On the grill the night before:
4 bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts (about 3 pounds or more total)
2 bell peppers, halved and seeded
3 poblano peppers, halved and seeded
Grill chicken on indirect heat for about 45 minutes, to about 165° — done enough to shred by hand the next day, but cooking to exact temperature is not terribly important. It’ll simmer tomorrow for a few hours. Why bone-in, skin-on? Flavor.
Blister peppers on direct heat, then move to indirect heat until soft. Pull when done, about 10 minutes. This can be done anytime during grilling.
Put all of that in a Ziploc bag in the fridge and go to bed.
Day of:
3 yellow onions, chopped or diced
Olive oil
Many cloves garlic (6 to 8), minced
Roasted peppers, chopped
Cumin/oregano/salt/pepper to taste (go easy on the salt until the end)
Chicken, shredded, skin and bones discarded
2 to 3 cans white beans (cannellini, navy, what have you) and liquid
3 (4-ounce) cans Hatch chiles, 2 mild, 1 hot (or all 3 mild, to taste) and liquid
3 cans fire-roasted diced tomatoes and liquid
½ can cheap light beer
Red pepper flakes to taste
Cilantro, lime wedges, shredded cheese (optional, for serving)
In a large pot, sauté onions in olive oil until translucent. Add minced garlic until fragrant, about a minute. Add chopped roasted peppers. Add cumin, oregano, salt, and pepper. Add the chicken. Add all other ingredients: beans (we do not rinse and drain, but you could; just be sure to add more beer to account for liquid), Hatch chiles, tomatoes.
Simmer at least 1 hour, and preferably longer — until beans reach desired consistency and chicken shreds further. Add red pepper flakes as desired.
As for exactly how much chicken/another can of tomatoes/rest of the can of beer/etc.: This is about consistency. We favor a thicker chili, but we also understand that every chili recipe is slightly different every time.
We top with cilantro and shredded sharp white cheddar. Finish with a squeeze of lime and serve with skillet cornbread.
— Nico Ramirez-Perry and Drew Perry
Click here to read the story behind Nico’s award-winning chili.
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