This Texas Style Chili with Slow Cooked Brisket is the ultimate recipe to show off to your friends and family. It is quite simply the best!
The number one most google searched food item in the month of February is Chili, so I made sure this Texas Style Chili with Slow Cooked Brisket recipe was on point!
I am guessing it’s because of the Super Bowl, and if you are looking for a recipe then this slow cooked brisket Chili is exactly what you should make.
Not chicken wings, potato skins, or any other thing that you love to make and eat for the big game, chili is the winner.
I love brisket chili for the simple fact that to me it means FOOTBALL.
Yes, I’m obsessed I get it but hey we all have our TV watching struggles lol.
What is Texas Chili
I don’t say this lightly but this Texas Style Chili with Slow Cooked Brisket is the best chili I have ever made, and believe me I’ve made quite a few in my day.
My favorite used to be my white chicken chili until I made this Texas Style Chili and now this is number 1!
Yes, I know most Texas Style Chili recipes do not have beans in it, look I get it.
However, my inspiration for calling this a “Texas Style Chili” was because I finished it with chocolate and cinnamon and brisket which quite a few Texans do.
And no offense, but I love beans in my chili, it’s a must and well it’s my recipe so I get to do what I want :-).
YES I KNOW TEXAS CHILI IS BEANLESS BUT I DON’T CARE!!!
Chili Recipes
For some reason brisket chili is just one of those things that is hard too perfect.
I mean there are so many different ingredients, from the beans, to the meat, the correct amount of seasonings and spices, too many things to get right!
I also like the fact that this brisket chili can be so versatile with all of the different ingredients you can put in it.
Heck I just made a vegan chili with sweet potato and kale and it was THE BOMB!! Who knew??
I also like the fact that you can pick and choose your spicy peppers for the perfect amount of heat.
Guess what if you don’t like the fact that I used jalapeños in my Texas Style Chili with Slow Cooked Brisket and want something hotter, then go get yourself a habanero pepper, just don’t come crying to me when your mouth is on fire.
It’s all about balance, remember that.
How to Make Slow Cooker Brisket
The first thing I threw away when making this Texas Style Chili with Slow Cooked Brisket recipe was time.
I literally had to put zero time constraints on this Texas Style Chili with Slow Cooked Brisket recipe so that I could cook the meat properly, as well as caramelize the onions properly.
When you take the time to caramelize your vegetables it literally takes on a completely different flavor and is just so delicious.
I mean think about it, a raw onion or a sweet caramelized onion?!
Exactly what I thought!
If you’ve ever smoked brisket, then you know firsthand just how long it takes to cook.
I mean honestly it takes like 18+ hours to smoke a brisket and for it to be done correctly, so it is definitely a labor of love.
Well thank the good Lord for slow cookers because we don’t have to worry about cooking the brisket for that long, however it does still take about 8 hours, which is quite a bit of time.
I also like to start by searing the brisket first to get a nice crust on it before I add it to the slower cooker with the beer to be broken down.
Something just weird about putting raw protein and letting a slow cooker cook it. I’m odd I know.
So essentially you are cooking the chili without the slow cooker brisket to allow for caramelization with out the breaking down of the vegetables.
In the end you simply combine everything and simmer. Easy as that!
The end result of this Texas Style Chili with Slow Cooked Brisket recipe is absolutely insane and while I haven’t had time to make it again, there is zero doubt in my mind that this Texas Style Chili with Slow Cooked Brisket will be the recipe that I make.
If you think you have a better recipe I want to see it, so send it my way in the comments below or on social media.
Enjoy!
How to Make Brisket Chili
- STEP 1: Season the brisket and sear it until golden brown.
- STEP 2: Add the cooked brisket to a slow cooker with beer and diced tomatoes for 8 hours.
- STEP 3: After 4 hours of the brisket cooking, caramelize the onions until golden brown in a large separate pot.
- STEP 4: Add the beans, tomatoes and seasonings to the pot of caramelized onions and cook on low for 3 hours.
- STEP 5: When the brisket is done cooking shred apart and add the entire mixture to the large pot of vegetables.
- STEP 6: Finish by stirring in the cinnamon, chocolate and seasonings to taste.
More Chili Recipes
If you love this Texas Style Chili with Slow Cooker Brisket, then you will love some of these other chili recipes!
- Easy Homemade Chili Recipe
- Hickory Smoked White Chicken Chili Recipe
- Lentil and Sweet Potato Chili
- Classic Beef Chili – from Dinner then Dessert
Texas Style Chili with Slow Cooked Brisket
Ingredients
For the Brisket:
- 4 pound brisket
- 2 bottles of stout beer
- 28 ounce can of chopped tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil
- Kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
For the Chili:
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil
- 2 small diced yellow onion
- 1 small iced red onion
- 6 finely minced cloves of garlic
- 2 seeded and small diced jalapeños
- 1 seeded and small diced poblano pepper
- 2 small diced chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
- 1 seeded and small diced red bell pepper
- 1 seeded and small diced green bell pepper
- 2 cans of strained and rinsed chickpeas
- 2 cans of strained and rinsed black beans
- 2 cans of strained and rinsed kidney beans
- two 28 ounce cans of whole plum tomatoes and juice
- two 28 ounce cans of crushed tomatoes
- two 28 ounce cans of chopped tomatoes and juice
- ½ cup of chili powder or to taste
- 1/3 cup of cumin or to taste
- ¼ cup of dry oregano or to taste
- 1/2 tablespoon of cinnamon or to taste
- 2 ounces of dark chocolate
- Kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
- Tomato paste as needed
Instructions
- Season the brisket generously on all sides with salt and pepper. Next add the olive oil to a very large sauté pan on high heat and brown the brisket on all sides.
- Once the brisket is caramelized, add it to a slow cooker along with stout beer, can of chopped tomatoes and salt and pepper, and cook on high heat for 8 hours.
- After the brisket has cooked for 4 hours, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to a very large pot on medium-high heat. Next, add in the onions and garlic and caramelize. Once the onions and garlic are brown, add in the peppers and cook for 10 minutes on high heat.
- Add in the beans, tomatoes, and seasonings (except the chocolate) and stew on low heat for until the brisket is finished cooking.
- Once the brisket is done, pull it apart using two forks so that it is completely shredded. Add the entire pot of brisket including the beer and tomatoes to the pot of chili.
- Thicken with tomato paste if need be. Finish by stirring in chocolate and seasoning with salt and pepper.
Dee says
August 18, 2019 at 11:07 amThank you so much for this amazing recipe. I made double the amount for a party and it easily fed over 50 people with lots of plates being topped up more than twice! I also used some of the sauce (before beef added) to make a vegetarian version using jackfruit. A couple of the ingredients had to be ‘googled’ to get a good alternative as they were either not available or known by another name here in the UK. Well chef I have never had so many people ask how something has been made, it was a complete success and I am sure that along with quite a few others at the party will no longer use minced (ground) beef in a chilli recipe, thank you so much for sharing.
Chef Billy Parisi says
August 18, 2019 at 12:02 pmAMAZING!! So glad it worked out so we=ll for you 🙂
Jenny Bentley says
August 9, 2019 at 3:24 pmI’m about to make a double batch of this to share with three families. I’ve not put dark chocolate in chili before… and this is my first attempt at beef brisket chili.. so excited! But.. do I use bakers chocolate aka unsweetened bakers chocolate, or a good dark chocolate sweetened chocolate!?
Chef Billy Parisi says
August 10, 2019 at 7:51 amA double batch holy smokes you are going to feed an army. I have used both and you can too. If you want a little sweet use it or if you want a deep chocolate flavor use unsweetened.
Melanie says
March 6, 2019 at 3:19 pmWith the brisket do we need it trimmed or should we have the fat left on it??
Chef Billy Parisi says
March 6, 2019 at 5:48 pmTotally up to you. I do a light trim first.
Kevin says
February 17, 2019 at 10:45 amThank you for continuing to answer questions on an old post!
These may be obvious answers but though I’d ask anyway..
Are the beans cans 15ozs? Are three stout bottles 12oz size or larger 20oz bottles?
Chef Billy Parisi says
February 17, 2019 at 11:25 amNo problem. Bean cans are 15ounces. The stout bottles are 12 oz.
Collin says
February 2, 2019 at 4:58 pmDo you drain the beans or tomatoes before adding?
Chef Billy Parisi says
February 3, 2019 at 12:34 amI usually drain any canned beans and give them a rinse.
Jill says
February 2, 2019 at 3:29 pmdoes the chili have an overly powerful taste of cinnamon. i have tried recipes with adding cinnamon and you could clearly taste it in the chili, which was not good in my opinion.
Chef Billy Parisi says
February 2, 2019 at 3:42 pmNo it’s not bad, but this will literally feed your entire block because it makes a ton.
jim says
January 23, 2019 at 4:52 pmI’m planning on using buffalo brisket. Any thoughts???
Chef Billy Parisi says
January 24, 2019 at 6:20 amFor sure the flavor will change using buffalo, but if you like buffalo then rock on!
jim says
January 23, 2019 at 4:31 pmHow big is your pot??? I just went and bought all the Ingredients and it sure looks like a boat load!
Chef Billy Parisi says
January 24, 2019 at 6:20 amJim this recipe makes a ton, I would cut it in half! The pot I used was a 5 gal.
Rickdiculous001 says
January 11, 2019 at 8:02 pmI going to try this recipe with leftover smoked prime rib and a little elk chorizo. I think it will be awesome!
AD says
January 8, 2019 at 4:12 pmQuestion: the recipe says to slow cook the brisket on high for 8 hours. After it’s cooked for 4 hours to add other stuff. Then cook on low for 4 hours. Does that mean cook for 8 hours total? Or 12? Thanks!
Chef Billy Parisi says
January 8, 2019 at 4:18 pmCook for 8 hours total. After the brisket has cooked for 4 hours you start to make the chili base in a separate pot with beans, veggies, etc.
Regina Thomson says
January 8, 2019 at 9:39 amHas anyone tried this with an Instant Pot pressure cooker for the brisket to save a lot of time?
Rob says
December 16, 2018 at 2:41 pmI had just over 2.5 lbs of smoked brisket left from last weekend so I decided to try this recipe out but cut (most of) the ingredients in half. I diced up the brisket and threw it in my Dutch oven on the stove top to heat up a bit then added 1 bottle of modelo Negra, a 14 Oz can of crushed tomatoes and 2 Oz left over coffee from this morning. I brought that to a boil and reduced the heat and simmered for an hour (ran out of time smoking the brisket last weekend so it was a little tougher than I prefer) I went with 1 yellow onion and a half of a red and sautéed those with 4 cloves of garlic (you can never use too much garlic lol) stuck with 2 jalapeños and 1 poblano, and 1 red and 1 green pepper, I did cut it down to 1 chipotle pepper though, halved all the tomato and bean amounts as well as all the spices but I did add 1/2 tbsp cayenne. It all didn’t fit in my Dutch oven so I transfered it over to the crock pot and set it to high for 4 hours, it smells amazing in my kitchen right now, I can’t wait for dinner!
Chef Billy Parisi says
December 18, 2018 at 6:38 amAWESOME!!!
Chris Fuhrman says
October 30, 2018 at 8:17 amHi Billy! I smoked a 17lb brisket yesterday and am going to give this chili a whirl today. My question to you is since i wont be using a slow cooker for the brisket, should i add the slow cooker ingredients to the pot when i assemble the chili? Maybe 1 bottle of beer instead of 2? Thanks in advance!
Chef Billy Parisi says
October 30, 2018 at 10:43 amI think that would absolutely work. Remember this thing makes a ton of soup just fyi and also adjust the seasonings accordingly. Add some chili powder, taste it, add some more!
Chris Fuhrman says
October 30, 2018 at 12:38 pmThanks Billy. I will keep you posted. Oh yeah, as far as the dark chocolate goes, i just shredded a bar of Ghirardelli. Will that work?
Chef Billy Parisi says
October 30, 2018 at 7:04 pmit will melt so you can just add it in there. I think I used 4 ounces because it’s such a big batch. Maybe start with 2 ounces and see how it tastes before adding in. Good luck!
Cam says
October 26, 2018 at 3:37 pmI just noticed the recipe adjustment doesn’t work in the tomatoe cans. I halved the recipe but they didn’t adjust. Was that the intentions, cause that seems weird if you always have the same number of tomatoe cans no matter the size of the recipe.
Chef Billy Parisi says
October 26, 2018 at 4:38 pmSure it does, you simply use 1 can instead of 2.
Cam says
October 27, 2018 at 9:52 amI get that but the 28 oz tomatoe cans are given as “two” and not 2 so they don’t adjust when you change the serving size on the webpage.
Chef Billy Parisi says
October 28, 2018 at 12:29 pmwell if you wanted it to cut in half you would simply use one can, or if you wanted it to cut into 1/4’s you would use 1 15-ounce can.
Jessica says
October 4, 2018 at 6:13 amI am trying to make this gluten free and having trouble with the dark beer. Do you think I should still try with a lighter GF beer? Thank you! It sounds delicious!
Chef Billy Parisi says
October 4, 2018 at 6:13 amyou could definitely try another beer or honestly just don’t use it to be safe.
Heather says
December 28, 2017 at 12:52 pmI am Making the chili now and could not find the chipotle peppers in adobo sauce- is there an alternative? Thank you for the recipe!
Chef Billy Parisi says
December 29, 2017 at 1:34 pmI would add in some other kind of spicy pepper if you can’t use chipotles.
Robin says
November 6, 2017 at 7:36 pmWhat size crock pot is everyone using? I have a large 6.5 quart but I am thinking it is not going to fit.
Chef Billy Parisi says
November 7, 2017 at 9:10 amI use an 8 qt, but honestly this make a ton of chili so I would look at cutting it in half. Also be careful with the leftover juices from the crock pot and adding it to the soup as some did not like the flavor after they put it in there, so be mindful to add a bit and taste it.
Nathan Lee says
November 1, 2017 at 4:00 pmI made this recipe for a work chili cook-off. I smoked the brisket. I made the recipe 1/3 smaller and I halved the spices. My whole family loved it! To me, this was the best chili I’ve ever tasted. Unfortunately, not everyone at work agreed and I did not win the competition. I think some didn’t like it because it wasn’t “traditional” (a more traditional chili won). It did, however, create the biggest buzz, and I think it was easily most people’s second favorite.
Chef Billy Parisi says
November 1, 2017 at 5:34 pmman so glad it turned out for you and glad you liked it. It was the best chili I had ever eaten too!!
Jon says
October 22, 2017 at 2:06 pmVery well done recipe. I modified it slightly by smoking my brisket for 6 hours before putting it in the slow cooker for an additional 6 hours. I cut down by 1 can of chopped tomatoes and fortified it with a little beef base. I also cooked the tomato paste down after the peppers were done to soften the bite. The end result was awesome!
Chef Billy Parisi says
October 22, 2017 at 7:25 pmman that is awesome to hear! Great job on making it work for you 🙂