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This smoked chuck roast chili recipe is loaded with flavor, thanks to dried chile peppers and the perfect blend of spices. If you love a hearty, rustic, spicy chili, then this beef roast chili is for you!
We made a homemade smoked Chile Colorado chuck roast a few weeks ago, and the spicy, stew-like sauce immediately made me think of a big bowl of classic chili.
So when we had a few inches of snow recently, I immediately thought about smoking a chuck roast and making a similar spicy sauce to use as the base for a smoked chili.
I’m calling this “real deal” chili, because it’s not just open a few cans of beans and diced tomatoes and stew it together with meat on the stovetop. No, this smoked chuck roast chili is made with love – and a pellet grill, a blender, the oven, and a bit of patience!
The perfect smoked chili recipe for a cold snow day… here’s how to make it:
Ingredients for Smoked Chuck Roast Chili
- Chuck roast – Look for a well-marbled chuck roast weighing about 3 pounds. You’ll want the extra fat to keep the roast tender and juicy.
- Tajin hot sauce – This classic Mexican hot sauce offers a subtle citrus and mild chili flavor. I use it as a binder for smoking Mexican-style chuck roasts that get chopped or shredded for dishes like chili or tacos.
- Black pepper – I use a coarse 16 mesh black pepper for smoking large cuts of meat like chuck roast.
- Beef stock – The base for the chili recipe.
- Ancho and guajillo peppers – Find these in the produce department or Hispanic aisle of the grocery store. The dried peppers get stewed and blended, and they definitely bring a richness to your chili.
- Chili seasoning – We used our homemade chili seasoning, which is very easy to make with a few pantry spices. You can substitute your favorite chili seasoning mix if you wish.
- Canned beans – We prefer a combination of chili beans and kidney beans for their different textures and flavors. Choose two cans of your favorite beans for chili.
- Fire-roasted tomatoes
- Tomato paste – Acts as a thickener and adds more tomato flavor to the chili base.
- Diced onions and poblano peppers – For a less spicy chili, you can substitute green bell peppers for the poblano.
- Chili toppings – Like sour cream, sliced green onions, and shredded cheddar cheese.
Smoked Chuck Roast Chili Video
Smoking the Chuck Roast
Before you can start making the chili, you’ll need to smoke a chuck roast following these steps. More detailed instructions are provided in the recipe card at the end of this post.
- Season the chuck roast – For chili and other recipes with Mexican flavors, I prefer to use a hot sauce binder so that the seasonings or rub stick to the meat better. Use a pastry or basting brush to brush a thin layer of your preferred hot sauce on all sides of the roast. Then season with coarse black pepper.
- Smoke the chuck roast – Place the seasoned roast on the pellet grill or smoker and smoke at 225°F for about 3 hours. *The final internal temperature of the smoked chuck roast doesn’t really matter, because it will continue to cook and braise in the beef stock and chili mix.
How to Make Smoked Chuck Roast Chili
After the chuck roast is smoked, follow these steps to prepare the rest of the chili ingredients and braise the smoked beef roast in the oven:
Step 1: Cut the smoked chuck roast – Allow the beef to rest for about 20 minutes, and then cut into bite-sized pieces. The size should be suitable for a single spoonful, allowing each bite to contain a variety of ingredients – I call this “match the hatch”.
Step 2: Stew and blend the chile peppers – Add the seeded, dried peppers to a large pot or dutch oven with the beef stock. Cook over medium heat for about 20 minutes while the chuck roast rests. This allows the peppers to rehydrate and soften. Then, blend the peppers with some of the beef stock until smooth.
Step 3: Sauté diced onions and poblano peppers – In the large pot or dutch oven, sauté the diced peppers and onions in a bit of olive oil until mostly tender. *The vegetables will continue to cook in the oven, so no need to cook until translucent or caramelized.
Step 4: Add the seasonings, smoked chuck roast, and other chili ingredients – Add the chopped chuck roast into the pot with the sautéed vegetables. Then stir in the blended pepper mixture, chili seasoning, canned beans, fire-roasted tomatoes, tomato paste, and some water.
Step 5: Cook the chili in the oven, then on the stovetop – Braise the chili in a 325°F oven for about 2 hours. Then transfer to the stovetop, and cook uncovered over medium-low heat for about 1 hour for the chili to reduce.
After the chili reduces and you adjust it to your desired consistency, it’s ready! We like to serve our chili (including this delicious smoked white chicken chili) with sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese, and sliced green onions.
Smoked Chuck Roast Chili
Equipment
- blender and large blender cup or immersion blender
Ingredients
- 3 lb chuck roast
- 2 tablespoons Tajin hot sauce, or substitute your favorite hot sauce as a binder
- 2 tablespoons black pepper
- 32 oz beef stock
- 4 dried ancho chile peppers, seeds and stems removed
- 4 dried guajillo chile peppers, seeds and stems removed
- 2 poblano peppers, seeded and diced
- 1 onion, diced
- 16 oz can chili beans
- 15 oz can kidney beans
- 14.5 oz can fire-roasted tomatoes
- 4 tablespoons homemade chili seasoning, or substitute your favorite chili seasoning
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- ¼ cup ketchup
- 2 tablespoons masa (corn flour), optional – used as a thickener
- Chili toppings – Like sour cream, sliced green onions, and shredded cheddar cheese for serving
Instructions
- Preheat pellet grill or smoker to 225℉ with your choice of wood or pellets.
- Season the chuck roast – Rub about 2 tablespoons of hot sauce on all sides of the chuck roast as a binder (optional). Season all sides of the chuck roast with black pepper.
- Smoke the chuck roast – Place the beef roast directly on the grill grates, and close the grill lid. Smoke at 225℉ for 3 hours. *The final internal temperature of the smoked chuck roast doesn’t matter, because it will continue to cook and braise in the beef stock and chili mix.
- Blend the peppers – When the chuck roast is almost done smoking, add beef stock to a large pot with the dried peppers. Stew over medium heat for about 20 minutes for the peppers to soften. Then add the rehydrated peppers to a large blender cup with the beef stock. Blend until smooth. *See notes.
- Rest and cube the smoked chuck roast – After 3 hours of smoking, transfer the roast to a cutting board to rest for about 20 minutes. Then cut into bite-sized cubes, about ¾" in size.
- Sauté the poblanos and onions – While the chuck roast is resting, add about 1 tablespoon of oil to a large pot or dutch oven. Sauté the diced onions and poblanos in the oil over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until tender and slightly caramelized, about 8-10 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 325℉.
- Add the other chili ingredients – Add the blended pepper mixture, cubed chuck roast, canned beans, fire-roasted tomatoes, chili seasoning, tomato paste, and 2 cups of water to the pot with the sautéed poblano and onion. Stir well. *When adding the canned beans and tomatoes, add the liquid/juice from the cans also.
- Braise the chili in the oven – Put a lid on the pot, and cook covered in the oven at 325℉ for 2 hours.
- Cook on the stovetop to reduce – Transfer the pot to the stove, and cook uncovered on medium-low heat for about 1 hour, stirring occasionally and scraping the bottom of the pot so the chili doesn't burn on the bottom.
- Adjust thickness of the chili as needed – When there is about 30 minutes of cook time left on the stove, begin adjusting consistency to desired thickness. Stir in ¼ cup ketchup, and continue to cook until done. *For a thicker chili, stir in 1-2 tablespoons masa and continue to reduce to desired consistency.
- Serve smoked chuck roast chili with your favorite chili toppings like sour cream, shredded cheese, and sliced green onions. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Blending warm liquids – Use caution when blending the warm liquid as the heat will cause pressure to build in your blender. You should allow the beef stock to cool some before blending, and use caution when blending.
- Adjusting the spice level – For a less spicy version, reduce the number of dried guajillo peppers or omit them completely. The guajillo peppers are considerably spicier than the ancho peppers. You can also substitute the fresh, diced poblano peppers for diced green bell peppers for a less spicy chili.
Getting the Right Consistency for Your Chili
The next steps are based totally on your personal preference. Some people prefer a thinner, more broth-y chili and others like a thicker consistency. If the chili is too loose for your liking after braising in the oven, you can try any combination of these:
- Cook the chili uncovered on the stovetop over medium heat until reduced to your liking. Be sure to stir often, scraping the bottom of the pot as you stir, so the chili doesn’t burn from the direct heat of the stove.
- Add a few tablespoons of ketchup to the chili. This adds a bit more tomato flavor and a nice sweetness that compliments the spicy peppers. The ketchup also acts as a thickener.
- Stir in a few tablespoons of masa, or corn flour.
- Make a cornstarch slurry to add to the hot liquid as a thickening agent.
Serving Suggestions
We prefer to serve this smoked chili with our favorite chili toppings: sour cream, sliced green onions, and freshly grated sharp cheddar cheese.
You can also serve the chili with our favorite loaded smoked cornbread, homemade cheese bread, or make a “chili pie” by spooning chili over a bed of corn chips.
How can I adjust the spice level of the chili?
With the blended peppers and diced poblanos, this smoked chili is fairly spicy – as in, my kids had to add quite a bit of sour cream to balance out the spice. For a less spicy version, reduce the number of dried guajillo peppers or omit them completely. The guajillo peppers are considerably spicier than the ancho peppers.
You can also substitute the fresh, diced poblano peppers for diced green bell peppers for a less spicy chili.
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