Triple Chocolate Chili
We served this dish during our Wines and Chocolates Class. We had so many requests for the recipe that we've decided to post it.
What makes this a "Triple Chocolate Chili"? We have 3 sources of chocolate flavors: semi-sweet chocolate, cocoa powder and chocolate stout beer.
We served this chili with our Syrah. We recommend you do the same!
INGREDIENTS:
1 lb of beef chuck / stew beef (cut into cubes)
1 lb of ground beef
1 dried ancho chili
1 dried California chili
1 large can of pinot beans (32 oz)
1 can of tomato paste (6 oz)
1 can of crushed tomatoes (15 oz)
2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
3 oz of semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped (I used a coffee mill)
1 bottle (12 oz) of chocolate stout
2-1/2 cups of chicken stock
2 tbsp of brown sugar
2 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp paprika
2 tbsp lemon juice
6 cloves of garlic (chopped)
2 large yellow onions (chopped)
3 Bay leaves
Olive oil
Salt
Pepper
Honey

PREPARATION:
Chocolate Chili Sauce
Add chilis to 3 cups of boiling water (exact amt of water is not critical)
Remove from heat and place something on top of the chilis to keep them submerged in the hot water
Soak for ~30 min
Remove chilis and retain soaking water
Remove and discard stems and seeds from chilis
In a blender, add chilis, 3/4-cups of the soaking water, chopped semi-sweet chocolate, cocoa powder, oregano, cumin, paprika, lemon juice and brown sugar. Puree until smooth. Add more soaking water if needed, but keep this thick
Get to Cooking
Add a touch of oil to a pot and in batches, brown the cubed beef on all sides. Add salt and pepper to taste. Set aside cooked beef in a large bowl
Cook ground beef and drain 1/2 of the grease. Set ground beef aside with the cooked cubed beef
In same pot, cook garlic and onions, stirring occasionally until transparent
Add tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, beer, stock and the chocolate chili sauce
Add beef, beans and bay leaves
Bring to a boil for 1 minute
Simmer for 2 hours
Taste during simmer and add additional brown sugar and honey to decrease spice/heat to what you like
Makes approx. 8 servings.
Pour a glass of our Colson Canyon Vineyard Syrah and enjoy with friends!
Chef's Notes:
To make this chili less spicy for wine pairing, I added approx. 3 tbsp of brown sugar, 2 tbsp of honey and 2 tbsp of cocoa powder extra during the simmer phase
I like Sam Adam's Chocolate Stout as it's very "chocolatey". I've only seen this in their speciality seasonal 12-packs, so I used Hanger 12's Chocolate Porter as it was available at my local grocery store. It comes in 24-oz bottles, so after adding 12-oz to the chili mix, I enjoyed myself a glass. A great perk of being the cook!