Take your everyday chili to the next level with this chunky, hearty, and flavorful stew meat chili recipe. It’s made with chunks of tender beef, simmered in a seasoned tomato broth with plenty of veggies, herbs, spices, and cayenne pepper!
There are a lot of different ways to make chili, and each of them gives you a unique flavor and texture. From the sweet pumpkin chili to the white chicken chili – or our favorite classic chili with ground meat, there’s a recipe for you, no matter what you’re craving.
Homemade Chili with Stew Meat
This savory chili recipe is fully loaded with bold flavors and chunky textures. It’s customizable so it can be as mild or as spicy as you like. If you love spicy chili then feel free to use even more jalapenos or cayenne pepper. If not, omit them both!
It takes about 2.5 hours for the chili to cook, but all that time is worth it! As it simmers, the stew meat will soak up the flavors from the tomato sauce and bouquet of fragrant spices. Every bite is a delight!
If you’re looking for something heartier than lentil chili and spicier than butternut squash chili, make a pot of this stew meat chili.
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Ingredients/shopping list
Below is a list of the ingredients you’ll need to gather to make this recipe. Scroll down to the full recipe card with amounts
- Olive Oil: You’ll use this to brown the meat and sauté the peppers and onion, so use a high-quality oil to get the best flavor. You can also use vegetable oil.
- Beef Stew Meat: Both diced stew meat or a beef chuck roast that you cut at home will work in this recipe. As it cooks slowly, the meat will tenderize.
- Onion: a white or yellow onion to add flavor to the chili.
- Green Bell Pepper: Even though I use green pepper, you can use any color of bell pepper you”d like.
- Jalapeno Peppers: Use as many as you want to bring it to your preferred spice level. For a milder heat, remove the seeds!
- Garlic: Fresh garlic will have the boldest aromas.
- Rotel Diced Tomatoes: This is a combination of tomatoes and green chili. The Rotel brand has several flavor combinations with varying heat. Use any canned tomatoes you like. Use any diced tomatoes. It doesn’t have to be Rotel that comes with green chiles.
- Beef Broth: This is the liquid base of the chili.
- Tomato Paste – This thickens the chili and gives it a dark red color and concentrated tomato flavor.
- Spices: Chili powder, ground cumin, smoked paprika, oregano, ground coriander, and cayenne pepper. A blend of spicy, smoky, earthy flavors. Adjust amounts to taste.
- Kidney Beans: Rinse and drain them first before adding them to the chili. Chili is pretty flexible when it comes to the kind of beans to use. Easily swap the kidney beans for cannellini beans, black beans or pinto beans.
Variations To Try
1. Although this is a stew meat chili recipe, by all means, use the recipe to make ground beef chili or ground turkey chili as well.
2. For a mild chili, leave out the jalapeños and cayenne pepper. You can even lessen the amount of chili powder you add.
3. Add a bay leaf if you’d like.
4. Add a tablespoon of brown sugar.
How to Make this Beef Stew Chili Recipe
This steak chili is made completely from scratch. You’ll taste the difference in every bite, but no one will know how easy it is to make!
Step 1: Brown the stew meat pieces in a large pot or Dutch Oven with olive oil. Set them aside.
Step 2: Add more olive oil to the Dutch oven and sauté the diced onions, bell peppers, and jalapeño peppers over medium-high heat. Add the garlic after a few minutes.
Step 3: Place the browned meat back into the pot and add the diced tomatoes, broth, tomato paste, and spices and stir to combine thoroughly.
Step 4: Bring the chili to a boil and reduce the heat to low. Simmer the chili uncovered for about 2 hours. Stir it occasionally as it simmers.
Step 5: Stir in the drained kidney beans during the last 30 minutes of cooking.
Serve topped with diced avocado, diced onion, shredded cheddar cheese, a dollop of sour cream, fresh cilantro, and of course tortilla chips for dunking and scooping!
What To Serve With Easy Steak Chili
The best thing to serve with homemade chili is a slice of crusty bread. Then, you can dunk it into the chili, it’s delightful! If you don’t have crusty bread, add some garlic breadsticks to the table.
If you want to try mixing in some pasta with this chili use elbow or ditalini pasta. Then, add your favorite chili toppings to the bowl!
Chili also tastes delicious with a side of mashed potatoes or baked sweet potato fries. You can also stick with the classic way of eating chili – on top of a baked potato.
Tips
- Add an extra ½ cup of broth to make a thinner chili.
- For a thicker chili, you can make a cornstarch slurry by mixing 2 teaspoons cornstarch with 1 tablespoon cold water then mix it into the chili. Cook and allow the sauce to thicken before serving.
- Adding the beans toward the end of the cooking time helps to keep them from becoming too mushy. However, if you don’t mind that, you can add them earlier if you’d like.
- Don’t rush the process. As tempting as it might be to turn up the heat, cooking it low and slow gives the stew meat chili ample time for the meat to become tender and the flavors to come together.
- Stew meat chili leftovers are amazing. Once it sits and gives the flavors a chance to meld…chef’s kiss!
FAQ’s
Yes, you can make the chili in advance and I think it tastes even better the next day!
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-5 days. Freeze in freezer friendly container for up to 2 months.
The best way to reheat the chili is on the stove in a saucepan. Heat it slowly over low heat until it is heated through.
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Stew Meat Chili Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil divided
- 3 pounds beef stew meat
- 1 large onion diced
- 1 large green bell pepper diced
- 2 jalapeno peppers seeded and chopped
- 5 cloves garlic minced
- 20 ounces Rotel diced tomatoes and green chilies undrained, (2) 10 ounce cans
- 2 ½ cups beef broth
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground oregano
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper more or less to desired spice level
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 15.5 ounces kidney beans rinsed and drained
Instructions
- In a large dutch, add a tablespoon of olive oil and heat on medium high heat. Working in batches, add the stew meat and brown it on all sides. (Drain any excess fat between batches) Place the meat in a bowl after browning and set aside.2 tablespoons olive oil, 3 pounds beef stew meat
- After browning all the meat, add another tablespoon of olive oil and the diced onions, bell peppers, and jalapeño peppers into the dutch oven and sauté the onions about 3-4 minutes until they begin to soften.1 large onion, 1 large green bell pepper, 2 jalapeno peppers
- Then add the minced garlic and sauté for a minute until fragrant.5 cloves garlic
- Place the browned meat back into the pot and add the diced tomatoes, broth, tomato paste, spices and stir to combine thoroughly.20 ounces Rotel diced tomatoes and green chilies, 2 ½ cups beef broth, 2 tablespoons tomato paste, 1 tablespoon chili powder, 1 tablespoon ground cumin, 2 teaspoons smoked paprika, 1 ½ teaspoons ground oregano, 1 ½ teaspoons ground coriander, 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, Salt and pepper
- Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer uncovered, simmering for about 2 hours, stirring occasionally.
- Stir in the drained kidney beans during the last 30 minutes of cooking.15.5 ounces kidney beans
- Serve with rice or a small pasta like elbow or ditalini and top with any favorite chili toppings like , diced avocado, diced onions, shredded cheese, sour cream, cilantro and tortilla chips.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclosure
Nutrition information is automatically calculated and should only be used as an approximation.
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