Hearty Texas-Style Chili con Carne with Dark Chocolate and Red Wine

Finely chop the red onions and garlic cloves. Dice the carrots, leek, celery stalks, red peppers, and yellow peppers into bite-sized pieces.

Heat olive oil in a large pot on medium-high heat.

Add diced red onions and garlic.

Season with 2 teaspoons of sea salt and one teaspoon of black pepper.

Wait for the onion's water to reduce. Proper reduction removes acidity from the final dish.

Add the ground beef.

Set your stove to high heat.

Stir the onions and beef to the edges of the pot and add the tomato paste in the middle.

Stir everything together.

Add all prepared spices.

Add chili powder to your likings. If you want to go easy on hotness of your chili, skip now and add in the end.

Cook for another 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly, to toast the spices and deepen their flavor.

Pour in the dry red wine.

Reduce heat to medium.

Let it reduce completely, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. This helps to eliminate any sourness from the wine and concentrates its flavor.

Break up or crush the bay leaves. This ensures their aroma is fully embraced in the final chili.

Add the tomato passata, diced carrots, leek, celery, red peppers, yellow peppers, and 2 bay leaves to the pot. Stir everything well to combine.

Bring the chili to a gentle boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover the pot, and let it simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. This long simmer allows the flavors to meld beautifully.

After 1 hour of simmering, stir in the drained 750 g kidney beans, 750 g black beans, and 500 g corn. Let it simmer for another 5 minutes to heat through.

Remove the pot from the heat. Break the 50 g dark chocolate into pieces and add it to the chili along with the 120 g butter. Stir until both are completely melted and incorporated, adding a luxurious richness to the dish.

Taste the chili and adjust the seasoning as needed. Add more salt, black pepper, or chili powder to your liking for extra heat. A final drizzle of olive oil can also enhance the flavor.

Serve your delicious Chili con Carne hot, accompanied by fresh baguette slices or fluffy rice. A dollop of cool sour cream on top makes for a perfect contrast.