I love this recipe. Real chili doesn’t have beans in it right? Well, you can still add them if you want. My feeling is that a real chili recipe should have a lot of chili powder in it. So I kept looking until I found one that respected the chili powder, included beer, and can be made in a crock pot. We all know that more time cooking usually means more delicious.

Brown the beef, drain it, and add it to the crock pot.

Sweat the onions, garlic and habanero until translucent. Habanero is a killer pepper. Get this stuff under a fingernail and you will suffer. But when you cook it down and sweat it with onions and garlic it mellows out a bit.

Be sure to season the onion/garlic/habanero mix with salt, then add it to crockpot.

Next, add the spices – chili powder, oregano, cumin and cayenne and mix well.

Add the canned tomatoes along with their juices, and here’s a handy tip. Use some kitchen shears to chop those bad boys right up.

And, Boom! A little cerveza (12 oz to be exact) for more flavor, right?

Add some cilantro and give it a mix, then let it go on high for 5 hours. This will bring all the flavors together and make everything tender.

30 minutes before serving, add the kidney beans. I use dark and light red kidney beans.

I always make some elbow macaroni to go with the chili. I usually spoon my chili directly on top of the pasta. Then what really gives the dish some panache is the toppings. There is a straight up chili topping bar that has to happen. I like to include the following in mine:

Oh, and let’s not forget cheese. Taking a page out of the queso fundito recipe. Here I’m adding a Mexican white cheese (panela) option to my typical medium cheddar.

INGREDIENTS

• 3 1/2 pounds ground chuck beef, ground for chili
• 2 TB olive oil
• coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 large white onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1/2 habanero chili, seeded and very finely chopped
• 1/4 cup chili powder
• 1 TB dried oregano
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 2 (28-ounce) cans whole tomatoes, coarsely chopped with their juices
• 1/3 cup fresh cilantro, plus more for serving
• 1 (12-ounce) bottle amber beer
• 2 (15-ounce) cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• tortilla chips, for serving
• shredded cheddar cheese, for serving
• chopped tomatoes, for serving
• sour cream, for serving
• lime wedges, for serving

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium-high heat. Working in batches if necessary, add beef and cook until no longer pink, about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper; drain in a colander, discarding fat, and set aside.
2. Add remaining tablespoon olive oil to skillet and reduce heat to medium. Add onions, garlic, and habanero; season with salt. Cook until translucent, about 5 minutes
3. In a 6-quart Crock-Pot, combine beef, onion mixture, chile powder, oregano, cumin, and cayenne pepper; stir to combine. Add tomatoes, cilantro, and beer; cover and cook on high, stirring occasionally, for 5 hours.
4. Add kidney beans and season with salt and pepper. Continue to cook uncovered, until thickened, about 30 minutes. Garnish with cilantro and serve with desired toppings.