I’ll never forget the first chili cook-off I ever attended. It was an office event and it hadn’t even occurred to me to submit my own entry. There were about a dozen chilis to choose from ranging from incredible to inedible (the latter being heat related – it was called “The Five Alarmer” and it passed its time at the cook-off largely undisturbed). The ultimate winner, whose chili I had voted for, was a young woman just starting her career. I was an executive at the time, which I mention only to emphasize how awkward it was when I asked her if she would share her recipe with me and she just looked at me and shook her head. I suddenly understood the competitiveness involved in these things – there would be another chili cook-off at some point and she wasn’t giving away any secrets. Thus began my personal quest to win a chili contest!
I tried a number of different approaches in the following years, including a purist Texas style chili that shunned beans and ground beef in favor of unadorned hunks of stew meat simmered in what I thought was an excellent balance of chiles and spices. “Delicious”, someone told me after I placed third, “but it’s not really chili”. The award winning chili had beans in it. And I had to admit it was much better than mine, in part because it had three different kinds of meat in it, including sausage.
So I narrowed my sights to multiple meat chilis and came upon Guy Fieri’s Dragon Breath chili, which is the recipe I’m adapting here. This chili contains chuck meat, Italian pork sausage and ground beef plus three different kinds of peppers (poblano, Anaheim and jalapeño) which results in excellent flavor, texture and heat. And my version has a little something extra! Fieri‘s recipe calls for either bacon grease or canola oil to sauté the aromatics. Easy choice I thought, but it’s not as if you can buy bacon grease so I got a 12-oz package of bacon, cut it into small pieces and rendered the fat myself. It produced just about the right amount of fat, but also an interesting byproduct. As I looked at those cooked bits of bacon I thought “who am I kidding? Those are going into my chili!”
Also Lisa advised that I use three different kinds of chili powder to add a depth of flavor to match up against the three (now four actually) kinds of meat and three types of chili pepper. Finally, my taste in beer steered me toward an IPA rather than the lager suggested by the original recipe.
Aside from those differences and the fact that I brown the meat separately instead of in with the sautéed vegetables, the credit goes to Fieri for an amazing recipe, especially his use of spices which generates a level of heat that is just on the edge, which in my view is where a chili should be.
My chili won two cook-offs outright including one against Dean’s award winning white chicken chili.
It also took best meat chili in a third competition (lost to a vegetarian in the all-around that year) and came in a very close second to Dean’s white chicken chili in another cook-off that was heartbreaking for me. Against a field of roughly 20 chilis and with hundreds of votes tallied, Dean and I were counted up exactly even to tie for the win and the medal was awarded jointly to us. In what has since become known as Chili-gate, I later that day discovered that unlike the previous competition, the cooks were not allowed to vote. I conceded that I had in fact voted and presented sole ownership of the blue ribbon to Dean. I kidded him that my vote was for his chili (it wasn’t).
HERE’S HOW TO MAKE EDDIE’S AWARD WINNING CHILI:
This chili takes time to prepare and involves numerous ingredients, but it’s totally worth it and the basics are straightforward.
Start by roasting, peeling and chopping the chiles. Keep a close eye on them while they are roasting – things can escalate quickly. In the meantime, cut up and fry down the bacon to provide the grease to use for sautéing (and the bacon itself!). You then sauté the chiles and vegetables in the bacon fat, remove them and brown the meat in the same pot.
Then add the spices, the tomato sauce and paste, chicken broth and beer and simmer for two hours.
Lisa asked me to advise you that if you want to be a little healthier you can skim the fat off the surface periodically which, in my opinion, for this dish is sort of like saying that if you want to be a little safer when you go cliff diving, wear knee pads. But anyway consider it mentioned.
No skimming was involved when I took first place in the cook-offs. And if you really want a healthy chili option, try this vegetarian chili. I also want to say that it is great to have a sous chef alongside when you prepare this chili, preferably Lisa. One final note: for my taste the heat level is perfect, but if you want to tone it down, the best way is by reducing the amount of cayenne pepper.
Here’s my award winning chili recipe. If you make this please come back to leave a comment and let me know what you think.
Eddie’s Award Winning Chili
A fantastic award winning chili con carne, with beef, pork, three kinds of chilis, a perfect balance of spice and heat.
- Prep Time: 1 hour 45 mins
- Cook Time: 2 hours
- Total Time: 3 hours 45 mins
- Yield: 10-12
- Category: Main Dish
- Cuisine: Tex-Mex
Ingredients
- 3 Anaheim chiles, roasted, peeled, chopped
- 3 poblano chiles, roasted, peeled, chopped
- 12 ounces of bacon, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch strips and sautéed until almost crisp. Reserve 3 tablespoons of bacon fat.
- 3 tablespoons bacon fat (rendered from the bacon)
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil (canola, grape seed or your favorite)
- 2 red bell peppers, seeds and ribs removed, diced
- 2 jalapeño peppers, seeds and ribs removed, minced
- 2 yellow onions, peeled and diced
- 1 head garlic, peeled and minced (10-12 garlic cloves, 6 tablespoons minced garlic)
- 1 pound boneless beef chuck, trimmed of fat and gristle, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
- 2 pounds ground beef
- 1 pound sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
- 3 tablespoons chili powder (Try using 3 different chili powders for great depth of flavor – I use ancho, chipotle and Mexican)
- 2 teaspoons cayenne pepper (Half this amount for less heat)
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons granulated garlic
- 2 teaspoons granulated onion
- 2 teaspoons hot paprika (not smoked)
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
- 2 cups tomato sauce
- 8 ounces tomato paste
- 12 ounces of your favorite beer (I use an IPA because I like the hoppy flavor)
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 2 15-ounce cans kidney beans, with juice
- 2 15-ounce cans pinto beans, with juice
- Optional Garnishes:
- 1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced or 1 red onion, finely chopped
- Shredded cheddar cheese or Monterey Jack
- Sour cream
Instructions
- Roast the Chilies: Preheat the oven to broil (500ºF) Set an oven rack at the top, directly under the broiler. Spread the chiles out on a low-sided oven tray and roast for 15-20 minutes, turning peppers with tongs every five minutes, until their skins are about 60-70% blackened on all sides. Put the hot peppers directly into a paper bag. Roll down the top of the bag so they’re tightly contained. Let them sit and steam for 15-20 minutes until the skins are loosened and easy to peel off. Peel off skins, remove seeds and membranes, and chop.
- Sauté Chilis and Aromatics: Add the bacon grease and oil to a large heavy pot or Dutch oven (6-quart), over medium-high heat. Add the chopped chiles, red bell peppers, jalapeño peppers and onions. Cook for 5 minutes or until the vegetables just start to become translucent. Add garlic and cook 1 minute longer. Transfer all the sautéed vegetables to a bowl and set aside. No need to wash the pot, you’ll use it to brown the meat.
- Brown the Meats: Add the cubed beef chuck to the pot and cook, stirring often, until lightly browned on all sides, about 4 minutes. Add the ground beef and sausage and cook for 7-10 minutes, stirring to break up the sausage and ground beef, until the meat is no longer pink. Return the cooked vegetables to the pot along with the reserved bacon.
- Add Spices: Add the 3 tablespoons of chili powder, cayenne, coriander, cumin, granulated garlic, granulated onion, paprika, salt and black pepper. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute, until fragrant.
- Add the Rest of the Ingredients: Add the tomato sauce and paste. Cook, stirring, for 2 minutes, to combine. Add beer, chicken stock, kidney beans with their liquid and pinto beans with their liquid. Bring to a boil, lower to a simmer, and cook for 2 hours, uncovered.
- To Serve: Ladle chili into bowls. Top with garnishes or put garnishes into small bowls for self serve.
This chili is incredible and perfect for fall season. Made it for a football gang and it was so good.
★★★★★
Eddie and I are so glad to hear it!
I do believe it to be worth it! Can’t wait to try it (and congrats on the victory!!)
★★★★★
Thanks for the comment Diego – I hope it goes well!
Fantastic recipe! Made it today, served it tonight. It was the best chili I’ve ever had.
I’m not an experienced cook, so it took me several hours to prepare. Thank you for sharing this recipe, and for the helpful instructions, such as roasting the peppers,
I drained half the fat from the meat before adding the veggies to make it a touch healthier, and used 1 1/2 tspn cayenne vs. 2. Served with a dollop of sour cream on top which balanced out the heat nicely.
This recipe makes a lot. I look forward to sharing the leftovers with my family, friends and colleagues.
Thanks so much for taking the time to comment Jennifer – I am so glad the recipe worked out well for you!
Dear Lisa, Eddie, and Dean,
I was so inspired by the story if of your friendship and recipe sharing that I decided I will make both the white chicken chili and the pork and beef – based chili for my family for Christmas. My family was always there for me through hard times, sickness, and debt, and since I have essentially no money right now *muap muaaaap*, I decided these chilis would be the perfect way to share warmth and love without spending too much money. The ingredients are so inticing! I will let you know how they turn out! Thank you so much for generously sharing these!
★★★★★
Of*, not “if of”
★★★★★
Erica – I love the idea of sharing warmth and love with homemade chili. (PS – both these chilis are winners, but please let me know which chili “wins” according your family ;-), especially if it’s mine) And have a wonderful Christmas!
I don’t I like beer. Can I just admit it or is there something else that I can use
Omit? I don’t like beer either, but it adds amazing flavor to this chili. Try it once with the beer. If you don’t like it with the beer, then substitute chicken or beef stock.
Hi Dawna – thanks for your question. First of all, I would tell you that no one tasting this chili would know there is beer in it. The beer combines with other ingredients to add to the overall richness of the flavor, but there is no ultimate taste of beer remaining at the end. That said, if your aversion to beer doesn’t allow you to pour it into the pot, I would recommend using a low sodium beef broth in equal measure as a substitute. Please let me know how that works!
Hi Eddie.
This looks like a fantastic chili recipe. I am going to the market today to buy everything for the chili. I never thought of adding sausage to it though or chicken broth to the chili. I always added beef broth to give it a more robust flavor when it comes to the beef being used. So you would say to substitute the IPA beer for beef broth and use chicken broth instead? That combination I like and will try it when I arrive home today. I think the sweetness from the sausage will play off the hops from the IPA also. I’m excited to see the end results! -AJ-
Hi Andrew – I think you will like the way the IPA works with the other ingredients. Best of luck and I hope it works out well for you!
I finally took this on – AWARD WINNING! Rich flavor – loved the way the whole thing came together. I did modify a bit to keep the pork out – used additional oil and some of the fat I trimmed off the beef. I used chicken sausage. Didn’t feel like we missed the bacon but……Beer of choice was a Guiness.
Will be our go to and we will continue to play!
Thanks Eddie
★★★★★
Joel – thanks so much for your comment. Guinness – love it! Glad to know it works well with chicken sausage – well done on your modifications. Glad to know you will be making it again.
Hello! Loved the recipe! Where is the majority of the heat coming from do you feel, from the chili’s or the cayenne pepper? Just a bit too hot for my taste, so I’m wondering what to cut back on next time.
I used 2 of each of the chili’s and only 1 heaping teaspoon of cayenne this time. I’m thinking of leaving the poblanos out all together but don’t want to loose any flavor!
★★★★★
Hi Michael – thanks so much for your comment and I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe. Heat level is definitely a personal preference and it’s good to know what the levers are. First off I would say that there are some ingredients that add heat only and others that add both heat and flavor. I would put the chilies in the second category and in particular neither the anaheims nor the poblanos are that spicy so I would leave those per the recipe. Given what you tried, I would suggest this: totally eliminate the cayenne pepper and the jalapenos but bring the poblanos and the anaheims back to three each. If that is still not taming the heat enough, I would check your chili powders to see if they are especially spicy and if so, consider bringing those down perhaps to two tablespoons vs three. I happen to really like the chipotle chili pepper in this recipe so leave that in if you can. Good luck and let me know how it goes!
This was the best chili we have ever had!! We made it this weekend – perfect for a cold Saturday evening. Some minor changes – could not find anaheim chili’s, no cayenne pepper, and cut the recipe in half and used an instapot but otherwise followed recipe closely. Cooked in 25 minutes in the pressure cooker. So rich, hearty, full of flavor, I have been obsessing over it the last several days.
★★★★★
Wow Kevin – you totally made my day! Thanks for your comment.
How long should I do this in a slow cooker/crockpot?
What size instant pot did you use? How full was it. I need a large amount and have a 6qt so was checking to see if you cut in half for personal reasons or because that is all that fit.
halved the recipe to fit into our 6 quart insta-pot – gets close – several inches from the top – just made it again for 6 adults and 4 kids and made the full recipe in two insta-pot batches – think we ended up with 11-12 quarts (added a couple of cups of water so would not be too overpowering for the kids) – plenty for everyone and had a few bowls left over. This recipe is fantastic!!
Made this chili Sunday. Am on day 5, chili for supper!!! Love it!! Best chili recipe in the WORLD!!! Wish I could give more than 5 stars!!
★★★★★
Wow Taylor – thanks so much for your comment and the five star rating (one star for each consecutive day of consuming)! My view is that it somehow gets even better when reheated in the days following the initial cooking. I really appreciate your taking the time to let me know.
My husband just made this tonight. Wow! Super flavors and just the perfect amount of heat! Thank you for sharing
★★★★★
Thank you Claire – there’s nothing like a good chili, especially in the colder weather. Glad you enjoyed my recipe!
Made this over a two day period. Roasted the peppers (and i also roasted one Jalapeño and a head of garlic which i only added half). Substituted one of the cans of pinto beans for black beans (like the contrast in the chili) and used fresh coriander rather than the store bought ground stuff. OMG. SO Good! I also sautéed the garlic with the sausage instead of with the veggies, not sure it changed anything but overall.. best chili recipe yet! My Le Creuset 6 qt pot was just the right size for this recipe.
★★★★★
This chili is so delicious! Everyone LOVED it! The flavor is excellent. I used the 3 different chili powders. I only used 2 poblanos, and 2 anaheims, and 2 jalapeños – they were a little difficult to peel. I just used about 1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper. It had perfect heat and it was a little spicy! Everyone has asked for the recipe and I will make it again! Thank you!
Have tried many chili recipes from many sources including local and regional chili cook-offs. Every Superbowl (and I have seen them all except for those when I was deployed during the Vietnam War) I have made chili. Carol Shelby at one time marketed a great pack of fixins. With the advances in technology the internet has offered a wide range of recipes from chefs and home cooks. Some of them were very good. The Food Network with its line of great chefs has also offered fantastic recipes. The Neely’s had a recipe named Super Bowl Chili. It was awesome. Now I found Eddie’s award winner. I was skeptical to say the least. I made it on Saturday before the Super Bowl. The taste test proved that it was fantastic. However after all these ingredients were allowed to chill out in my refrigerator the flavors from the ingredients were allowed to congeal and the results were fantastic. Best chili I have ever eaten.
The Eagles won and so did I. Thank you so much for sharing this epicurial delight.
Mahalo and Aloha
★★★★★
Gilbert – thank you so much for your comment, which is a nice consolation after my Pats lost in the Superbowl (to a very deserving team and exceptional young quarterback). Thanks also for your service to our country. I agree this chili is even better the second day – smart move cooking it ahead!
I’m really glad I found this recipe. I started drooling just looking down the list of ingredients. I plan on making the chili this weekend, but have a feeling the Anaheim peppers are going to be difficult to find in February in NJ. I will try the local Whole Foods and maybe a local co-op, but am not holding my breath. If I can’t find them, should I add more (or even double up on) Poblano’s?
Hi Bryan – more poblanos are definitely your best option if you can’t find Anaheims. There are subtle differences between these two peppers but they are both in the mild catetory. Since the poblano is a little more pungent than the Anaheim I might suggest swapping the 3 Anaheims for two poblanos and one green bell pepper. Doing a little research to answer your question took me to the Scoville scale and I have you to thank! Best of luck with this and let me know how it turns out!
https://www.chilliworld.com/factfile/scoville-scale#ChilliPepperScovilleScale
Making your chili for a contest tomorrow. Im adding a few of my own touches,just putting a little of my spin on it. I’ll let you know how it goes.
I am a novice at best but we have a small fundraiser and I chose yours to make.. I did use 1lb hot Italian and 1 lb spicy pepper cheese sausage made at our local smokehouse with their hickory bacon as well as the Chuck and 2 lbs hamburger…1 blue moon and half the cayenne.. my wife decided we should add some Brown sugar and with taste testing about 6 tenths of a cup make is taste sweet and finish with heat my 1st grader can take. It is a little time consuming for a rookie 1st time but it tastes great. thanks from Mountain, Nd
★★★★★
Hi Josh – so glad you enjoyed this chili and that you were able to adapt it for a first grader palate, those sound like interesting modifications. I hope your fundraiser was successful!
Love making a good pot of chili no matter how long it takes to make it and the this recipe is one of the best chili I have ever made. The spices are excellant. The only thing I added was dark chocolate its something I picked up from a winning chili contest I was at and the winner shared this with me. next time making this will double the batch and freeze it it does freeze good.
★★★★★
My 16-year-old daughters high school chili cook off is this weekend. I have researched and I am going to be using your chili recipe. Looks like a winner. I have been involved in several chili cook off‘s at work etc. in the past and have never like you come in beyond second place. I’m hoping yours is a winner. Just finished at the grocery. Now have $60.55 invested in this pot of chili. LOL. Good things cost. Question? I could not find Anaheim chiles. I am going to use Cubano Chili’s or Ancho Chili’s?
Hi Kirk – best of luck with your daughter’s cook off! I assume you are referring to cubanelles which are a milder pepper than Anaheims. I would consider perhaps swapping in one cubanelle and two more poblanos (or two and one). But if it means going back to the store, just go with what you have – it will be fine. Please let me know if your daughter wins!
Winning!!!
Competed in my second Chili Cookoff last night. I usually make up my own recipe… I mean, who follows a chili recipe anyways??? Well after doing it my way and losing real bad, last night I stuck to this recipe as close as I could get it while substituting venison for beef as per the rules of our competition. Ohhh mannnn. Out of the 6 competitors, one with some insane sweet chipotle smoked duck bacon topping, I managed to come out victorious.
This is a great recipe and I think the biggest advantage is the chunks of meat in the chili make for a different texture and keeps chili from becoming a sloppy joe consistency… Smart move!
Thanks for the recipe!
★★★★★
Hi Dave – wow, thanks for sharing. You are the first person to report a cook-off victory using this recipe (mostly). I will have to try substituting venison – sounds delish!
OMG…We won first place at my Rotary Club’s 3rd annual Chili Cook-Off! My coworker and I modified the receipt ever so slightly with the beans and tomato sauce–it turned out fabulous.
Thanks so much for sharing!
★★★★★
Hi Donald. Wow – you must have made one fine chili! So glad my recipe helped you win – it’s a special feeling coming out on top of these things and I couldn’t be happier for you and your co-worker.
Wowza! This came out fantastic! Like, you, I’m a huge fan of IPAs when it comes to beer, though I’ve never used a beer in my chili-making. I’ve always been a “Better than Bouillon” (chicken stock) girl. But, I decided to give it a Go and chose my favorite, Dogfish Head IPA. The only other cahnge I made was using Serrano peppers in place of jalapeños due to my love for more heat. Lastly, I added 2 stalks of celery. No biggie. I just like all the things. Heh. Other than that… followed I followed your recipe to a T (something I don’t typically do!) and oh-so-glad I did! Thanks for sharing!
★★★★★
Hi Raven – Dogfish Head is also my son’s favorite IPA. I will have to try that next time! I am so glad the recipe worked out well for you and I like that you added your own touches. Who doesn’t want all the things, after all. Happy cooking!
Hello, I plan to make this. One question Eddie, ground coriander or fresh ground cilantro?
Hi Al – I happen to love coriander/cilantro in any of its incarnations, but for this recipe I want to make it clear that it is the seed and not the leaf that is ground and these are not interchangeable. So if you have dried coriander seeds and want to grind them yourself, I imagine that would probably be preferable to pre-ground, since most things are. You might in that case adjust the amount down slightly to account for the extra flavor. Let me know how it comes out!
Hi Eddie, thank you for the response. I am preparing this chili as we speak. I’m on the fence as to what beer to add. I also cook with beer, so my thought is to use a can of Clamoto ( Bud light red beer) being it’s chili thought it to be a good choice? I truly would like your opinion on this. As I have not yet had end result of your recipe. I am entering this in a work chili cook off. Hence me making it Wednesday so all flavors can marry for Friday.
Hi Al – if that beer has good flavor I’m sure it will be fine. Best of luck!
Hi Eddie, I’m confident. I found your recipe by looking for similar ingredients. I didn’t stray far from your recipe. I will leave a detailed report this weekend as to how it went. Taking a moment to thank you for such a detailed instructional guide to an awesome recipe! Thanks from FL
Hello Eddie, as promised I am reporting back. I made the chili, came out awesome!! Beer of choice was clamato ( red beer with a hint of clam) only modifications were Cubenell peppers in place of Anahiems, Jalapeno sausage from S&L sausage factory in GA instead of sweat and backed off ceyenne a little bit. Opted for a little less heat. Aside from said mods adhered to recipe. Came out Awesome!!! And took first place! Thanks for sharing. Sharing secrets is tough but you have many enjoy a wonderful dish. Lot of work but worth every minute.
Delicious! I entered a chili cook off at work w this recipe last week and won. Only 7 entrants but still.. Turned out great. It was a little time consuming but the finished product was outstanding. I followed recipe exactly except for draining bean juice from cans and adding extra beer. Thanks for the recipe. Gregg
Hi Gregg – props to you on your first place finish! That’s still six other entries you had to beat – first is first.
Thanks Eddie!
I used your recipe as a baseline, changed the peppers used, changed the ratio of spices and meat. Entered my first ever contest and won “people’s choice chili” in a local fundraiser BBQ and chili cook off.
★★★★★
Congratulations Kimberley – a first time winner! You can retire undefeated (or just keep on winning). Thanks for leaving a comment.
Great recipe. Always searching for ways to up my chili cook-off game. Just a word of advice for anyone entering an official International Chili Society sanctioned event: 1) You only have 3-hours to cook the chili you turn in for judging 2) with the exception of pre-ground meat, and canned tomatoes, everything must be cook/prepped within that 3-hour window. 3) NO BEANS EVER in competition chili.
Anyway, thanks for the awesome recipe! Makes my mouth water just reading it!
Wonderful recipe! Definitely a perfect balance of spice and heat. So flavorful and satisfying. The time it takes to prep and cook is totally worth it – what a payoff! Plus it offered some quality cooking bonding time for my husband and me. We’ll be freezing leftovers to enjoy this winter (if we can wait).
★★★★★