good quality. Either Cento or Muir Glen.
2 cups water
salt and pepper to taste
Garnishes listed below

Instructions

Soak dried beans overnight in water. Use enough water to cover the beans by an inch or two. The next morning, drain the beans. Using a crock pot or Dutch oven, add the beef broth, the lard or bacon grease to the beans and simmer covered until tender. Depending on the age of the beans, this could take a 2-3 hours in a Dutch oven, or 5 hours in a crockpot on low.
Once the beans are tender, start making the chili. Brown the meat in a large skillet. When meat is about half browned, add the onion and cook, stirring often until onion is starting to become soft. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant. About 1 minute.
Add the cumin and chile powder to the ground beef and stir till everything is coated. If it's not spicy enough add more red chile powder. The original recipe calls for 4 tablespoons. I used 2 tablespoons. It all depends on the heat of the chile powder and your heat tolerance level.
Cook, stirring for about 2 minutes. When all of this is a nice deep red color, then add the tomato paste and water.
Simmer gently for 15 minutes. You'll have a mixture that reminds you of Sloppy Joes. Add this mixture to the cooked beans (don't drain beef broth from the beans). Simmer for 15 minutes in a Dutch oven. If you're using your crockpot, add the beef mixture and the two cups water to the cooked beans and cook on low for 2 hours.
Serve with garnish and cornbread. Garnishes can include chopped avocado, sliced jalapeno peppers, sour cream, grated cheddar cheese and cilantro.

Notes

Easiest Way To Cook Dried Kidney Beans: I like to use my crockpot. Place the beans in the base of your crockpot with enough water to cover the beans by a couple of inches. Place the lid on and let them sit on the counter overnight. The next morning drain the water then add three cups of beef broth to the beans. Add a dollop of lard or bacon grease and the beans will be even creamier. Cook on low for 5 to 6 hours, or until beans are tender. The age of the bean will determine cooking time. The fresher the beans, the quicker they cook. Once they’re tender, don’t drain them. Add the cooked Cowboy Chili ground beef mixture. Cook on low for two more hours.

If using canned beans for this recipe, substitute three 15.5 ounce cans, drained and rinsed. You'll still need to add the beef broth for the liquid for this chili. but omit the water called for later in the recipe. When cooking dried beans in beef broth, the beans will soak up some of that broth. The canned beans won't soak up the broth because they're already cooked, so water may not be needed.

Nutrition