Guinness Extra Stout Texas Chili

This is a no-frills Texas chili with an Irish accent, and the two get along better than you'd guess. A full can of Guinness Extra Stout stands in for water, and as it simmers down over a couple of hours it lends a dark, roasty, almost espresso-like richness — the same quality that makes stout so good in a beef stew, put to work in a bowl of chili. Otherwise it stays true to Texas: coarse-ground beef, toasted ancho and pasilla ground fresh, tomato sauce, no beans. The result is honest, deep, and unfussy, the kind of chili that doesn't need a dozen ingredients because it lets the beef, the chiles, and the beer do all the talking.

Texas-style means a bowl, not a topping — cheddar, onion, and crackers, beans on the side if at all.

Any dry stout works; the roastier, the better. Coarse "chili grind" beef gives the best texture. A little masa slurry thickens it further if you like it stiffer.