This is my favorite chili. It is served over rice with cheese, avacado, sour cream, green onions etc on top if you want. It is more of a stew than a chili and is extremely spicy. This recipe is courtesy of Martha Stewart magazine. You can skip the chiles step by just adding 1/2 c chili powder to the onion mixture and cooking for one minute. The chile step though is pretty easy and makes it taste so much better.

Texas Red Chili - Makes 8 cups, serves 8
8 whole dried chiles (5 ancho and 3 guajillo or all ancho)
3 Tbsp oil
3 lbs beef chuck cut into small pieces, 1/2 inch or smaller
salt and pepper
2 large onions, chopped, about 4 cups
7 to 8 garlic cloves, minced
2 jalapeno or serrano chiles, seeded if desired (I always seed), minced
2 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 1/2 tsp oregano
1 can (28 oz) tomatoes, pureed with their juice
4 c water plus more if needed
2-3 Tbsp white vinegar, to taste

1. Toast dried chiles in a dry skillet over medium-high heat until fragrant and blistered, 2-3 minutes per side. Remove stem and seeds; discard. Put chiles in a large bowl and cover with hot water and soak for 30 minutes. Remove from water and puree in a blender with 1/2 soaking liquid.
2. In a large pot heat 2 Tbsp. oil. Season beef with 2 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper. Brown beef in batches, about 10 minutes for each batch. Transfer to a plate.
3. In pot with the remaining 1 Tbsp oil, brown onions, garlic and minced chiles for about 5 minutes. Add spices. Stir in beef and chile puree. Add tomatoes, water and 1/2 tsp salt. Reduce heat and simmer gently, partially covered until meat is very tender and chile is thick, 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Add water if it gets too dry. Season with salt and vinegar. Serve or freeze for up to 3 months.