Chocolate, Stout & Ancho Chili Con Carne Recipe

Last Updated on 4th April 2024 by Pauline

The title could be longer, somewhere along the lines of…say…the ultimate, out-of-the world, maybe the best chocolate, stout & ancho chili con carne with refried beans…as yet. This recipe is a combination of many chili con carne recipes I came across over the past few months. Many recipes like Nigella’s involve chocolates, and instead of using water or stock, some recipes suggest adding beer for more flavours. I couldn’t decide which recipe to choose, so I added both chocolate and beer. What could go wrong with chocolate, beer and chili right?!

It turned out amazing.

I added refried beans which added extra flavour and made it wonderfully thick. The brown mush is insanely rich and packed full of flavours. It is smokey, spicy, dark, meaty…very tasty. I would suggest adding 1/2 the amount of chocolate first as some people may find the flavour of the chocolate too strong (well, I’m quite happy with the 50 g I added), you can always add more towards the end to taste.

Ingredients:

• 3 dried ancho chiles
• 1/2 cup boiling hot water
• 500 g minced beef
• 1 large onion – diced
• 1/2 bulb garlic – peeled and crushed
• 2 cups passata sauce
• 1 1/2 cups Guinness stout
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 tbs brown sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbs Worcestershire sauce
• 50 g (more or less to taste) dark chocolate – coarsely chopped
• 2 cans (215 g each) spicy refried beans
• 1 large bunch corander leaves – coarsely chopped

Herbs & Spices:

• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp sweet paprika
• 1 bay leaf

Directions:

1. Toast the dried chiles in a hot pan until fragrant, about 2 mins. Cut the chiles open and remove cores. Reserve the seeds. Place chiles and 1/2 cup of hot water in bowl. Set aside for about 15 mins, until chiles are softened. Blend until smooth.
2. Heat up a bit of oil in a pan, add onions, stir fry until softened.
3. Add garlic, fry until fragrant.
4. Add minced beef, fry until dry and browned (until the meat is frying in its own fats, discard some of the fats if you wish). Break any chunks of meat with a wooden spoon.
5. Mix in all the herbs and spices. Fry until fragrant.
6. Pour in ancho chile puree, pasata, stout, water, sugar, salt and Worcestershire sauce. Stir to mix.
7. Bring to boil, then lower heat to simmer for 15 mins, uncovered.
8. Stir in chocolate, cover and continue cooking for another 1 1/2 hrs (or longer). Remember to stir occasionally making sure the sauce doesn’t catch on the bottom of the pan. Add more water if the sauce is drying out.
9. Add refried beans and leave to cook for a few more mins.
10. Season to taste. Add some reserved chile seeds if not spicy enough.
11. Stir in coriander and enjoy!

What I would do to improve this recipe further?

Add bacon and/ or chorizo.
Reduce the amount of chocolate and add some coffee instead for extra flavour.

Pauline

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I'm Pauline, a mother of four grown children, my passion for cooking stemmed from the joy i get cooking for my family. I love to try new dishes, especially when dining out but creating and sharing my own recipes is my favourite thing to do!

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