Beef and Beer Chili

This Beef and Beer Chili is perfect for game day, a busy weeknight, or Sunday night dinner with the family. It’s loaded with all the classic chili ingredients – ground beef, a variety of beans, and a few key spices – and just a hint of your favorite beer flavor! Ready in 45 minutes with a handful of pantry staples, this beer chili will quickly become a family favorite!

 

You’ll Love This

• This beer chili has GAME DAY written all over it! Nothing pairs better with an ice-cold beer than a hearty chili made with that very same beer! This chili has just enough beer flavor to tantalize your taste buds, but not so much that it’s overpowering. And don’t worry, the alcohol cooks off during the simmering, so this chili is safe for kids!
• It’s simple, quick, and easy! This easy beef chili requires very minimal prep work – just a quick chop of an onion and thinly slicing the garlic. The rest of the ingredients are ready to go as is which makes this a delicious family dinner that won’t leave you stuck in the kitchen for hours. It gets just a quick 30-minute simmer on the stove while you sit back and relax or tackle your to-do list!
• This chili is filled with pantry ingredients! You’ll likely have most of them on hand already which makes this of our family’s favorite meals to throw together on the fly. You might be surprised to see cocoa powder and apple cider vinegar on the list, but I promise they are going to take this chili to the next level. Cocoa powder adds a delicious depth to the chili’s flavor and the apple cider vinegar accentuates all the other ingredients and makes them sing!

Instructions

Add onion along with a couple pinches of salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently for 4 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute, stirring frequently.

Add ground beef and cook, crumbling with a spatula until cooked through.

Add chili powder, cocoa powder, cumin, chipotles in adobo, and a couple pinches of salt and pepper.

Cook, stirring frequently for 1 minute.

Add beans, tomato sauce, and beer.

Simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add apple cider vinegar and season to taste with salt and pepper. Garnish with tortilla strips, Cotija, cilantro, jalapeno, and sour cream!

Tips

• Use whatever beer you like drinking for this recipe. Unless it’s Bud Light or Coors Light. You want something with more flavor. Opt for a local beer – try an ale or lager if you want something milder. Or a slightly hoppy IPA or rich stout if you like a bit more flavor.
• If you prefer to make this chili sans alcohol, feel free to substitute the beer with stock or broth! The flavors will still be delicious!
• I like to use 80/20 beef for this chili. I find that it gives the chili the most flavor without being too greasy. Always remember that fat equals flavor. A leaner cut of beef is not going to give you as much flavor. I would go as lean as an 85/15 beef but definitely not any leaner!
• You can use any kind of beans you have on hand for this recipe. Just keep the ratios the same and you’ll end up with a delicious beer chili!
• If you don’t have apple cider vinegar on hand, white wine vinegar, red wine vinegar, white balsamic vinegar, or regular balsamic vinegar will work just fine in its place!
• If you like your chili spicy, try adding more chipotles in adobo, a couple pinches of cayenne, or some red pepper flakes.
• This beef and beer chili freezes beautifully! Store in an airtight container for up to 3 months in the freezer. Then thaw in the fridge overnight before reheating. I’d recommend heating chili in a saucepan over medium heat until heated through.

Try these soup recipes next!

Print