When I think about my Cold Case Reopened book which is set in Colorado, I think about eating a steaming bowl of chile con carne by a campfire. It’s the perfect kind of meal for a cold winter day and I always make a big pot of it to have leftovers! Hope you enjoy it!

Chile con Carne

Ingredients

2 pounds beef chunks (chuck or bottom round)
1/2 stalk celery finely chopped
1 carrot finely chopped
1 small onion finely chopped
2 garlic cloves finely chopped
2 tbsp tomato paste
2 tbsp olive oil
1 pound small red chili beans (dried beans; rinsed)
2 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp cumin
1 tsp sweet paprika
1 tsp Gochujang (Korean chili paste – can be omitted)
32 ounces Chicken or Vegetable Stock

For later addition to the chili:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion chopped
1/2 red pepper chopped
Salt & pepper to taste

For toppings:

Chopped Onions/Scallions
Shredded Cheddar Cheese
Sour Cream

Directions

Heat the olive oil in a big stockpot or Dutch oven. Add the beef cubes and brown. Do not overcrowd them because you don’t want them to steam instead of brown. You can also substitute pork or chicken, but if you use chicken, you may need to adjust the cooking time as it may break up faster than either beef or pork. Remove beef from the pot and place in another dish for now.

Add the celery, onions, and carrot and cook for about 3-4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for about a minute. Then add the tomato paste and cook for another couple of minutes.

Add the meat back to this pan. Add the beans (make sure you rinsed and picked them through for stones). Add the stock. It should cover all the meat and beans. Add the chili powder, paprika, cumin, and Gochujang and stir.

Cook at a low boil on the stove for 2 to 3 hours. If you are cooking in a Dutch oven or ovenproof pot, you can cook the chile in the oven at 325 degrees for a few hours.

The beans and meat should be tender within two to three hours. Since the original carrots, celery, and onions will have dissolved by now, it’s time to add the other onion and red pepper. Fry them up with the olive oil and then add to the chili.

Once the meat and beans are tender, lower the heat to keep the chili warm. If it has too much liquid, let it simmer without the top to reduce the liquid.

Serve the chile with the toppings! You can also break up some tortilla chips and dice some avocados to also use as toppings.

As I mentioned before, you can change this up by using pork or chicken. You can also substitute ground beef or turkey. As for the heat level, if you love heat, add more of the Gochujang. If you can’t find this red pepper paste, use cayenne, hot sauce, or chiles in adobe. You should be able to find those in the Spanish section of your grocery store.