When you’re in the mood for hearty Chorizo Chili, look no further than this recipe. It’s loaded with spicy chorizo sausage, smoky roasted poblano peppers, tender pinto beans and sweet corn. It’s so thick, your spoon will stand up in it! Then pile it high with cheddar cheese, fresh tomato and avocado, sour cream and cilantro: the ultimate bowl of chili.
Confession: I discovered this Chorizo Chili by accident. It was stuffed poblano peppers that I intended to tell you about; I even made them, they were delicious. I photographed them too, that didn’t go so well. It turns out that stuffed peppers exploding with filling don’t look too appetizing when photographed on a white plate. Live and learn.
It’s just as well really. It was this recipe from Nutmeg Nanny that inspired me to make the stuffed peppers. I made them and had more than half of the filling left. Apparently I’m not very skilled at stuffing peppers. But the filling, it’s fantastic! And I thought, this doesn’t really have to be stuffed into peppers, I’ll add the peppers to the filling instead: Chorizo Chili.
A lot of chili recipes are too tangy for me, more about the tomatoes than the other ingredients. This is the opposite. There are tomatoes, but the chorizo, beans and corn are the stand-out flavors.
When you make this, I recommend cooking your own pinto beans in lieu of canned beans. The texture and flavor of home-cooked beans is far superior to canned, they’re simple to make (I make them in a slow cooker using the salt soak method as I do in Tuscan White Bean Soup and White Chicken Chili), and they freeze beautifully.
Chorizo Chili
Take care when choosing your chorizo as it will be the primary flavor in this chili.
Ingredients
- 6 poblano peppers
- 1 pound ground Mexican chorizo sausage uncooked
- 3 cups cooked pinto beans or 2 15-ounce cans drained
- fresh corn kernels from 2 ears of corn or 1 cup frozen sweet corn
- 2 15-ounce cans diced tomatoes with juice
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Toppings
- shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- sour cream
- diced avocado
- diced fresh tomato
- chopped fresh cilantro
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 400 degrees °F.
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Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Arrange the whole poblano peppers in a single layer.
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Roast peppers until skin is dark and crinkled, 15-20 minutes.
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Remove from oven and let cool for 15 minutes. Remove the tops, skin and seeds. Coarsely chop.
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In the meantime, heat a soup pot over medium heat. Add chorizo, using a spoon to break it up; cook and stir until lightly browned.
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Stir in pinto beans, corn, tomatoes with juice, chili powder and paprika. Stir and bring to boil.
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Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 15 to 20 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
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Serve crowned with your favorite toppings.
Recipe Notes
It's even better the next day!
Hi Marissa – I came across your sight by accident and I am hooked. All your recipes are remarkable. I was wondering if you have ever made a Thai chicken with pineapple coconut fried rice.
Hi Gina! Thanks so much for the kind words. No, I haven’t made the fried rice you mentioned, but it sounds delicious!
Haha, I love what you did here, Marissa! When the photos don’t work…turn ’em into chili! Seriously, though, this chili sounds like it’s right up my alley. The roasted poblanos plus the chorizo would be an excellent combo in chili form. I might need a batch of this to appear in my kitchen soon!
What a beautifully, yummy accident! This looks right up my alley. Love the spicy, smokiness of chorizo. I bet this is absolutely fabulous on its on and leftovers would be lovely on fries….with extra cheese 😉
aww, thank you, Dawn! Cheesy Chili Fries! Now that is some serious comfort food… 😉
I agree about taking care with choosing chorizo. Some are amazing while others can be very average. What a mouth watering dish Marissa! 😀
I love your chili, it looks and sounds delicious. I like the chorizo sausage and the poblano peppers in this.
Thanks, Dawn!
Is it Mexican chorizo or Spanish chorizo.
Hi Yolanda – Mexican chorizo. Thanks for asking, I’ve noted it in the recipe now as well.