Kevin's Famous Chili from The Office

4h
Serves 1
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Directions

  1. 1Start by ripping open the dried ancho chilies and dried cascabel chilis and getting all of the seeds out.
  2. 2Tear the chilies into about 1 inch pieces.
  3. 3Place the chili pieces into a saute pan over medium heat and toast until just barely smoking and fragrant.
  4. 4Take the toasted chilies and place them into the bowl of a food processor.
  5. 5Blitz the chilies until they're a very fine powder; this will take about two or three minutes.
  6. 6Add 1 tablespoon cocoa powder, 3 tablespoons cornflower, 1 tablespoon freshly ground cumin, and 1 tablespoon dried oregano to the food processor.
  7. 7Pulse a few times to combine the dry ingredients.
  8. 8Add ¾ cup of chicken stock to the food processor while it's running to make a spice paste.
  9. 9Core and dice about 6 roma tomatoes.
  10. 10Finely mince 2 jalapenos.
  11. 11Finely mince one half of a habanero pepper (use gloves for this step).
  12. 12Mince 4 cloves of garlic as fine as you can and then squish it back and forth against the board until you have garlic paste.
  13. 13Trim the gristle and fat off of 3 lbs of chuck steak.
  14. 14Cut the chuck steak into strips, and then dice it into little cubes.
  15. 15Do a rough chop through the diced beef to get it closer to ground beef consistency while maintaining texture.
  16. 16In a nice wide pot, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and start browning the beef in batches to avoid overcrowding and ensure a good crust forms.
  17. 17Set the browned beef aside.
  18. 18Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the pan and place over high heat.
  19. 19Add the diced large onion and sauté until they are just sweating (undercooked).
  20. 20Deglaze the pot with 12 ounces of light lager, scraping all the good stuff (fond) off the bottom of the pot.
  21. 21Add the chopped tomatoes to the pot.
  22. 22Add the remainder of the beer to the pot.
  23. 23Add the spice paste to the pot.
  24. 24Give that a mix before adding the browned beef back to the pot.
  25. 25Add the remainder of the chicken stock from the 32oz carton to the pot.
  26. 26Add about 2 tablespoons of brown sugar to the pot.
  27. 27Add the garlic paste to the pot.
  28. 28Add the soaked red kidney beans to the pot.
  29. 29Stir all ingredients well.
  30. 30Put the pot in a 300°F oven with the lid ajar for 2 to 3 hours or until the beef is completely tender, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching.
  31. 31Season with salt and pepper as you see fit.
  32. 32Serve the chili, optionally with aged white cheddar on top.

Ingredients

  • 3 ounces dried ancho chilies, seeded and torn into 1 inch pieces
  • 1 ounce dried cascabel chilis, seeded and torn into 1 inch pieces
  • 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
  • 3 tablespoons cornflower
  • 1 tablespoon freshly ground cumin
  • 1 tablespoon dried oregano
  • 0.75 cup chicken stock
  • 6 roma tomatoes, cored and diced
  • 2 jalapenos, finely minced
  • 0.5 habanero pepper, finely minced
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3 lbs chuck steak, trimmed of gristle and fat, cut into strips and diced into cubes
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 12 ounces light lager
  • 6 ounces red kidney beans, soaked until tender
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • salt
  • pepper

Equipment

food processorsaute panglovesknifepotoven

Tips

  • Use gloves when chopping habaneros to avoid irritation.
  • Brown beef in batches to prevent overcrowding and steaming, ensuring a good crust and fond formation.
  • Deglaze the pot with beer to scrape up all the flavorful fond.
  • When adding more habanero, use some coffee to neutralize it a bit.