The Best Chili Ever

Bacon, coffee, and beer are amazing on their own, but would you ever think of putting them all in your chili? I gave it a try, and I’ll never make chili any other way again.

Over a medium flame, use a pair of tongs to char two large poblano peppers on one of your stove’s gas burners. Once they are completely blackened place them in a bowl and seal tightly with saran.  Wait ten minutes, remove the charred skin with your hands, deseed, cut into one-inch pieces, then set aside.

In a large pot, lightly brown two pounds of ground beef then remove and set aside. Add a third of a pound of diced bacon and a large chopped onion to the pot, sauté for ten minutes or until the onion starts to brown.

Add a can of tomato paste, a tablespoon of cumin powder, two tablespoons of chili powder, a teaspoon of Dijon mustard, two minced garlic cloves, two chopped jalapeno peppers, and three finely chopped canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. Stir often and adjust the heat if necessary to ensure the spices don’t burn.

After a couple of minutes, return the ground beef to the pot along with three14oz. cans of diced tomatoes, a large cup of strong coffee, six cups of chicken stock, and a 12 oz. beer of your choice. Cover, bring to a quick boil, then turn down the heat and simmer for an hour.

Rinse three cans of black or pinto beans in a strainer, stir into the chili with the poblano pepper pieces and simmer for another hour covered.

If it’s too soupy after it’s finished cooking, continue to simmer uncovered until it reduces to your desired thickness.  Salt to taste.