Prep Time: 15 mins
Cook Time: 3 hrs 30 mins
Total Time: 3 hrs 45 mins
Servings: 10

Ingredients

• 2 pounds lean ground beef
• 1 quart water, or amount to cover
• 2 onions, finely chopped
• 1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 2 tablespoons vinegar
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• ½ (1 ounce) square unsweetened chocolate
• ¼ cup chili powder
• 1 ½ teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
• 5 whole cloves
• 5 whole allspice berries
• 1 bay leaf

Directions

1. Place ground beef in a large pan, cover with cold water, and bring to a boil, stirring and breaking up beef with a fork to a fine texture. Slowly boil until meat is thoroughly cooked, about 30 minutes.
2. Add onions, tomato sauce, vinegar, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, and chocolate. Stir in chili powder, salt, cumin, cinnamon, and cayenne pepper until well mixed. Add cloves, allspice berries, and bay leaf.
3. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3 hours. Add water if necessary to prevent chili from burning.

Overnight Option

After boiling the meat, remove the pan from the heat and let cool. Refrigerate the beef in the pan overnight. The next day, skim the solid fat from the top of the pan and discard. Skimming the fat makes this a healthier version than most, and gives it the right consistency.