This easy braised short rib chili recipe is packed with flavor and easy to make!
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Sometimes I get really nervous about telling you how much I liked a recipe.
I’ll cook the thing, and I’ll eat the thing, and I’ll be all “THIS IS THE BEST THING I HAVE EVER COOKED AND EATEN” and then I come here and tell you “THIS IS THE GREATEST THING YOU WILL EVER COOK AND EAT.”
But then I freak out that I’m setting the bar too high – like you’ll all come back and be like “umm, FALSE, Jessie. This is only like the 15th best thing I have ever cooked and eaten and you are a dirty rotten liar.”
Or that you’ll make it and think “sure, this was easy and tasty and fun, but did it really warrant a whole haiku about the loveliness of the tomatoes? DOUBT IT.”
And okayyyy, I haven’t actually put a haiku into a recipe post before.
But I’ve definitely been tempted.
…I’m probably overthinking it.
Do other people do this? I get EXCITED about food and recipes and so I talk to you in my ALL CAPS VOICE.
And then I remember that other people are normal and have lives and don’t spend hours upon hours of their life daydreaming about what’s left in the fridge and how IF I GET HOME AND DISCOVER AN EXTRA GUINNESS IN MY FRIDGE I COULD BRAISE THINGS WITH IT AND PUT IT IN CHILI AND LIFE WILL BE PERFECT.
Actually, I DID discover an extra Guinness in my fridge the other day.
Which brings me to this short rib chili. (See that segue? BAM).
And at the risk of overselling, this chili is low-key and not all that involved, but you still get to braise something and it’s an awesome twist on traditional ground-meat chili and it is STRAIGHT UP DELICIOUS IN ALL CAPITAL LETTERS. I’m kind of into it.
For me, the best part about this short rib chili was how much the flavor got to develop as the short ribs braised. I make a lot of chili, but it’s usually the quicker stovetop variety.
While those recipes are always tasty and satisfying, you don’t get to develop flavor that’s quite as rich or deep as you get with a braise.
Plus, braising is a fun word, so at dinner, you can be like, “hey guys. I braised this.”
And then pause for applause, because you are awesome and deserve it.
Description
This beer braised short rib chili is the perfect meal for chilly weekends!
Ingredients
FOR THE SHORT RIB CHILI:
- 2 Tbsp. olive oil
- 1.5 pounds beef short ribs (I couldn’t find bone-in, so I used boneless, but if you can find bone-in short ribs go for it!)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 large yellow onion, diced
- salt and pepper to taste
- 2 tsp. chili powder
- 2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
- 1.5 cups stout beer (I used Guinness!)
- 28 oz. crushed tomatoes
- 15.5 oz. can white beans, rinsed and drained
- 15.5 oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
OPTIONAL TOPPINGS:
- 1 cup plain Greek yogurt or sour cream
- 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
- Heat olive oil in a large oven-safe pot (I heart my Le Creuset) over medium-high heat.
- Season the short ribs with salt and pepper. Be generous – you want the seasoning to help create a nice crust on the meat!
- Add short ribs to the hot oil and sear for 3-4 minutes on each side, until a nice brown crust has formed.
- Remove seared short ribs to a separate plate and set aside, leaving the oil and drippings in the pot over medium heat.
- Add garlic and onion to the pot and sauté for 2-3 minutes until onions are translucent.
- Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Add chili powder to onion mixture and stir to combine.
- Add balsamic vinegar to onion mixture and stir to combine.
- Add beer to pot to deglaze the pan. Scrape any browned bits off the bottom and stir to incorporate all ingredients.
- Add crushed tomatoes and stir to incorporate. Remove pot from heat.
- Add seared short ribs back to pot. Nestle each short rib piece into the sauce and give them a little room to breathe.
- Cover pot and place in a 325 degree oven for 3-5 hours.
- When at least 3 hours have passed, remove pot from oven. Use tongs or two forks to pull apart short ribs – they should be practically falling apart in the braising liquid, so they should be easy to shred.
- Place pot over a burner on low heat. Add white and black beans to chili and stir to combine.
- Bring chili to a simmer and cook for 15-25 minutes until beans have warmed through and chili has thickened. Taste chili and add seasoning as necessary. If you want to make it a little spicier, you can always add more chili powder in addition to salt and pepper.
- Ladle chili into bowls, top with your favorite toppings, and serve immediately.
Notes
A dark stout added great depth of flavor to this chili, but you could use any type of beer you’d like! Use a lighter pilsner if you’re not big on the beer taste, or go for a hoppy IPA to mix it up a bit.
I used white and black beans because that’s what I had on hand – feel free to substitute kidney beans or even sweet corn depending on what you have in your pantry!
Use beef stock if you’d like to omit the beer.
If your chili is too thick, add a splash of beef stock or water to thin it out. Too thin? Simmer over medium heat until it’s reached your desired consistency.
Use any braising beef cut you like (top round roast, sirloin tip roast, chick roast, etc.) if you can’t find short ribs. This recipe is also great with pork shoulder in place of the beef.
I love braising in my Le Creuset, but I’m also a big fan of Lodge products like this Dutch oven if you’re looking for a more budget-friendly option!
Serve with my easy skillet cornbread biscuits!
This is definitely the best chili I have ever made, and possibly also the best foodi have ever made. I definitely would have won my chili contest, had I not been late and therefore been disqualified. This rule is actually named after me, because I am chronically late. So any chili not submitted by kickoff (Go Bears!) at the party is disqualified. But, everyone said that it would have won, and it was amazing. I ate it at for every meal for like 3 days afterwards. And I’m pregnant, so I eat like six meals a I double the recipe, but kind of modified it put lesbians in, and use white beans, light red kidney beans, and black beans.I didn’t make mine too spicy because there were a lot of kids at the party, and also I have horrible heartburn. Next year I would probably make it a little spicier. Also I didn’t have enough bone-in short ribs so I did half bone-in and half boneless, but the bone in was definitely better. I’m actually making it again tonight, just because it’s cold and snowy and it seems like a good time to make some chili. Think I’ll freeze some too, because it is literally the best chili ever and I’m so happy that I found your site. This is definitely my new go-to chili recipe. I will let you know if I win next year. (If I’m not disqualified for being late again.) Thank you so much!
★★★★★
I had a over run ( abundance ) of Pork Ribs, after a large party the other day, i have a lot of frozen racks left that were not cooked also so I really was not interested in freezing them for later as i will have new racks to cook up when I want to do ribs again, so i started thinking, what to do with all these ribs, i would just eat them but I am pretty ribbed out! LOL> so i had a very successful build your own Burrito / Nachos night for dinner yesterday but that barely scratched the surface of this rib pile… LOL Sooo i started thinking again, I thought, I will make a soup! I have a Taco Soup that I make here that everyone loves, BUT! It;s always Beef and I think that might be disappointing to everyone since they really do love it just the way it is, So then i brainstormed, I love Chli and corn bread and I got stuck on that Idea, But i have never made it with Ribs before. That made me think, i am sure someone has, so I will go look that up…
Of all the hits I got from those searches. I picked this one. It;s really not because of your recipe, i did read through it but really i was just seeing who does this and so I would not be feeling like a complete all alone adventurer Ha! i will use my own stuff and it wont have white beans, beer or beef in it at all. It will be different than this totally. so why then would i pick yours to go through?
Well I like your face. :0)
Good Luck to you and thanks for confirming that people do make chili from ribs. I went ahead and slow cooked these right off the bone for this. this will be fun.
I’ve made this recipe a few times and now my daughter is coming home from school and specially asked for chili. When I asked what type, she said “Mom, braised short rib is the only chili in our house, now”. Now we have a new standard! This is the bestest!
Wahoo! I’m so glad you guys like the chili!
Hi. I’m making this recipe right now. But for a lot of people so I doubled it. Two questions: how does doubling it affect the braising time? And I’ve always used tomato paste in every chili to kick up the Tomato flavor — flavor is a bit thin without — I noticed tomato paste is not in this recipe. Would adding tp be detrimental to the result?
You may need to extend the braising time, but it depends on your pot size and the oven etc, so just keep an eye on it! You can certainly add some tomato paste if you’d like a stronger tomato flavor.
The ribs were falling apart after exactly 3 hours so the braising time didn’t really change. But I’m doubling what I doubled again right now, this time with 6lbs bone-in short ribs, and I’m certain the braising time will have to be extended. I have a 3 gallon pot that I’m going to transfer to after the brazing is done in the lecreuset and the meat is shredded. I had 7 bowls of this over cornbread last time and everybody loved it.
Did it with tomato paste and beans aren’t even heated through yet and it’s already ridiculously good
I’m so glad! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out!
I’m so glad you like it! I love the idea of serving it over cornbread!
Hahahah I’m totally with you. Setting the bar too high is always a constant source of, oh crap I shouldn’t have said that. Oh well! This looks FABULOUS, I would honestly never have even thought to use short ribs in chili. I can only imagine how insanely delicious it is!
Thanks, Nicole! Glad to know I’m not alone with the “oops, oversold it, oh well” moments!
I love chili and often make it.. so I always look for new recipes that I can make. I just love this beer braised version – and definitely will have to try it out!
Thanks, Thalia!
This sounds like my next Chili! I must make your Beer Braised Short Rib Chili recipe…thanks for sharing! Since my oven is broken, I’m wondering if I could make it entirely on the stove-top?
Definitely! Just keep it covered on a very low heat setting and stir every once in awhile to make sure the bottom doesn’t burn. Hope you like it!
Thanks Jessie! I’m sure it’ll be delicious!