Over the Top Kentucky Chili Recipe | Serenity Valley Farms

Chuck roast, garden chilies and beans, with a smoked meatloaf cooked over the pot so its juices run into the chili. Then the loaf is chopped and stirred right in.

Servings: about 10 to 12
Cook time: about 3½ hours on the smoker (we cooked it at 200°F on a pellet smoker that runs a little hot)
Also plan on: 15 to 20 minutes to steep the dried chilies, 20 minutes to chill the loaf
Equipment: 7 to 8 quart Dutch oven, smoker, a sturdy grate or rack that sits across the top of the pot, heavy-duty foil, cookie sheet, meat thermometer
Cooking method: Dutch oven on the stovetop, then smoker

Why We Made This One

Fall finally made it to Kentucky, and we wanted something hearty to warm us up. I have not found a real chili tradition in Kentucky. I grew up in Northern Illinois, where chili has beans in it, and where we are now, families have always found ways to stretch a pot of chili with beans, corn or noodles. Colleen's smoked meatloaf is the “over the top” part. Beans or no beans? Tell us in the comments.

Ingredients

Chili

  • 1½ pounds beef chuck roast (a little less than half of a 3-pound roast), cut into ¾-inch chunks
  • 1 to 2 tablespoons beef tallow (or neutral oil)
  • 2 dried ancho chilies and 2 dried guajillo chilies, tops cut off and seeds pulled
  • Boiling water, enough to cover the chilies
  • 2 medium yellow onions, diced
  • 2 bell peppers, diced
  • 2 shishito peppers, chopped (leave some seeds in if you like heat)
  • 5 garlic cloves, smashed and chopped
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1 tablespoon mild chili powder
  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt to start, then adjust at the end
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 quart stewed tomatoes with their liquid (ours were canned from the garden). A 28-ounce can of whole peeled tomatoes, crushed, works too.
  • Two 15-ounce cans pinto beans, drained and rinsed
  • One 15-ounce can dark kidney beans, drained and rinsed
  • 2 cups beef stock
  • A splash of chicken stock if the chili is too thick
  • Optional: ¼ teaspoon cayenne; 1 to 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar at the end

Colleen's Smoked Meatloaf

  • 1 pound ground beef
  • ½ pound ground pork
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon mild chili powder
  • 1 tablespoon paprika
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • No egg, no breadcrumbs, no milk, no glaze
  • Heavy-duty foil and a little cooking spray

To Serve

  • Shredded cheese (sharp cheddar or pepper jack)
  • Butter on top, if you are like Uncle Bob (optional)
  • Sour cream, diced onion or jalapeños (optional)
  • Tortilla chips: an optional thickener only if your chili is too thin. Not used in our filmed batch.

Steep the Chilies

  1. Cut the tops off the dried chilies and pull out the seeds.
  2. Drop them into boiling water, take the pot off the heat, and let them steep 15 to 20 minutes until they soak up water and soften.
  3. Lift the chilies out of the water. Do not use the soaking water in the chili. It can taste bitter. If you need to thin the chili, use tomato sauce or plain water.
  4. Finely dice the softened chilies and set them aside. They break down more as the chili cooks.

Sear the Beef

  1. Heat a Dutch oven and melt the tallow in the bottom.
  2. Pat the chuck roast dry and cut it into ¾-inch chunks.
  3. Toss the chunks with part of the cumin, smoked paprika, black pepper, kosher salt and chili powder. Keep the rest back for the pot.
  4. Add the beef to the hot pot a few pieces at a time. Do not crowd the pot, or the meat steams instead of browning. You want nice brown color, not fully cooked.
  5. Move each batch to a plate and brown the rest the same way.

Build the Chili

  1. Turn the heat down to medium. Cook the onions in the beef drippings for 3 to 4 minutes until they start to sweat.
  2. Add the bell pepper and shishito peppers and cook 2 to 3 minutes.
  3. Add the garlic and stir until you can smell it.
  4. Add the tomato paste and cook it until it browns and gets sticky. This gives a depth of flavor you cannot get any other way.
  5. Add the rest of your seasonings (including the oregano) and let them toast for a minute. Stir in the Worcestershire.
  6. Pour in the liquid from the stewed tomatoes and scrape up everything stuck to the bottom of the pot. Add the tomatoes.
  7. Return the browned beef and its juices to the pot.
  8. Stir in the pinto and kidney beans and the 2 cups of beef stock.
  9. Add the diced chilies and stir. Bring the pot up to a simmer.

Make Colleen's Meatloaf

  1. Mix the ground beef and ground pork with the cumin, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper, chili powder and Worcestershire until everything is well combined. Check that the seasoning is mixed in all the way through.
  2. Shape a boat out of heavy-duty foil and press the meat into it in a loaf. Form it firmly, because it will sit over the pot and you do not want drips and flare-ups.
  3. Refrigerate it for 20 minutes so the meat holds together.
  4. Take it out of the foil. We sprayed ours with a little oil.

Smoke It

  1. Set the smoker to 200°F. Ours runs a little hot, so use your own thermometer.
  2. Put the simmering, uncovered Dutch oven in the smoker, then set the loaf on a sturdy grate across the top of the pot so the juices run down into the chili. Leave space between the loaf and the chili.
  3. Stir the chili once in a while. Cook until the center of the loaf reaches 160°F. Our whole cook took about 3½ hours.
  4. Take the pot and loaf out. Lift the loaf off the rack onto a cookie sheet, break it apart and chop it into coarse pieces, then stir it into the chili. Stir well and bring the pot back to a simmer before you taste, since the chili has been catching raw drippings.
  5. If the chili is too thick, add a splash of chicken stock. Ours needed a little. If yours is too thin, you can crush a few tortilla chips and stir them in. Ours did not need them.

Serve

Ladle into bowls and top with shredded cheese. Add a little butter if you like creamy chili. Chili like this is not hot enough to burn your face off. It is smoky and meaty, with the beans helping it stretch.

Watch the Video

Watch Bob and Colleen make it on YouTube

Our beef is 21-day dry-aged and raised on the pastures of Monticello, Kentucky.