Thai Curry Chili

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This award winning Thai Curry Chili is sure to become one your favorite chili recipes of all time! 

I know it’s one of our favorite recipes to make when we want a big pot of chili!  

Of course we love traditional chili too (especially Jeff’s Grandma Cella’s recipe), but there is something really special about this Thai Curry Chili…

Several years ago, Jeff and I were invited over to our friends’ house for a Chili cook off. We were bound and determined to come up with “a never been done before” chili.  We discussed different twists on traditional chili, including  Mexican chili (Jeff’s favorite cuisine), but quickly realized that was called tortilla soup! We bounced idea after idea around and then it hit us… Thai Curry Chili!

We had been on a curry binge in the few months prior to creating this recipe, which is funny in and of itself, because neither one of us had ever liked curry previously.  To tell you the truth, I can’t even remember what spurred us to even try it again…. but I am so glad we did. We found a local Thai restaurant and over the course of a few months, we tried every curry dish they made! We both liked and didn’t like certain things about each dish, so I started making our own version of curry at home and we were hooked!

The day before the big chili cook off, we got to work planning our recipe. Since neither one of us had a clear idea for executing this dish, it really became about adding in all the flavors we love in Thai food and combining those flavors with some components of traditional chili… the result was so outstanding, we could have easily eaten the whole pot… but of course we didn’t we had a chili cook off to win!

Well… sad to say, we did not win THAT chili cook off, but everyone was going back for seconds and thirds of the Thai Curry Chili! We decided to enter our Thai Curry Chili into 3 chili cook offs over the next year and we came in 1st place in two cook offs and 2nd place in the third! Like I said before, there is something really special about this chili!

What you’ll need for Thai Curry Chili:

• Olive Oil
• Sirloin Steak
• Yellow Curry Powder
• Red Curry Paste
• Vidalia Onion
• Coconut Milk
• Chili Pepper Paste
• Lemon Grass Paste
• Creamy Peanut Butter
• Chicken Stock
• Black Beans
• Red Bell Pepper
• Hunt’s Fire Roasted Tomatoes
• Fresh Cilantro
• Salt and Pepper

Optional Garnishes:

• Sour Cream or Plain Greek Yogurt
• Peanuts
• Cucumber
• Spring Onions
• Cilantro

Step One:

Trim and cube Sirloin, place in plastic bag ( or a medium bowl) and add 1 Tablespoon of yellow curry powder, 1 teaspoon of red curry paste, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper. Mix spices to coat sirloin and set aside. Dice onion. In a large stock pot, add 2 Tablespoons of olive oil and heat on medium. Add sirloin and onions, stir frequently. Cook on medium  until onions are soft and meat is browned, about 5-7   minutes.

Step Two:

Place the black beans in a colander and allow to drain. I also give them a quick rinse with cold water. Add coconut milk and chicken stock to pot with sirloin and onions. Turn heat to low. Add peanut butter, 1 Tablespoon of yellow curry powder, 2 teaspoons of red curry paste, 1 1/2 Tablespoons Chili Pepper paste, 1 Tablespoon of Lemon Grass paste and 1 teaspoon salt. Stir to combine spices and allow to simmer on low.

Step Three:

Dice the red pepper. Add tomatoes, red pepper and beans. Stir to combine and continue to simmer on low for about 45-60 minutes. The sirloin should be tender and all flavors combined.

Step Four:

Chop Cilantro.  Add 3/4 cup to Thai Curry Chili and reserve 1/4 cup for garnish. Stir to combine. Chop green onions & cucumber for garnish (optional). When serving Thai Curry Chili for a group, I like to set up bowls with various garnishes and let everyone pile on what they love! My favorite garnishes are the cucumber and greek yogurt, they add the perfect crunch and creaminess to this chili. Serve & Enjoy!

Print Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Thai Curry Chili

This recipe has all the warm and wonderful flavors of our favorite curry dish along with beans and tomatoes to make the perfect Thai Curry Chili!

Prep Time15 mins

Cook Time1 hr

Total Time1 hr 15 mins

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Thai

Keyword: thai curry chili

Servings: 8

Calories: 425kcal

Author: The Salted Pepper

Ingredients

• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 1 Pound of Sirloin
• 2 Tablespoons of yellow curry powder divided
• 1 Tablespoon of red curry paste divided
• 1 1/2 Teaspoons salt divided
• 1/2 Teaspoon black pepper
• 1 Vidalia Onion
• 1 13.5 ounce can of Coconut Milk
• 1 Cup Chicken Stock
• 2 Tablespoons Creamy Peanut Butter
• 1 Tablespoon Lemongrass Paste
• 1 1/2 Tablespoons Chili Pepper Paste
• 1 Red Bell Pepper
• 1 14.5 ounce can Hunt's Fire Roasted Tomatoes
• 1 29 ounce can Black Beans
• 1 Cup Fresh Cilantro chopped

Garnishes

• Crushed Peanuts
• Sour Cream or Plain Greek Yogurt
• Chopped Green onions
• Chopped Cucumber
• Chopped Cilantro

Instructions

• Cube Sirloin Steak and place in plastic bag or bowl. Mix together 1 Tablespoon of yellow curry powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper and 1 Teaspoon Red Curry Paste. Mix spices with cubed to sirloin to coat entirely. Set aside
• Chop Vidalia Onion.
• Heat 2 Tablespoons of olive oil in large stock pot on medium heat. Add Sirloin and onion. Continue to cook until the onions are soft and the sirloin is browned, about 5-7 minutes.
• Add in coconut milk and chicken stock, reduce heat to low.
• Add peanut butter, remaining tablespoon of yellow curry powder, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 1/2 Tablespoons chili pepper paste, 1 Tablespoon Lemongrass paste and remaining 2 teaspoons of red curry paste. Stir to combine.
• Dice red pepper and add to pot. Add can of Fire Roasted tomatoes.
• Drain and rinse black beans, add to pot and stir to combine.
• Allow to simmer 45-60 minutes or until sirloin is tender and all flavors are combined.
• Chop cilantro and add 3/4 cup to Thai Curry Chili and stir.. Reserve 1/4 cup for garnish.
• Prepare garnishes.
• Serve and Enjoy!

Notes

Recently, I had a hard time finding Lemongrass paste and substituted it with about 1 tsp grated lemon peel and 1 tsp maple sugar. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1cup | Calories: 425kcal | Carbohydrates: 29g | Protein: 24g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 502mg | Potassium: 148mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 600IU | Vitamin C: 21.5mg | Calcium: 11mg | Iron: 0.3mg

Do you LOVE Thai food as much as I do?

Be sure to check out my recipe for Thai Chicken Lettuce Wraps! Seriously… they are BETTER than PF Chang’s!

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