Nothing beats a fragrant bowl of hot chili seasoned with smoky spices and filled with savory beef and spicy chili pepper to warm you up on cold days. And while the classic chili con carne recipe is timeless, there's one upgrade that can bring yours to a new height of deliciousness. Believe it or not, the secret ingredient is a succulent cut of steak.
You heard that right, in our new-and-improved chili, we're swapping out the ground beef for chunks of pan-seared steak. This one-ingredient upgrade may seem small, but believe us when we say that it'll make a huge impact on the taste and feel of the dish. The incorporation is simple: after you've bought your steak, cut it into small chunks, then pan-sear them with a touch of oil (don't add butter, which can mess with the chili's flavor).
The nicely caramelized steak chunks will go into your chili to simmer with the rest of the ingredients until the whole thing's cooked and fragrant. So, what do you get after going through all that hassle? Simply put: a chili that's both familiar and refreshingly new! The steak adds an extra beefy depth and a tender texture that ground beef simply can't match. Plus, the searing process that they've gone through beforehand will give each steak chunk a tasty crust on the exterior.
Each spoonful is a satisfying blend of melt-in-your-mouth steak that includes a rich sauce with warming spices. What's not to like? The cut to choose for your steak chili If "it sounds expensive" is your first thought when.