Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground beef, with its rendered fat retained
- 1 pound dried black beans
- 1 pound dried small red beans (not kidney beans)
- 2 cans (28 ounces each) diced tomatoes, with their juice
- 1 can (28 ounces) crushed tomatoes
- 2 cans (15 ounces each) tomato sauce
- 2 cans (14.5 ounces each) Chili Ready diced tomatoes, for Brian’s original batch
- About 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- About 1/4 teaspoon paprika
- About 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, for Brian’s original hot batch
- About 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, for Brian’s original hot batch
- Water for soaking and cooking the beans; reserved fully cooked bean liquid or water only as needed for the pot
Method
Recipe by Brian Bateman.
- Soak and cook the beans first. Sort and rinse the black beans and small red beans. Soak overnight in the refrigerator in separate roomy containers with plenty of water. Drain and rinse. Cover each variety with fresh water by about 2 inches, bring to a boil, then simmer gently until completely tender, adding hot water to keep the beans covered. Start checking after about an hour; older beans can need 2 hours or longer. The centers should be creamy, not chalky. Reserve some fully cooked bean liquid, then drain. Cook the beans tender before adding acidic tomatoes. This recipe specifies small red beans, not kidney beans.
- Brown the beef in batches. Heat a heavy skillet over medium-high heat and brown about 1 pound at a time. Let a broad layer or a few large pieces develop a browned surface before turning and breaking them into chunks. Let released water evaporate so the meat can brown. Cook ground beef to 160°F, checked with a food thermometer. Transfer the beef and its rendered fat and juices to a large stockpot. No salt or other extra seasoning is added to the beef.
- Keep the browned pan juices. Loosen the browned bits in the skillet over low heat with a little tomato liquid or reserved fully cooked bean liquid, then add them to the stockpot. Leave blackened residue behind. A separate spice-frying step is not required.
- Combine and simmer. Add all seven cans of tomato products, the tender cooked beans, about 1 teaspoon cumin and 1/4 teaspoon paprika. For Brian’s original batch, use the two Chili Ready cans. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook over low heat for about 45–60 minutes, stirring across the bottom regularly. A thin-bottomed pot needs particular attention. If necessary, add reserved cooked-bean liquid or water a little at a time; keep the chili thick but easy to stir and ladle.
- Choose the heat deliberately. Brian used about 1/2 teaspoon each cayenne and crushed red pepper flakes and found his Chili Ready batch very hot. When recreating it, add the measured peppers gradually, stir and simmer, and taste a cooled spoonful before adding the rest. You may prefer less. For the optional plain-tomato mild/medium/hot versions below, make those substitutions before cooking. Set aside any mild share before adding hot pepper to the remainder; scale the pepper to that remainder rather than using a full-pot dose in a small portion.
- Serve and reserve the rest promptly. Use 1½ cups as a working serving, adjusting for appetite and companions. The estimated total is 24–28 cups, not a measured yield. Check the amount actually available before allocating later meals or shares. Divide the remaining chili promptly into shallow containers and refrigerate within 2 hours, or within 1 hour above 90°F. Do not leave the whole stockpot out until cold.
Serving, useful notes and storage
Serving, variations, and storage
Optional plain-tomato mild, medium and hot versions
These are optional, untested variations, not the formula shown in Brian’s photograph. Replace only the two 14.5-ounce Chili Ready cans with two 14.5-ounce cans of plain diced tomatoes without added hot chiles. Keep the other five cans, beef, beans, approximately 1 teaspoon cumin and 1/4 teaspoon ordinary sweet paprika unchanged. Do not automatically add other seasonings to compensate.
- Mild: omit the cayenne and crushed hot red pepper.
- Medium starting allowance: up to 1/4 teaspoon cayenne and 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper for the entire pot.
- Hot starting allowance: up to 1/2 teaspoon cayenne and 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper for the entire pot.
For medium or hot, start with half of each measured allowance, simmer for 10 minutes, stir and taste a cooled spoonful before increasing. Pepper strength and tolerance vary. The optional hot version uses Brian’s added-pepper quantities but different tomatoes, so it does not promise identical heat. Keep a mild share separate first; half a pot gets half the stated allowance. Use a suitable small measuring spoon for tiny quantities; do not guess a large pinch. Do not stack extra cayenne, flakes, hot paprika, hot sauce or fresh hot peppers on top of the chosen allowance. Sliced jalapeño or serrano is a separate optional heat route, not an additional ingredient in this measured ladder.
One cooking session, three meals for two people
Reserve 9 cups for home before assigning any food to others. This is an example allocation, dependent on the amount your pot actually makes.
- Cooking day: 3 cups chili total, 1½ cups each. Serve cornbread alongside if wanted.
- Next day: 3 cups chili over 2 large freshly baked potatoes, 1½ cups each, with a fresh salad.
- Following day: 3 cups chili with 4 ounces dry macaroni, cooked separately, for two meals. Add a little pasta water if needed and optional 1/4 cup grated cheddar total. Serve a fresh vegetable or salad alongside.
Home allocation: 3 + 3 + 3 = 9 cups, counted once. At the estimated 24–28-cup yield, 15–19 cups would remain. Sharing 4½ cups with each of three households uses 13½ cups, or three 1½-cup servings per household. Home plus sharing uses 22½ cups, leaving an estimated 1½–5½ cups. Check the actual batch before promising these shares. Do not count shared portions again in the home plan.
Companion shopping for this example: 2 large baking potatoes, 4 ounces dry macaroni, salad or vegetables for four side servings, optional 1/4 cup cheddar and ingredients for cornbread if making it. No extra batch of chili is needed. Cornbread is a companion; no corn goes into the chili.
Estimated ingredient cost
Price check: October 19, 2026, U.S. dollars. Estimated consumed-ingredient cost is $22.65 for the pot (about $23), or $1.26–$1.42 per estimated 1½-cup serving when the batch makes 16–18 complete servings. Both cost and total yield are estimates.
- Ground beef, 2 pounds at Brian’s photographed $4.99 per pound: $9.98.
- Dried black beans, 1 pound: $1.54; dried small red beans, 1 pound: $1.92.
- Two 28-ounce cans diced tomatoes: $3.34; one 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes: $1.72.
- Two 15-ounce cans tomato sauce: $2.00; two 14.5-ounce cans Chili Ready tomatoes: $2.00.
- Small used quantities of the four spices: a rounded $0.15 pantry allowance, not the cost of whole jars.
Only the two pounds of beef used are charged to this pot, not Brian’s entire 3.51-pound package. Other prices are retailer comparison estimates, not his receipts or a verified local checkout quote; the spice allowance is approximate. These figures exclude cornbread, potatoes, macaroni, vegetables, toppings, utilities, delivery and applicable tax. Optional plain-tomato versions may cost slightly differently. Six retained portions across the example three meals for two allocate about $7.55–$8.49 of chili cost, with companion costs separate. Reusing chili does not incur another batch cost.
Price references: black beans, small red beans, diced tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce retailer listing and Chili Ready tomatoes. Prices and availability vary by store and date.
Cool, share and reheat
Refrigerate promptly in shallow containers at 40°F or below; do not wait for a large stockpot to cool on the counter. Label portions with the cooking date, heat level and cups. Transport shared chili cold in an insulated cooler with ice packs. Use refrigerated chili within 3–4 days of cooking and reheat only the portions needed to 165°F throughout, stirring well. Reheating does not restart the storage clock. This example uses the home portions over three consecutive days; share promptly or make less if the batch cannot be used within the storage window.
Photo and recipe notes
Photo: Brian Bateman, his own finished beef-and-bean chili, used with his permission. View the original chili photograph. Photo permission and recipe notes. This is Brian’s reported household recipe, with editorial cooking and storage guidance. No kitchen test of the optional plain-tomato variations or measured full-pot yield is claimed.
