Beef Chili with Bacon and Black Beans

From America's Test Kitchen

Why this recipe works:

Many basic chili recipes yield a pot of underspiced, underflavored chili reminiscent of sloppy Joes. We wanted an easy recipe for a basic chili, made with supermarket staples, that would have some heat and great flavors—chili that would please almost everyone.

To start, we added the spices to the pan with the aromatics (bell peppers, onion, and lots of garlic) to get the most flavor, and used commercial chili powder with a boost from more cumin, oregano, cayenne, and coriander. For the meat, we found that 85 percent lean beef gave us full flavor. A combination of diced tomato and tomato puree gave our chili a well-balanced saucy backbone. We added canned black beans with the tomatoes so that they heated through and absorbed flavor. For a rich, thick consistency, we cooked the chili with the lid on for half of the cooking time.

Makes about 3 quarts, serving 8 to 10

Good choices for condiments include diced fresh tomatoes, diced avocado, sliced scallions, chopped red onion, chopped cilantro leaves, sour cream, and shredded Monterey Jack or cheddar cheese. If you are a fan of spicy food, consider using a little more of the red pepper flakes or cayenne--or both. The flavor of the chili improves with age; if possible, make it a day or up to five days in advance and reheat before serving. Leftovers can be frozen for up to a month.

Ingredients

Try AmericasTestKitchen.com
FREE for 14 Days

Start Your 14-Day Free Trial Membership

Get all 13 years of America’s Test Kitchen:

Full access to 13 seasons of America’s Test Kitchen recipes.
Complete 13 year video library — watch entire episodes or individual clips.
Up-to-date results for all our Taste Tests & Equipment Reviews.
Easy to print shopping lists, and more.

Dear Friend,

It is hard to believe, but 2013 marks the thirteenth anniversary of the America’s Test Kitchen television show. Since our very first season, we have been public television’s most watched cooking show and have shared hundreds of our best recipes, equipment reviews, ingredient taste tests, and cooking techniques with our viewers. And, AmericasTestKitchen.com is the only place you’ll find everything we’ve ever featured on the show — every recipe, equipment rating, and taste test since the very first episode of America’s Test Kitchen.

As you may know, America’s Test Kitchen is the home of “Recipes That Work,” and our mission is to be your trusted source for recipes that work every time you use them. Our test cooks spend their days obsessively testing recipes until they offer consistently great results. As we like to say here, “We make the mistakes so you don’t have to.” So, try out our website for a 14-Day, No-Hassle Trial Offer. Whether you are new to America’s Test Kitchen or have been an avid viewer for years, I think you’ll find AmericasTestKitchen.com to be an invaluable resource.

Thanks for your consideration,

Christopher Kimball
Founder and Publisher