Excellent recipe. I would change the following: increase meat to 3-4 pounds, change beans to RED KIDNEY, add 1 teaspoon of CUMIN, add one skinned chopped apple, add two large minced garlic cloves, use wine or beer.

"Texas" chili does NOT have beans!

I made this with 1 lb ground chuck, 1 small (just under) 1 lb steak, 1 lb ground turkey & 1 lb ground pork. I eliminated the beans and used 2 cans of tomato paste instead of whole chopped tomatoes. Only because I have a 3 year old that will not eat tomatoes if they look like tomato. I also followed a previous responses suggestion and added cumin and chopped apples. It was simply the best chili I've ever had. It was a hit at family night. (I doubled the recipe)

Even though this isn't officially chili due to the beans, it's still delicious! (and most of us aren't too snobbish about what technically constitutes chili anyway). I add cumin and paprika while browning the beef, use an extra pound of beef, add another 6 oz of good beer (I recommend Shiner), add garlic, double the cayenne, use red kidney beans instead of pinto, and add some flour towards the end to thicken it up a bit if needed. Very easy to prepare, fairly cheap, and extremely good.

Texas chili does not use beans.

I have used this recipe for 7-8 years, It is a great base, I do make some changes, crushed tomatoes instead of tomato sauce - usually 1-2 28 oz cans, chili powder to taste, beer 2 cans or so, other than that it is a perfect recipe. You can add more of any ingredient as you prefer and it still comes out great.

Add garlic!

Texas chili doesn't have beans or tomatoes.