Mike's Chocolate Espresso Chili Recipe

By popular demand, here's my crock pot recipe for Chocolate Espresso Chili:

INGREDIENTS
1 lb ground beef (ground round)
2 14-oz cans of chili beans (w/ chili seasoning optional)
2 14-oz cans of diced tomatoes
2 8-oz cans of tomato sauce
1 16-oz jar of chunky salsa
1 white onion, diced
1 milk chocolate bar (43g)
2 1.5-oz shots of espresso
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground paprika

DIRECTIONS
1. Brown the ground beef and onion in large skillet and drain.

2. In a crock pot, combine the ground beef and onions, beans, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, salsa, chocolate bar, espresso, chili powder and paprika.

3. Cook on low for 8 hours (or on high for 4 hours if you need it sooner). Stir occasionally.

4. Serve. I like chili with cheddar cheese, corn chips and sour cream on top.

I've found the chocolate makes the chili a little sweet, the espresso adds a bit of smoky richness and the paprika becomes a subtly smooth taste that blends in nicely.

The crock pot makes this one easy to make and kinda forget until it's time to eat, especially handy if you need something ready to eat after work.

To reduce calories/fat, swap out the beef for chicken or veggie crumblers.

If you make this recipe, leave a comment and let me know how you like it.

Enjoy!

Comments

[y0mbo]

Looks awesome! I'll have to try it sometime this week. Thanks!

[Mike Rohde]

John, I hope you enjoy it. After you make a batch, leave a comment here and let me know how it turnd out for you. :-)

[Neal Dench]

Why Mike, this sounds awesome, and I've been looking for a chilli recipe that I can make in a slow cooker for months. If I can persuade my wife that chocolate and coffee go well in chilli (I just might not tell her ... ;-) I'll be trying this out soon. Thanks so much.

And Happy New Year!

[cryptogurl]

Hey Mike - I made your chili last night. It was delicious! Substituted 4oz dark chocolate instead of 43g milk chocolate but wasn't too sweet. Served along with the cheddar cheese and some freshly baked beer bread. Awesome! Thanks for the easy recipe!

Neal - Don't tell her.. let her guess! My boys couldn't get but my husband figured it out. :-(

[Mike Rohde]

@cryptogirl thanks for the report on the chili experience!

I have swapped out dark for milk chocolate in the past and it's good, but I prefer the milk version a little more. It's a little less acidic and the sweetness for me balances the tomatoes and chili powder.

Cheddar cheese and beer bread sounds like a great match to chili! :-)

[Kris Gösser]

This looks really good Mike! I've been experimenting a lot with beer and coffee based chili.

[Mike Rohde]

Excellent Kris! If you give it a try, let me know what you think.

[J.R. Rowntree]

This recipe was great! I used ground deer meat instead of beef. I used some home made chocolate I made a couple weeks ago. Picked up a double shot of espresso from dunkin donuts, and used some fire roasted diced tomatoes and doubled up the salsa rather than using the tomato sauce, and it turned out to be such an amazing combination. I made this to share with my fends and family and they all went back for seconds! I also made some beer bread using Dogfish Head Midas Touch to go along with the chili to put it over the top!

[Mike Rohde]

Great to hear JR! I just made a batch this weekend with venison and it turned out great! That beer bred combo sounds ideal. :-)