Make yourself a nice batch of Tex-Mex chili. A few years ago our RV Park had a chili cook-off. This recipe won the competition. I call it Almost South of the Border Chili. Unlike real Texas chili that has no beans, this dish is brimming with beans but still has a unique Tex-Mex flavor.
It is intentionally not spicy hot. Many cooks overdo it with hot peppers. Once the dish is too spicy it can not be undone. It is far easier to add some heat – pepper flakes, cayenne powder, or any number of hot sauces, to the chili batch.
Some of the Tex-Mex flavor comes from the use of Chorizo sausage with the ground beef. Chorizo is a Spanish pork sausage which must be cooked before eating. It is flavored with smoked chilis – which gives it a distinctive taste.
I added a ‘secret ingredient’ to the dish – Tiger Sauce. This is a somewhat sweet pepper sauce that packs some heat. It is available in most large grocery stores such as HEB. Look in the hot sauce section. It is also good on taos, etc. It is not essential to making this chili – some other hot sauce can be substituted.
Enjoy!
- Yield: 16 one cup servings
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 60 - 90 minutes
Almost South of the Border Chili
Beef and chorizo sausage combine with several types of beans for a hearty chili with a Tex-Mex flavor.
Ingredients
- Beef chorizo sausage - 2 - 10 oz, pakages
- Ground beef or chuck - 1 16 oz, package
- Yellow onion - 1/2 onion - diced
- Black beans - 1 15 oz. can
- Red kidney beans - 1 15 oz. can
- Pinto beans - 1 15 oz. can
- Garbanzo beans (Chick peas) - 1 15 oz. can
- Crushed tomatoes - 1 28 oz. can
- Tomato Sauce - 1 15 oz. can
- Chili powder - 2 Tbsp.
- Tiger Sauce - 3 Tbsp
- Red pepper flakes - 1/2 tsp.
- Jalapeno pepper - 1/2 web removed and seeded (optional)
- salt - to taste
Instructions
Brown the chorizo and ground beef, adding the onion and pepper (if used) when meat begins to brown. Continue frying until onion is soft.
Drain the liquid from the beans - rinsing with water a couple of times.
Place the beans, spices, and the meat mixture in a large kettle or slow cooker and heat until done. Cook at a low simmer, stirring occasionally, until ingredients are cooked through and flavors have combined.
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