Southern style slow cooker beef chilli with cornbread topping
- Published: 6 Oct 21
- Updated: 18 Mar 24
Stick a batch of richly flavoured beef chilli in the slow cooker and this gloriously satisfying cornbread topped masterpiece can be yours at the end of the day.
Got a slow cooker at home? Make sure to check out the rest of our slow cooker recipes here.
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Serves 8-10 -
Hands-on time: 20 min, simmer time: about 8¼ hours on low or 4¾ hours on high
Nutrition
- Calories
- 537kcals
- Fat
- 15.1g (6.9g saturated),
- Protein
- 50.2g
- Carbohydrates
- 48g (9.8g sugars)
- Fibre
- 4g fibre
- Salt
- 3.8g
delicious. tips
Batch cook: Cool the chilli completely, then decant into lidded, freezerproof container(s). Leftovers will keep in a lidded container in the fridge for up to 4-5 days. Or freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost in the fridge overnight, then reheat in a pan on the hob until piping hot. Eat it up in one of our serving suggestions
Next time: Make your own chilli paste. Try a mix of 6-8 dried guajillo, ancho and chipotle chillies (you can find them online at coolchile.co.uk, ocado.co.uk, or souschef.co.uk and in some larger supermarkets or spice shops). Remove the stems and seeds from the chillies, lightly toast in a dry pan for 1-2 minutes each side over high heat, then cover in the hot coffee and set aside to soak for 1 hour. Whizz to a smooth paste and proceed with the recipe as stated.
Flavour boost: Liberally salt the meat on all sides a few hours before cooking the chilli to season the meat deeply. Also, browning the meat well on all sides before adding to the slow cooker will give more flavour to the final dish. Don’t forget to deglaze the pan too.
To make the chilli in the oven, after step 1, combine the (seared) spice-coated beef and the remaining ingredients in a large casserole with a tight-fitting lid. Cover with a damp circle of baking paper, tucking in the edges to trap the moisture, then bake in a 130ºC fan/gas 2 oven for 4½-5 hours, removing the lid for the last hour of cooking. Give the chilli a stir after 3 hours and top up with a bit more water if it’s looking a bit dry. The polenta helps to thicken up the sauce – you may not need it if cooking in the oven as the heat is drier than a slow cooker.