Chilli con carne^★

• 2 to 3 onions
• 2 red bell pepper
• 1 bulb garlic
• 4 tbsp cumin
• 3 tbsp chili powder
• 3 tbsp oregano
• 2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
• 750g pork mince
• 750g beef mince or stew meat
• 1 can black beans
• 1 can pinto beans
• 2 cans red kidney beans
• 1 small can of tomato paste
• 1 small can of chipotle chiles in adobo
• 1 to 2 cans tomatoes with green chillies
• 2 cans diced tomatoes
• 2 to 3 bottles of cheap american beer (budweiser)
• 3 to 4 cups beef stock
• ¼ cup apple cider vinegar

Small dice the stew meat and trim off any fat

Brown mince in frying pan. Use slotted spoon to set aside once cooked through.

Brown all sides of stewing beef, using leftover rendered fat from mince. Use slotted spoon to set aside.

Drain and rinse all beans. Set aside 1 can of kidney beans.

Mince garlic, and chop pepper and onions

If using homemade stock, heat to a boil and then simmer (if not fresh-made). If using canned stock, bring to a simmer.

In a food processor, combine the tomato paste, chipotle chiles, and one can of kidney beans (drained and rinsed), along with all the spices. Turn the processor on, and slowly pour about½ cup of beef stock into mixture, until the texture is a thick paste. If you want a less spicy chili, use just the liquid from the canned chipotle chiles, or add just one or two chiles to the food processor mix, instead of the whole can. Anything you don’t use won’t be wasted, it will keep very well in the freezer.

In large pot or Dutch oven, sauté onions and peppers in vegetable oil (or bacon fat, if you have your life together and keep some in the fridge) over medium heat until the onions are translucent. Add garlic and cook until fragrant (this takes literally less than a minute), and then add tomato paste/kidney bean mixture. Stir to combine and allow to cook, ‘toasting’ the paste for at least a few minutes. I find that the longer I allow my paste to cook, the more complex the flavor that develops through the blooming of the spices and the caramelization of the sugars in the tomato paste.

Add all cans of tomatoes to paste, along with Heinz chili sauce. Again, mix well and allow to cook for a minute or so to combine flavors. Then add beans and meat to pot. Stir well.

Add remaining beef stock and beer to the pot. Lower heat and allow chili to simmer. After approximately an hour, add apple cider vinegar to chilli and allow to cook for another hour. Alternately, if you are using a Dutch oven or some other sort of heavy, lidded pot (cast iron is perfect for this), you can put this in the oven with the lid slightly ajar and roast at 150C for 2-3 hours.