Beef and Chorizo Chili with Black Beans (For a Crowd)

Beef and Chorizo Chili with Black Beans is scaled for a crowd and perfect for a party! With roasted poblano peppers, spices and a hint of red wine, this is soon to be your new favorite chili!

The inspiration behind this recipe:

After a weekend of decorating for Christmas, I told my husband it would be nice if someone could see my decorations.  (Sniff, feels sorry for self.)  Except for my stepkids and grandkids, we don’t have any other family in the area and no one was coming from the icy north to visit.  We also didn’t have any parties planned, so it seemed I was only decorating for the two of us and the kids.

So to fix that, we decided to have a party!  Naturally, the chef in me begins planning an elegant soiree with a stunning buffet of top-notch menu items like beef tenderloin, shrimp, gorgeous appetizers, etc., etc.

Upon informing my husband of the menu I was planning, I could see the potential stress (and cost) of it all immediately pass before my husband’s beautiful blue eyes.  He preferred simple and casual and back down to earth I came.

So, simple and casual it was and Beef and Chorizo Chili with Black Beans was born.  The rest of the menu consisted of my Sweet and Tangy Barbecue Chicken Sliders, coleslaw for the sliders, potato skins, salad, cheese and charcuterie board.  Everyone asked what they could bring and we let them do it.  Some brought appetizers, some brought dessert.  A good time was had by all and this chili was a hit!

What is chorizo?

This was the first time I had ever used chorizo in chili and it certainly won’t be the last!  I love chorizo and it’s fast becoming one of my favorite ingredients.

• There are two varieties:
  • Mexican which is fresh and raw
  • Spanish which is cured and some types can be quite dry
• True chorizo is made with pork, although it’s now possible to buy chicken chorizo

You’ll want to use fresh, raw Mexican chorizo for this chili.  Spanish chorizo is best served as part of something like a charcuterie board or tapas menu.  The two are not interchangeable.

Now, I’m fully aware of the big beans/no-beans-in-chili debate.  I like beans in chili–especially black beans.  I like the texture variation beans provide to all that meat.  And yes, canned beans are just fine.  Just be sure to drain and rinse them thoroughly before adding to the chili.

This was also the first time I used red wine in chili and it sure won’t be the last!

And poblanos!  Had to use poblanos since we had such a bumper crop.  I had them already roasted in the freezer so all I needed to do was thaw and chop.  Roast the poblanos if you have the time and ambition.  I like to roast them for another level of flavor and to get the skin off, but with all the other vibrant flavors and textures in this chili along with the lengthy cooking time, unroasted and unpeeled is just fine.

I made two good-sized pots of this beef and chorizo chili.  We had a total of 16 people and only one pot was consumed.  We also had tons of other food so the servings everyone dished up were probably half the size they would have taken if the chili was the main course with only a side dish or two.  You should get about 12 hearty servings from each pot.

This beef and chorizo chili for a crowd is perfect to make ahead of time (which is what I did).  Cool thoroughly then refrigerate to allow all these lively flavors get to know one another.  If serving the same day, I like to let it rest a little bit before serving.

For more delicious chili recipes, be sure to try my:

• Skillet Turkey Pinto Bean Chili with Pepper Jack Biscuit Topping
• Slow Cooker Colorado Green Chili
• Chipotle Chicken and White Bean Chili
• Dutch Oven Chili