5 Pepper Steak and Ground Beef Chili
- (3 gallons (11.4 liters) -reduce or increase quantities below to meet your game requirements)
- 5 lbs. Ground Beef
- 5 lbs. Sirloin Beef Steak
- 8 large Poblano Peppers
- 8 Jalapeno Peppers
- 6 Yellow Chili Peppers
- 8 Red Bell Peppers
- 4 Frying Peppers
- 5 medium Onions
- 1 bulb Garlic
- 8 Roma Tomatoes
- 2 large cans Plumb Tomatoes
- 2 large cans crushed Tomatoes
- 24oz. Beer
- 1/2 cup Corn Meal
- Fresh Cilantro
- 3 Tbs. SPG (substitute coarse Salt and Pepper to taste)
- 2 Tbs. ground Cumin
- 3 Tbs. Chili Powder
1. Prep everything
Steak:
Cut the sirloin into bite-sized pieces. Don't make them too small—you want recognizable chunks of beef in the finished chili.
Peppers:
Remove stems. You can leave some seeds/ribs in the jalapeños if you want more heat.
Roughly chop:
- Poblanos
- Jalapeños
- Yellow chilies
- Red peppers
- Frying peppers
Onions: roughly chop.
Garlic: mince or finely chop the entire bulb.
Roma tomatoes: roughly chop.
2. Get the Dutch oven HOT
Put your Dutch oven over medium-high/high heat.
Add a little oil or beef tallow.
Brown the steak FIRST
Do this in several batches.
You want the steak to get deep brown edges, not just steam.
Remove each batch to a bowl.
Don't worry if there's browned beef stuck to the bottom—that's exactly what you want.
3. Brown the ground beef
Add the ground beef in batches.
Break it up into fairly large crumbles rather than tiny pieces.
Brown it well.
Remove excess grease if there's a huge amount, but leave some of the beef fat in the pot. That's going to become part of the chili.
4. Cook the onions and peppers
Now put your onions into the same Dutch oven.
Cook for about 5 minutes.
Then add all of the peppers.
Cook another 10–15 minutes, stirring frequently.
You're looking for the peppers and onions to soften and pick up the browned bits from the bottom.
Then add the garlic.
Cook for about 1–2 minutes.
Don't burn the garlic.
5. Add the spices
Add:
- 3 Tbsp chili powder
- 2 Tbsp cumin
- 3 Tbsp SPG
Stir everything into the vegetables and beef fat.
Cook for about 30–60 seconds.
This blooms the spices and makes a big difference in the flavor.
6. Add the tomatoes
Add:
- 8 chopped Roma tomatoes
- 2 large cans plum tomatoes
- 2 large cans crushed tomatoes
If using whole plum tomatoes, crush them with your spoon or hands as they go in.
Stir thoroughly.
7. Put ALL the beef back in
Return:
- browned ground beef
- browned sirloin
to the Dutch oven.
Stir everything together.
8. Add the beer 🍺
Pour in the 24 oz beer.
A Mexican lager, amber lager, or something like Modelo Especial works nicely.
Don't use an extremely bitter IPA.
The beer should loosen everything up, but you don't want the chili swimming in liquid.
9. Simmer LOW and SLOW
Bring everything just to a simmer.
Then reduce the heat to low.
Put the lid on, but leave it slightly cracked.
Cook for about 2½–3½ hours.
Stir every 20–30 minutes so nothing sticks.
You want a very gentle simmer—not a hard boil.
The steak should eventually become fork tender, while the peppers and tomatoes break down into the chili.
10. Add the cornmeal toward the end
This is important.
Don't add the ½ cup cornmeal at the beginning.
About 30–45 minutes before you're finished, slowly sprinkle in the cornmeal while stirring constantly.
I'd actually start with ¼ cup, let it cook for 10 minutes, and see how thick the chili is.
Then add more as needed.
The cornmeal will:
- thicken the chili
- absorb excess liquid
- give it a subtle corn flavor
- help create that thick BBQ-style chili consistency
You may not need the entire ½ cup depending on how much liquid evaporated.
11. Cilantro goes in at the end
Chop a good handful of fresh cilantro.
Stir some into the chili during the last 5–10 minutes.
Save some for putting on top when serving.
12. Taste and adjust
This is where I'd deviate slightly from blindly following the ingredient list.
Taste it after it has cooked for several hours.
You may want:
More salt: add gradually.
More heat: add chopped jalapeño, cayenne, or hot sauce.
More chili flavor: add another tablespoon or two of chili powder.
Too acidic: a tiny amount of brown sugar can balance it.
Too thin: simmer uncovered longer or add a little more cornmeal.
Too thick: add a little beer, beef broth, or water.
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