A popular Mexican stew, Chile Colorado includes tender pieces of beef simmered in a bold, flavorful red chile sauce made from dried Mexican chiles, broth and spices.
If you love amazing, authentic Mexican recipes as much as I do, try our favorite Mole Enchiladas, Carne Asada Tacos, or Empanadas.
You may hear the name “Chile Colorado” and think this is some sort of chili based out of the state of Colorado. Not quite! Try reading the name of the dish again with your best Spanish accent; “Chile color-ado”…it takes on a different meaning! Colorado in Spanish translates to “colored red,” so essentially Chile Colorado is a Mexican style stew made with a red chile sauce.
I think of it as similar to Chile Verde, but with a red sauce instead of green.
About the chiles:
Dried chile peppers are the star of this dish and they are essential to this recipe to achieve the authentic taste and color of Chile Colorado. Depending on your location, you may find very inexpensive dried Mexican chiles in the Mexican isle at your local grocery store, or try a local Latin/Mexican market. Amazon sells all types of Mexican dried chiles as well (including dried ancho and guajillo peppers for this recipe), but I’ve found they’re more expensive than at my local stores.
How to Make Chile Colorado:
1. Cook the chiles: Remove the stems (and seeds if you want, for milder heat) from the dried chiles, rinse them under cold water, place them in a saucepan, and cover them with broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes.
2. Prep the meat: Cut the meat into ½ inch cubes and season it on all sides with salt and pepper and sprinkle with flour. Brown the meat in hot oil until browned on both sides.
3. Blend peppers and onion: sauté the onion and jalapeño and add them and the cooked chiles to a blender (along with the broth). Blend until smooth and set aside.
4. Add to pot: Return browned beef back to the pot, strain the chili sauce from the blender through a fine mesh strainer, into the pot. Add oregano, cumin, paprika, garlic powder and stir well. Add bay leaf.
5. Simmer: Bring to a slow boil, then reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for about an hour, or until the meat is tender. Uncover and stir in lime juice and cornstarch slurry. Cook for a few more minutes, until the sauce has slightly thickened.
How to serve Chile Colorado:
- As a stew, with tortillas for dipping and a side of Mexican rice and Refried Beans.
- Inside enchiladas or burritos.
- As a “bowl” with rice, beans, lettuce and toppings.
- For breakfast on a corn tortilla, topped with a fried egg.
Make Ahead And Freezing Instructions:
To make ahead: Make Chile Colorado first thing in the morning or prep it a day or two ahead of time. Store leftover stew in the fridge for about 2-3 days depending on the freshness of the beef. Reheat on the stove.
To freeze: Make the dish as instructed and allow it to cool completely. Add to a freezer safe container and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and rewarm slowly on the stove. For best results, make and freeze the sauce only and brown the beef, simmering it in the sauce, the day of.
Variations:
- Different Meat: feel free to substitute pork shoulder/butt.
- Add beans: for a more American chili feeling add 1-2 cans of black beans or your favorite chili beans.
- Vegetarian Chile Colorado: omit the beef and add 4 yukon gold potatoes, cubed (and any other desired veggies, like carrots, mushrooms, onions). Simmer in sauce until tender.
- Instant Pot Chile Colorado: Add prepared sauce and seared meat to the instant pot and cook on high pressure for 35 minutes, with a natural release.
- Slow Cooker Chile Colorado: Add prepared sauce and seared meat to slow cooker and cook on low for 5-6 hours.
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Recipe
Chile Colorado
Ingredients
- 4 dried ancho chiles , or pasilla or mulato
- 5 dried guajillo chiles , or New Mexican chiles
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 small onion , chopped
- ½ of a jalapeno , minced (optional, for more heat)
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked Paprika
- 2 ½ lbs stew meat , or cubed beef shoulder/butt roast*
- Salt and pepper
- 3 Tablespoons flour
- 2 Tablespoons oil
- 1 bay leaf
- Juice from 1 small lime
- Cornstarch slurry (1 Tablespoon cornstarch mixed with 1 Tablespoon water)
For serving (optional):
- Tortillas , corn or flour
- chopped fresh Cilantro , for garnish
- Sliced radishes
- Mexican rice
Instructions
- Remove meat from fridge and cut into ½ inch cubes. Set aside.
- Remove the stems (and seeds if you want, for milder heat) from the dried chiles while rinsing them under cold water. Place chiles in a saucepan and cover with broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, prepare the meat. Season on all sides with salt and pepper and sprinkle with flour. Add oil to a skillet over medium high heat. Once hot, add meat and cook until browned on both sides. Depending on the size of your pan you will need to do this in a few batches to keep from overcrowding.
- Remove meat to a plate and set aside. Add onion and jalapeno to the pan and saute for several minutes.
- As the onions cook, pour the softened peppers and the broth into a blender. Add the sautéed onion and jalapeno and blend until smooth. Set aside.
- Return browned beef (and accumulated juices) back to the pot. Strain the chili sauce from the blender through a fine mesh strainer, into the pot. Add oregano, cumin, paprika, garlic powder and stir well. Add bay leaf.
- Bring to a slow boil, then reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for about an hour, or until the meat is very tender.
- Uncover and stir in lime juice and cornstarch slurry. Cook for a few more minutes, until the sauce has slightly thickened.
- Serve as a stew with tortillas for dipping and a side of Mexican rice and beans.
Notes
Nutrition
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HAVE YOU TRIED THIS RECIPE?!
RATE and COMMENT below! I would love to hear your experience.
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Absolutely delicious. Couldn’t find the ancho dried chilies or the other options used a fresh poblano and charred it on the bbq than pealed the skin off. Everything else followed as written. Off the charts amazing. I did have to add more of the slurry to thicken. Restaurant quality!
So happy it worked out great– thanks for you comment Diane!
My husband said this was better than any restaurant Chile Colorado he had ever had! He couldn’t stop eating it and had the leftovers again the next day. A perfect blend of flavors with just enough heat. He said the only change he would have made was I used the stew meat right out of the package and he would like it cut up into tinier chunks, but other than that, he said it was perfect. Served with refried bean, Mexican rice and corn tortillas. This recipe is definitely a keeper!
Delicious recipe, but not spicy enough, I even added the optional jalapeno. Maybe I just have a tolerance. Next time I make it, I’ll use a serrano or maybe even a habanero. Also, you really need a large mesh strainer, like a 9″, I only had a little one and it took a long time to strain the blended peppers. I can’t wait to make it again!
I made this as my entry in a “Chili Cookoff” at church. A couple of people stopped by my booth to say it was the best chili there. I think it was the best chili id ever eaten–let alone made
The only thing I did different was that I added two cans of Ranch Style beans during the last 20 minutes of simmering. Incredibly delicious! Thank you so much!
Delicious, thank you! Will definitely be making again.
Really great recipe. Tastes amazing. Can seem like a lot of touch points if you’re new to Mexican cooking. But still very easy to follow and fish that comes out at the end is fantastic.
I subbed the stew meat for a couple of minute steaks and some left over chuck roast. And did the simmering in a Dutch oven on top of the stove. Also doubled the lime juice and it brightened up.
Definitely will try this in the crock pot in the future and want to smoke a pork butt for the meat.
Great work on the recipe. Thanks
Absolutely fantastic. Not the best Mexican food in my area, most places don’t even have Chile Colorado on the menu! This was amazing, just what I’ve been craving for four years. I tried not to get my hopes up in case it didn’t turn out just like I wanted – but it’s perfect. The entire family gave it raving reviews. Even the pickiest little 7 year old! He said it was the best burrito he’d ever had! Thank you so much for sharing. I will be making again and again 🙂
This was so delicious! Except I cooked it an hour and a half and the meat was still tough. Simmering for a few hours would be perfect.
I did this but with potatoes it’s so good I’m making it again we love it on point thank you for shareing
Lauren must be part Hispanic. This was absolutely delicious. It reminded me of a dish my grandma would make me as a child. Has all the authentic flavors and is going to be a staple in my home. Thank you!
Would lay off a bit on the flour & slurry to retain the delicious brothy flavor.
I have a hard time finding dried peppers that are not full of bugs here, will this recipe work with guajillo and ancho powder? I think this is the dish we had when visiting Pheonix, and loved it.
Had this with half venison, half beef. One of the best chiliies I’ve had. Will be making more!
I found this recipe by accident and since my wife and I both love Mexican food I thought I would try it. It turned out absolutely fantastic. We also used the sauce to make cheese enchiladas and they were great. My wife is Hispanic and grew up in El Paso, Texas. she said the sauce tasted just like what her mom used to make. Followed the recipe as written. We will be making this again and again and again.
Awesome and delicious recipe. Thank you for sharing’
It’s was easy to make and delicious
I love this recipe. I’ve made it several times and it never disappoints.
My family and I loved it. Used the crock pot method after searing the meat.
I am really excited to be making this today! 😃 Question, I see that you can make this in the crockpot (which is my favorite!) However, I see that we’re suppose to add the lime and “slurry” at a certain point. When preparing in the crockpot, when is that suppose to be added?
Thank you in advance! 😊
What you say about “Chili Colorado” meaning that the chili is in a red sauce and not from Colorado makes sense, because the actual regional chili variation from Colorado is specifically a green chili made with pork. 😀
There is no better Latin dish than this. The flavors are magnified by the heat from the peppers, even to the last bite.
My recipe:
5 California Chilis no seeds
6 Arbol chiles no seeds
Homemade vegetable, bone chicken, and beef stock
Under-the-shoulder chuck roast
Taco seasoning
Fresh tomatoes and peppers
Corn Starch
Garlic powder
Cumin
What if I use mulato and ancho chiles… will it be okay?
How necessary is the straining if you have a good blender?
Can’t wait to try this!
Can I use beef stock instead of chicken stock?
Yes, sure!
Really liked this recipe, been making green chili verde with pork, so a red Chile beef recipe sounded like something I had to try.
My recommendation is to not strain out the liquid. I originally strained it, and then went ahead and just put in all the puree with another cup or 2 of water and let it summer. No starch needed. It was a rich thick sauce.
This recipe is outstanding! So authentic and great depth of flavor. I used brisket instead of stew meat…and it was incredibly tender. Thank you!
Thank you so much for your kind words! We’re thrilled to hear that you enjoyed our Chile Colorado recipe and that it turned out delicious with brisket. It’s always great to hear when our recipes can be customized to individual preferences and still come out fantastic. Thanks for giving it a try, and we hope you continue to enjoy our recipes!
I made this for the 2nd time with deer hind quarter, it is excellent! I used 3 of the peppers recommended. So very good!
Wow! Thanks for the idea! I’ll pass this on to my hunt folks! Thanks 👍🏼
We made this with Pork Sirloin Tip Roast(from Costco) and loved it!! The pork was tender after the hour of simmering. Looking forward to trying it with beef next time. This recipe is definitely a keeper!!
This was great! The sauce is amazing! Only thing I would change is I would use a chuck roast next time.
Just make sure you don’t actually use chile from Colorado for this.
This is basically carne adovada.
Best red chile recipe I’ve tried and the best I’ve eaten in quite awhile.
Living in East Texas it’s difficult to find authentic Mexican food as most everything is tex-mex crap.
Thank you for the recipe!
By far my FAVORITE chili Colorado recipe. This is so good using a Chuck roast cut into chunks. The recipe is perfect as written, but I decided to try adding a couple pasilla peppers along with the ancho and guajillo and I think it was even better (added more complexity in flavor). So glad I found this recipe. It’s a keeper.
I made this as a special meal for a special friend. I followed the directions exactly, although it didn’t really need the corn starch at the end. It was perfect! It just became one of new special meals and not difficult or messy.
Do you use the common oregano sold in most grocery stores or do you use Mexican oregano?
Both work!
Do you have to strain the pureed chili sauce? I like a chunky sauce in general — or is there another reason for removing all but finest bits of solids?
You can skip the strain if you prefer!
We made this recipe last night. Wow! All I can say is we were so impressed and we cook a lot. It was so delicious. I can’t wait to make it for the entire family. A good birthday dinner! Thank you!!
Great recipe,–made as directed- i was t tad worried at 1.5 hours that i had missed a step
let it cook on low a another 1.5 hours it was perfect. Thank you Chef!
I made it and it was delicious
Made this with deer meat and it is delicious!
Hellooooo, I was raised in Tucson,AZ from the age of 10. I am now 67 and now live in CA. I love visiting family in AZ and especially visiting my favorite Mexican restaurants. My favorite dish is Chili Colorado and have been looking for a recipe that I saw years ago…I can’t wait to try yours because I can tell by the ingredients this is the one I’ve been searching for. THANK YOU
I made this last night, and hubby loved it! My local stores were out of the the dried ancho chilies, so I subbed ancho chili powder.. worked out great! Can’t wait to try tonight’s Chicken Fajita Pasta!
I like the recipe, but curious on the decision to strain the blended mixture. I’ve never actually seen anyone do that with the sauce so I’m interested to know why, that’s all. 🙂
Some of those dried chili’s have not been peeled of their tough outer skin. Boiling then blending and straining takes out any larger pieces
Outstanding! Made it with pork and supplimented with a can of rinsed black beans. Served with tortias and “fixin’s”. Wow.
This is my second chili Colorado recipe I’ve tried and will be my go to moving forward. It was delicious and my 17 year old son kept saying “man this is good”. I served it over my homemade Mexican rice with sour cream, avocado, lime and tortilla chips. The only thing is, like a couple other people mentioned, I had to simmer this way long than an hour it was more like 2.5 hours to get the meat tender enough for my liking but was still super good, and I planned for the longer cooking based on others comments so I was prepared for that.
Fantastic recipe .
Amazing! Thank you!
Absolutely AMAZING!!!!
Made this today turned out wonderful…. Great flavor… And not hard to make at all…..
My husband I are like you. We could eat Mexican ever day of the week. I plan to make everyone of the recipes. Sometimes I have a problem finding the peppers and few other things, if I can’t find them I just leave it out or try to find a substitute. I’m sure we will enjoy these just like the others. Don’t stop sending them.
Thank you and God bless
can I substitute beef for pork?
Yes, sure!
This was phenomenal. I used the Instant Pot for the last part. My only deviation was actually quite by accident.. I added the spices to the chiles before blending. After straining, I realized my mistake, so knowing I had lost a significant portion f the flavor, I added in the spices (half the quantity this time) again to the strained puree.
Everyone raved about it! Thank you for a great recipe.
P.S. Regarding the many comments about the bitterness of the sauce, it is very bitter until after its final cooking. The chiles need a chance to meld with the other flavors. I also add 1/2 tsp of sugar per lb of meat anytime I am making a stew with acidic or bitter ingredients. You don’t taste it, but it helps to mellow it out in the end. So don’t taste for seasoning until the end…have faith!
This was such a wonderful recipe! I have shared it with many of my friends and family and they are all as pleased as I am. The way the house smells when this is cooking…….YUM!
My chilies were a bit bitter any suggestions on taming thi bitterness
Add a little bit of honey, not enough to make it sweet but just enough to eliminate the bitterness.
Easy and delicious. My first time cooking this and now I’m making some for a party.
i like this recipe its the best. Easy instructions to follow.
Wow Lauren! I order this at Mexican restaurants and thought it would be difficult to make. Your recipe made me look like an accomplished chef! The family flipped out and gobbled it up 😊
Absolutely delicious. This one is a keeper.
My husband grew up eating this in Mexican restaurants in California and was craving it this week. I googled recipes, chose yours and headed to Mi Pueblo for ingredients. I doubled the recipe knowing that a stew made with four cups of stock wouldn’t last very long as my house. Now I know I should have gone even bigger.
This is, hands-down, one of the most delicious things I have ever made. It didn’t seem like it would be that way at the beginning, because before I added in the beef and the spices the base of chiles and onion was extremely bitter. As the recipe builds—the beef cooking the rest of the way in the sauce, the spices giving it dimension—you start to realize how good it will be. Salt, and we added a pinch of sugar, balances it out. Then the flavor explodes with the lime juice.
I made your Mexican rice to go with it, and we topped it with avocado, radish, cilantro, plain Greek yogurt and a squeeze of lime.
Thank you!
Growing up in Phoenix, this is the rich red Colorado chili that I remember. I loved everything about it but found that it took me about two hours for the beef to become tender. Next time will do in crockpot or instant pot. This will now become a “go to” recipe for me.
I loved this recipe! I am a transplanted Texan in New England and really miss these flavors! I had a chuck roast/blade roast in the freezer and some lovely dried chilies. I had beef stock so I used that. The beef was so tender, I had started it early in the day, because I love to smell lovely food cooking throughout the day, I cooked it slower, it was dark and rich and lovely. I think I will use as another commenter does…to top huevos rancheros and nachos and, and, and, but loved it over rice. Very heart warming!
My husband has three tops in his rotation of “let’s eat.” Pizza, burgers, and Mexican. I make this a couple times a month using hand cubed, super tender pork. We use it to top huevos rancheros and tamales and just as a stew. So delicious and versatile!
A huge hit!!!!! Loved everything about this recipe.
When I saw you posted this, I knew we had to try it as we LOVE your chili verde. This was equally delicious! The beef was so tender and flavorful! We are big fans of Mexican food and no doubt we will be making this often. Thanks for another great recipe.