As I mentioned in a recent post, I love me some beef cheeks. I like them so much that after first making them I called the butcher to order 5lbs of them so I could always have a stash of beef cheeks in my freezer. They are that good.
When I got the craving for chili the other day I thought, why not make it with some beef cheeks? I mean I’ve made chili with regular stew beef chunks and figured that short ribs would be better. And since beef cheeks are better than short ribs… wouldn’t that be the ultimate chili? Seriously.
So I defrosted some beef cheeks and set out to make the goodness.
I figured I’d see if there any recipes for beef cheek chili on the internet and I couldn’t find any! So I set out to modify a few recipes for short rib chili to accommodate my beef cheeks.
Chili is so controversial. I rarely find a recipe that has all the things that I like… a good thing that chili is so easy to whip up from scratch. I rarely can find a recipe that has beans and beefiness and tomatoey goodness and a variety of peppers and a bit of broth. Le sigh. But it’s all good. I used this recipe as my source recipe for this chili with a few modifications.
Holy was this chili rich and delicious. Beef cheeks are just so luscious and luxurious that they make everything that much more delicious and almost silky on your tongue. And the flavour was out of the world. Not too spicy and with this great body and depth of flavour from the peppers, cocoa and beer. Oh, I have to say it, cocoa in chili is the best. I’ve always been skeptical but recently took the leap and cocoa really helps along the meaty flavour. It doesn’t taste chocolately, it just tastes good.
What also put this chili over the top was my use of mix-ins. For me, I don’t put a ton of emphasis on mix-ins with chili. Maybe I’ll do sour cream and cheese but I don’t usually go all the way. This time I will and there’s no turning back. I did the usual sour cream and cheese but also kicked it up a notch with cilantro, green onions and red onions. Do it.
And I don’t have to tell you the golden rule of chili, right? But I will. If you can, make it ahead of time (like the night before) to allow the flavours to meld. Chili is so much better the next day.
Beef Cheek Chili
2 dried ancho chilies
2 dried guajillo chilies
2 cups boiling water
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon chipotle chile powder
1 tablespoon chipotle chiles in adobo sauce
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
Kosher or sea salt
1.5 pounds beef cheeks (or short ribs), trimmed
Oil
2 cups diced yellow onion
2 large cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
1 tablespoon dried Mexican oregano (or regular oregano_
2 tablespoon tomato paste
1 28 oz. can whole tomatoes with juice, gently crushed
1 cup beer (I use a dark beer)
1 cup beef broth
1 tablespoon masa harina
1 can of kidney or pinto beans, drained
1 can of black beans, drained
Juice of one lime
Mix-ins: cheese, sour cream, tortilla chips, cilantro, green onions, red onions, jalapenos or whatever you think will taste awesome with this…
Cut open the peppers and shake out the seeds. Toast the peppers in a dry frying pan until they begin to soften. Put them in a bowl with the boiling water and allow to soak until they are very soft.
Toast the coriander and cumin seeds in the same dry skillet until fragrant. Transfer to a blender along with the peppers and their soaking liquid, salt, cinnamon, chipotle powder, chipotles in adobo, and cocoa powder. Puree until smooth and set aside.
Season the beef cheeks with salt and pepper and set aside. Heat some oil in your chili pot and brown the cheeks on each side. Remove the cheeks from the pot and set aside.
Add a bit more oil to the pot if needed and add the chopped onions. Cook until translucent and the add the garlic, oregano and cook until fragrant. Add the tomato paste off to the side and allow to cook on its own for a minute before mixing into the onion mixture.
Return the beef cheeks to the pot with any accumulated juices, then add the chile puree, and the tomatoes, crushing them a bit more. Add the beer and broth and cover simmer over low heat for about 3 or 4 hours (until the cheeks are super tender). If you want you can make the chili ahead of time up to this point if you don’t want to go all the way…
Add the masa harina (it thickens things and adds some corny flavour) and the beans to the pot and allow the beans to heat through. Add more salt if needed and stir in the lime juice off the heat. Ladle into bowls and top with the mixins.
If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!
