Your search for the best chili recipe is officially over! This is the Best Darn Chili you will ever eat. Hearty and seasoned to perfection with some seriously delicious ingredients, it’s sure to exceed all your chili expectations.
The Best Chili Recipe
I’ve always been obsessed with chili. Then Brandon created this Best Darn Chili recipe and obsessed is now an understatement. I’m so in love with this chili, I crave it constantly, dream about it in my sleep and beg Brandon to make it pretty much every weekend so I can eat the leftovers all week long.
I could eat it for lunch and dinner every day of the week and it would never get old. So delicious!
Everything a Chili Should Be
We call it BDC because it is without question the Best Darn Chili we personally have ever eaten.
It’s got it all going on, but in such a thoughtful and balanced way. Brandon has tested and retested the amount and combination of each ingredient to insure that they all complement each other perfectly. It’s a recipe you fall in love with at first smell, sight and bite.
Sure it requires more ingredients than your quick-fix powdered packet seasoned chili recipes and might take a little more effort to prepare, but trust me, it’s soooo worth it. The taste and texture are the real deal.
Watch Me Make the Best Darn Chili
Join me in a kitchen to make a pot of this hot, hearty, amazing chili.
What is in Chili, Anyway?
What’s supposed to be in chili always stirs a ton of debate. Get it? Stirs? Generally, chili (or chili con carne) is made up of meat in a tomato-based stew-like sauce. But does chili have beans? Y’all know I live in Texas and the official answer here is…no.
So if that’s how you like it, my Simple No-Bean Chili might be your thing!
But I was born and raised in Oklahoma where the chili rules are less strict. So I haven’t let anything stop me from being creative with chili recipes. Like this Easy Chicken Chili Recipe and my Green Chicken Chili.
Brandon’s Best Darn Chili recipe calls for kidney beans and it really is the best chili I’ve ever eaten.
Comforting and Hearty
This flavorful chili gets its comforting heartiness from ground sirloin, beef chuck and kidney beans.
It’s perfectly seasoned and spiced. Sweetness from brown sugar, a little bitterness from the espresso and unsweetened cocoa, slightly boozy from the beer and optional bourbon, and as much kick as you’d like from the jalapeño pepper seeds.
It truly is a chili eating experience like no other.
More Hot and Hearty Soup Recipes
There’s no better way to warm up on a cold day than with a bowl of soup. My Hot and Hearty Soup Recipes are flavorful, filling and the perfect one-pot dinner everyone will love.
What Do I Need to Make The Best Darn Chili?
(see recipe card for measurements and details)
- Vegetable oil
- Onions
- Minced garlic
- Ground sirloin
- Beef chuck
- Canned peeled and diced tomatoes with juice
- Dark stout beer*
- Espresso (or coffee)*
- Tomato paste
- Low sodium beef broth
- Dark brown sugar
- Chili powder
- Cumin powder
- Unsweetened cocoa powder
- Dried oregano
- Ground cayenne pepper
- Ground coriander
- Salt
- Black pepper
- Canned kidney beans, drained
- Fresh jalapeños peppers
- Bourbon (optional)
- Large pot or Dutch oven
*If you don’t want to use beer or espresso, you can substitute them with equal amounts of more beef broth.
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How to Make The Best Darn Chili
- Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Cook onions and garlic until onions are tender and remove from saucepan.
- Add ground sirloin and cubed beef chuck and cook for 10-20 minutes, or until the meat is well browned and all grease has evaporated. Add onions and garlic back into saucepan with the meats.
- Mix in the diced tomatoes with juice, dark beer, coffee, tomato paste and beef broth.
- Season with brown sugar, chili powder, cumin, cocoa powder, oregano, cayenne pepper, coriander, salt and black pepper.
- Stir in 2 cans of the beans and the chopped jalapeño peppers. Bring to a simmer and then reduce heat to low and let simmer for at least 1 hour and 30 minutes.
- Stir in the remaining 2 cans of beans and simmer for another 30 minutes.
- Stir in the bourbon, if desired, just before serving.
- Salt to taste. The amount of salt you add will depend on the saltiness of the beef broth you use. You’ll want to add quite a bit of salt to bring out all the flavors.
How to Serve Chili
Serve with shredded cheese, sliced green onion, sour cream, and cornbread or corn chips (we love Fritos!).
How to Store Chili
Store leftover chili in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to five days. Reheat on the stove over medium-low heat, stirring often, until heated through. Or reheat in the microwave until heated through.
To freeze leftover chili, let cool completely and then place in a freezer-safe container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Let defrost in the refrigerator overnight before reheating and enjoying!
We hope it becomes as much of a family favorite for you as it is for us. Be it for comfort on a cold winter night, for a crowd-pleasing meal during the big football game, or for that neighborhood potluck supper, it’s a guaranteed winner!
If you make the Best Darn Chili and post a pic to social, be sure to tag me on Instagram @thebakermama so I can see! 😍 I just love seeing how inspired and creative y’all get with the ideas I share. Enjoy!
xoxo,
Best Darn Chili
- Prep Time: 30 mins
- Cook Time: 2 hours
- Total Time: 2 hours 30 mins
- Yield: 8-10
- Category: Meals
Description
Your search for the best chili recipe is officially over! This is the Best Darn Chili you will ever eat. Hearty and seasoned to perfection with some seriously delicious ingredients, it’s sure to exceed all your chili expectations.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 medium onions, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 pound ground sirloin
- 1.5 pounds beef chuck, trimmed of fat & cut into cubes (about 1/2 inch size cubes)
- 1 (14.5 ounce) can peeled and diced tomatoes with juice
- 1 (12 fluid ounce) can or bottle dark stout beer
- 1 cup strong brewed espresso (or coffee)
- 2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
- 1 (14 ounce) can low sodium beef broth
- 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
- 3 and 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 tablespoon cumin powder
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 4 (15 ounce) cans kidney beans, drained
- 4 fresh jalapeños peppers, seeded and chopped (we put in 1/2 the seeds for spice)
- 1 tablespoon bourbon (optional)
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Cook onions and garlic until onions are tender and remove from saucepan. Add ground sirloin and cubed beef chuck and cook for 10-20 minutes, or until the meat is well browned and all of the grease has evaporated. Add onions and garlic back into saucepan with the meats.
- Mix in the diced tomatoes with juice, dark beer, coffee, tomato paste and beef broth. Season with brown sugar, chili powder, cumin, cocoa powder, oregano, cayenne pepper, coriander, salt and black pepper. Stir in 2 cans of the beans and the chopped jalapeño peppers. Bring to a simmer and reduce heat to low and let simmer for at least 1 hour and 30 minutes.
- Stir in the remaining 2 cans of beans and simmer for another 30 minutes.
- Stir in the bourbon just before serving.
- Salt to taste. The amount of salt you add will depend on the saltiness of the beef broth you use. You’ll want to add quite a bit of salt to bring out all the flavors.
Notes
If you don’t want to use beer or espresso, you can substitute them with equal amounts of more beef broth.
Recipe looks delicious but would it be a total flop if I omitted the beans altogether?
Ah, a chili purist! Yes, of course you can leave out the beans. It just won’t be as thick. Enjoy!
I just started this, in my slow cooker. I had an Anaheim, a poblano, and a bell pepper left from my garden. So, I threw them in too. I can’t wait to try it!
What is the purpose of the sugar? Been making chile con Carne for years and have never added sugar.
Hi Lu! It adds a nice sweetness to the chili that balances out all of the savory and spiced ingredients so beautifully. Enjoy!
I’ve been making chili for years, but I have to say – this is one excellent chili recipe. Great depth of flavor and great texture. The consistency was just right. I followed the recipe pretty much to the T – for chili powder I used a mix of Ancho chili powder and San Antonio dark chili powder. I used Mexican oregano because I think it has a slightly bolder flavor. For the beer, I used Founder’s Breakfast Stout which has notes of chocolate, it ended up being the perfect choice. Instead of cayenne I used a heaping teaspoon of dried Thai chilies. For additional heat I used two orange habaneros (with seeds), and two jalapenos (with seeds). Instead of adding brown sugar, I added a tablespoon+ of Mike’s hot honey.
Ended up being the perfect heat and made a damn good bowl of chili. Kudos to Brandon for coming up with this recipe, it’s quite delicious.
I loved this the first time I made it using brown sugar but tonight I made it with Stevia not realizing that the ratios are so different. A word to the wise, if using a substitute use a LOT less. We had to throw the whole thing away!
Looks delicious ! I was wondering if you could post recipes for school lunches? I’m trying to eat healthier while trying to balance out homework and exercise and I would like some simple, quick and healthy lunch recipes. Thanks 🙂
Hi Rubi! I’m so glad you asked. I have a blog post with our favorite lunch box ideas that would be great for home lunches too: https://thebakermama.com/recipes/mama-mondays-6-great-school-lunchbox-ideas/ Enjoy!
I so enjoy your site and your recipes. Would you please consider adding a print option so we can enjoy your recipes a little more easily. Thank you.
Hi Rose! Thank you for your sweet compliments! There is a print option for every recipe in the recipe box just under the image that’s within the box. Hope this helps. Continue to enjoy!
This is an outstanding recipe. I made a couple of changes: the 1/3 cup brown sugar sounded too sweet to me so I replaced that with 1 1/2 tbl honey. I also added a can of diced green chiles and I used tw different types of beans, one can light kidney and one can pinto. It’s fantastic! This will be my go-to base for all the chili I make in the future, thank you for sharing the recipe 🙂
These recipes all look amazing. If I had kids, I would totally try them with them! Cheese is my favorite food group so…..
Lots of great comments. Can’t wait to try. I normally make my own chili and family loves it, but I have been in search of something different. I am in search of a brown chili with a flavor profile I remember as a child in a local mom and pop restaurant. Excited to try this one reguardless.