La Pesca Nilgai Chili
“One of our signature dishes is our homemade nilgai chili. Our guests travel from all over the world, and they love this chili. You can enjoy it with your favorite toppings, shredded sharp Cheddar, chopped onions, jalapeños, maybe even Fritos; a nice square of buttery cornbread adds the proper finishing touch. It is the perfect recipe to feed a crowd. Enjoy!”
Ingredients
- 2 pounds (907.2 g) ground nilgai*
- 1½ tablespoons (15 g) Fiesta Uncle Chris’ Gourmet, or your favorite, steak seasoning
- 1 pound (453.6 g) nilgai (if available) or pork sausage
- 1 white onion, chopped
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 2 jalapeños, chopped
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 6- ounce (170-g) can green chiles
- 1 packet Carroll Shelby’s Texas Chili spice mix**
- 1 6- ounce (170-g) can tomato paste
- 1 can Modelo or your favorite beer (optional)
- 3 14½- ounce (411-g) cans fire-roasted diced tomatoes
- 1 28- ounce (793.8-g) can plus 1 15-ounce (425.2-g) can tomato sauce
- 1 15½- ounce (493.4-g) can jalapeño pinto, or your choice of, beans (optional)
Instructions
- Cook ground nilgai on medium heat. Sprinkle in Uncle Chris’ or your favorite steak seasoning. Once fully cooked, remove nilgai from the pot, drain out any liquid and set nilgai aside.
- In the same pot, place ground sausage. Cook but do not drain and keep in pot. Return cooked nilgai to the pot.
- Add chopped onions, jalapeños and minced garlic. Cook on medium heat until onions are translucent. Stir in the green chiles, Texas Chili spice mix and tomato paste.
- If using, add your favorite beer (I prefer Mexican beer, such as Modelo). Combine ingredients.
- Add fire-roasted tomatoes, tomato sauce and, if using, your beans of choice (I prefer canned jalapeño pinto beans). Simmer on low to medium heat for 2 to 3 hours, stirring occasionally.
Notes
*Nilgai is the star in my recipe, but if it is not available, ground beef or any protein of your choice may be substituted.
**Carroll Shelby’s Texas Chili spice mix is perfect for the novice chili cook because one packet contains all the common traditional chili seasonings. It is convenient and saves you time and money as you do not have to purchase several different spices that will only get seldomly used.
Photos by Yvette Vela
Photos by Yvette Vela