Modified Tuscon Jailhouse Chili
Submitted by laraesly
Slow-cooker beef chili with pinto beans, green chiles, jalapeños, and a splash of balsamic for brightness. An Arizona-style chili that simmers 8 hours and tastes better the next day.
YIELD
6 servingsPREP
25 minCOOK
8 hrsREADY
8 hrsArizona-style beef chili that leans into the Tucson tradition of double heat: mild green chiles for body plus sliced jalapeños for bite. Ground beef gets browned hard, onions and garlic sautéed separately so they stay bright rather than muddy, then everything goes into the crockpot for a long, lazy cook.
The balsamic vinegar is the unexpected ingredient. A tablespoon adds quiet acidity that makes the other flavors pop without announcing itself. Brown sugar softens the chili powder’s edge, pinto beans soak up the sauce, and the whole pot mellows into something richer after a day in the fridge.
Crack the lid after 8 hours on low, garnish bowls with grated sharp cheddar and sliced green onions, and serve with corn chips or warm tortillas. Freezes in quart containers for 3 months.
Chef Tips
- Bloom the chili powder for flavor depth. Stir it into the hot fat right after cooking the beef, before adding liquid, to wake up the spice.
- Don’t skip the balsamic. Acid is what separates bright chili from muddy chili. Taste and add more if needed before serving.
- Make the chili a day ahead if you can. The flavors marry overnight and the second-day bowl tastes dramatically better.
- Drain the canned beans thoroughly or use cooked dried beans (the recipe includes instructions). Canned bean liquid is salty and cloudy.
Variations
- Substitute half the ground beef with chorizo for a spicier, porkier version.
- Use black beans or a mix of kidney and pinto for texture variety.
- Stir in a square of dark chocolate or a tablespoon of cocoa powder in the last hour for Oaxacan-style depth.
Ingredients
Directions
PREPARATION: Dice onion, and purée garlic.
To purée garlic, put a clove under a knife blade, hit the blade, which will remove the peel, then dice the clove, add a little salt, and crush the diced clove under the blade of a heavy knife until pureed.
Sauté onions in olive oil; when onions clear, add garlic puree.
Stir quickly (less than a minute) to avoid onions browning.
Remove sautéed onions and garlic from skillet.
Brown beef in skillet; drain well.
Add sautéed onions and garlic, stir quickly, then pour into crockpot.
Add all other ingredients and stir.
Cook eight hours on low, four hours on high.
OPTIONAL: Best cooled and re-heated.
Garnish with grated sharp Cheddar cheese and sliced green onions; serve with corn chips.
To use dried instead of canned beans, soak two and two-thirds cups (one pound) pinto or kidney beans overnight in three times their volume of water.
Add salt to the water the next morning, and slowly bring to a boil.
Boil ten minutes, cover, and let simmer for two hours until beans are tender.
Drain before using in recipe.
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