Chile Colorado

This family favorite combines tender pieces of beef and a silky red chile sauce. Serve Chile Colorado with Mexican rice, beans, and flour tortillas.

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We try to eat plant-based meals most of the time, but truth be told, there is nothing my family loves more than a good beef guisado. With the Super Bowl coming up this weekend, I thought I’d share with you one of our absolute favorites—authentic Chile Colorado.

This Northern Mexican/TexMex dish takes braised beef and slowly simmers it in a red chili sauce made from dried ancho chiles, chile de árbol, and I used dried New Mexico chiles but pasillas or guajillo chiles are also popular. This is a hearty, warming (but not spicy) meal that can’t be beat, especially when it’s cold outside.

It is awesome with beans and rice to soak up all that lovely sauce and a warm flour tortilla too for again, soaking up all that sauce. Make a big batch and serve a crowd or freeze some for later. It’s ridiculously delicious!

More To Explore

Carne Picada

Carne Deshebrada

Beer-Braised Barbacoa

What Is Chile Colorado?

Chile Colorado gets its name not from being from the state of Colorado but from the fact that it is colored red or colorado in Spanish. Dried Chile peppers are the star in this recipe and their color gives the dish its name.

Chili Colorado can be made with pork shoulder, beef or even chicken, that’s not as important as the sauce. A lot of recipes call for thickening the sauce with flour however, I prefer this method I learned from a Rick Martinez recipe that has you simmer the sauce uncovered until it is luscious and the beef is meltingly tender.

How Do You Use Dried Chiles?

If you are intimidated by dried chiles, don’t be, they are really easy to cook with.

First, select fresh dried chiles. This can be hard to tell if they are already in the package, so look for big bulk bins of chiles instead at your local Latin market. The dried chiles should bend easily without breaking. If they are brittle this means they are old and won’t have any flavor.

Wear gloves if you’d like to prevent red color from staining your hands or if you are working with spicy chiles. Tear off the stems, then open up the chiles. Shake out all the seeds then run them under cold water to wash out any remaining seeds and remove any dirt or dust.

Soak them in hot liquid (in this recipe we use beef broth) until they are very soft, about 30 minutes. Then blend with the other sauce ingredients in a blender until smooth.

Ingredients

• Chuck roast. I buy it already cut in the form of stew meat but you could buy boneless chuck roast and cut it into 1-inch pieces.
• Dried ancho chiles. Confusingly, these are also sometimes mislabeled as pasilla chiles which are not the same thing. Anchos are dried poblano peppers and are wide at the top.
• Dried New Mexico chiles. Substitute guajillo chiles here if you’d like.
• Dried arbol chiles. These add a bit of heat. If you don’t want it spicy at all use 1 more ancho or New Mexico chile instead.
• Beef broth or chicken broth
• White onion
• Garlic
• Dried Mexican oregano or Mediterranean oregano
• Kosher salt
• Ground black pepper
• Ground cumin
• Bay leaves
• Avocado oil or vegetable oil
• Mexican rice, beans, flour tortillas (or corn tortilla), cilantro leaves, minced onion, thinly sliced jalapeños and radishes, for serving

How To Make Chile Colorado

step one

Stem and seed the chiles. Remove the stems and seeds from the dried chiles, place in a fine mesh strainer and rinse well to remove any stray seeds and dust.

step two

Soften the chiles. Bring 3 cups of the beef broth to a boil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the dried chiles and push under the broth. Remove from the heat, cover and let soak 30 minutes or until they are very soft and pliable.

step three

Make the chile sauce. Pour the chiles and broth they were soaking in into a blender. Add the onion, garlic cloves, oregano, and cumin. Blend on high until completely smooth and no bits of chiles remain.

step four

Season the beef. I like to buy pre-cut beef stew meat from the grocery store. If you bought a whole piece of beef, cut it into 1-inch pieces. Place in a large bowl and toss the beef in the salt and black pepper.

step five

Brown the meat. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add half of the beef (don’t crowd the pan) and cook until browned on all sides, about 8 minutes. Remove to a large plate and add the other half of the beef. Brown that as well then return the first batch to the pan.

step six

Braise. Add the Chile Colorado sauce to the pot with the beef along with the remaining beef broth and bay leaves. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to low and gently simmer, uncovered, until sauce is thickened and meat easily pulls apart with a fork.

The length of time will depend on the cut of meat and how gentle it simmers. This could take anywhere from 2-3 hours. Stir occasionally to prevent the sauce from burning. If the sauce is getting thick before the beef is ready. Cover the pot and continue cooking.

step seven

Serve! Serve the Chile Colorado with Mexican rice, beans, flour tortillas, and garnishes like fresh cilantro, chopped onion, lime wedges, and thinly sliced jalapeños.

Freezing Tips

This is a perfect recipe for a freezer meal. It actually gets better as it sits. Let cool completely, then store in a freezer-safe airtight container for up to 3 months. Let defrost overnight in the refrigerator, then warm on the stove or in the microwave.

What To Serve With It

Use the Chile Colorado to make tacos, burritos, or as a filling for sopes or quesadillas. You can also serve it alongside:

• Sofrito Black Beans
• Cilantro Lime Slaw
• PIckled Red Onions
• Pico de Gallo
• Arroz Blanco {Mexican White Rice with Vegetables}
• Agua de Jamaica
• Calabacitas {Cheesy Mexican Zucchini}

If You Love This Chile Colorado Recipe Try:

• How To Make Mexican Chorizo From Scratch
• Vinegar and Spice Baby Back Ribs (from our sister site, Kate’s Best Recipes)
• Pork Pozole Rojo
• Slow Cooker Caldo de Pollo
• Easy Beef Barley Soup (again, from Kate’s Best Recipes)
• Migas
• Caldo de Res

One Taste and You Will Fall In Love

Believe me, the flavor of this Chile Colorado does not disappoint! I hope you try it out and if you do, let me know how it went. Share a photo and tag me on Instagram using @holajalapeno and #holajalapeno so that I can see your stuff (don’t forget to leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating)! Also, sign up for my weekly newsletter, lots of good stuff there too!

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