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Beef Tamale Pie With Cornmeal Crust Recipe

Sunday Supper

Cooking projects for people who'd like nothing more than to spend a sunday afternoon surrounded by the wonderful aromas of the kitchen.

Jennifer Olvera
Beef Tamale Pie With Cornmeal Crust Recipe

Simple and satisfying, chili pie is an all-seasons people pleaser. [Photograph: Jennifer Olvera]

Note: The trick to making this dish work is having enough liquid in the filling and the right amount of baking soda in the crust. Individual baking dishes work best, though a traditional casserole will more than suffice.

Read more: Sunday Supper: Beef Tamale Pie With Cornmeal Crust

  • Yield:serves 6
  • Active time: 25 minutes
  • Total time:1 hour
  • Rated: 4.75

Ingredients

  • For the Chili:
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 medium onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
  • 1 large jalapeno, chopped (about 2 tablespoons)
  • 3 medium cloves garlic, minced (about 1 tablespoon)
  • 1 pound ground beef
  • 2 tablespoons ancho chili powder
  • 2 teaspoons cumin
  • 2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder
  • Kosher salt
  • 1 (14-ounce) can diced tomatoes with green chiles, undrained
  • 2 15-ounce cans chili beans, one drained
  • 6 ounces beer
  • 1 tablespoon juice from 1 lime
  •  
  • For the Cornmeal Crust:
  • 2/3 cup coarse-ground yellow cornmeal
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2/3 cup milk
  • 2 eggs, lightly beaten
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
  • 1/2 cup pepper jack cheese, shredded
  • Sour cream (optional)

Directions

  1. 1.

    Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat oven to 375°F.

  2. 2.

    Heat oil over medium-high heat in a large pot. When oil is shimmering, add onion, jalapeno and garlic to pan and sauté until slightly translucent. Add ground beef and cook, breaking up into small pieces with a wooden spoon. Add chili powder, cumin, cocoa and 1 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until beef is no longer pink, about 6 minutes. Add tomatoes, beans, beer, and lime juice and stir to combine. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook while you prepare the crust.

  3. 3.

    Combine cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking soda, 1/4 teaspoon salt, milk, eggs and melted butter in a medium bowl, whisking with a fork until just combined and lump-free. Fold in cheese, stirring to combine.

  4. 4.

    Spray cooking spray on inside of individual baking crocks or a 13- by 9-inch baking dish. Season chili to taste with salt. Fill prepared dishes 3/4 of the way with chili. Top with cornmeal mixture and spread evenly over the top of chili using a spatula.

  5. 5.

    Place in oven and bake until browned and bubbly, 30-35 minutes. Serve with sour cream, if desired.

This Recipe Appears In
Sunday Supper: Beef Tamale Pie With Cornmeal Crust

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Jennifer Olvera Sunday Supper Columnist

Jennifer Olvera is the author of Food Lovers' Guide to Chicago, and she has all-but tested and developed recipes since toddlehood. She writes the Sunday Supper column for Serious Eats and regularly contributes food features to Chicago Sun-Times. She can often be found tending her garden, canning and traveling to far-flung destinations, where she writes about local edibles for pubs like Los Angeles Times and Frommers.com.

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