Uptown Down-Home Chili

• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO)
• 2 pounds ground sirloin
• 2 tablespoons grill seasoning, such as McCormicks Montreal Steak Seasoning (2 palmfuls)
• 1/2 pound baby portobello mushrooms, chopped
• 1/4 pound shiitake mushroom caps, sliced
• 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
• 3 celery ribs, chopped
• 1 large red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and chopped
• 4 to 6 garlic cloves, chopped
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2 canned chipotle peppers in adobo, chopped, with their juices, or 1 generous palmful ground chipotle chili powder (about 2 tablespoons)
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin (a palmful)
• 1 bottle imported beer, such as Stella Artois (imported just cause were Uptown and thats all they drink here)
• 1 15-ounce can black beans, drained
• 1 15-ounce can crushed tomatoes
• 1 cup beef stock or broth
• 2 to 3 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
• 8-ounce piece of smoked Gouda, shredded
• 1 small white onion, finely chopped

1. Heat a deep, large skillet or a pot over high heat.
2. Add 2 tablespoons of the EVOO (twice around the pan) and the meat.
3. Season it with the grill seasoning and sear it, browning and crumbling it, for 3 to 5 minutes.
4. Transfer the meat to a plate and return the pot to the stove.
5. Reduce the heat to medium high and add the remaining tablespoon of EVOO.
6. Add the mushrooms and begin to brown them before adding the other veggies.
7. After 2 or 3 minutes the mushrooms will begin to shrink and soften.
8. Push the mushrooms off to one side of the pot and add all the remaining veggies to the opposite side of the pot.
9. Once the onions, celery, bell peppers, and garlic have been working for a few minutes, mix the veggies with the mushrooms.
10. Return the meat to the pan, and season with the Worcestershire sauce, chipotle, and cumin.
11. Add the beer to deglaze the pot, scraping up all the pan drippings.
12. Reduce the beer by half, 2 minutes.
13. Add the black beans, tomatoes, stock, and thyme to the chili and simmer for 10 minutes to let the flavors combine.
14. Taste to adjust the seasonings.
15. Top bowlfuls of the chili with shredded smoked Gouda and finely chopped raw onions.

extravirgin olive oil, ground sirloin, grill seasoning, portobello mushrooms, shiitake mushroom caps, yellow onion, celery, red bell pepper, garlic, worcestershire sauce, peppers, ground cumin, uptown, black beans, tomatoes, beef stock, thyme, gouda, white onion

Taken from www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/uptown-down-home-chili-374277 (may not work)