Tamale Chili is a homestyle ground beef chili with chunks of tamales to up the ante for pure delicious flavor.
Tamale Chili
By Sue Lau | Palatable Pastime
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Tamale Chili is my recipe of the day for the blogging event Chili Cook-Off. I’ve made a lot of chili in my time. But for something a little different I decided to throw some tamales in.
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It’s Chili Weather!
Sort of like a joke, you know. This time of year it is Chili Today and Hot Tamale. IOW, if you’re not hungry for chili yet, just wait five minutes.
And this is really some comfort food from my past. I have always enjoyed tamales buried in chili. Then covered with shredded cheese and sliced jalapenos.
It might be food for slumming in the kitchen. But it’s quick and I always loved it.
Welcome to our 2022 Chili Cook-Off!
October is Chili Cook-Off Month! We have delicious recipes from across the country to get your chili making to the next level of deliciousness!
#ChiliCookOff is an annual blogging event that is hosted by Ashley from Cheese Curd In Paradise
- Texas Roadhouse Chili Recipe from Cheese Curd In Paradise
- Chiliville Chili from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
- White Chicken Chili from Jen Around the World
- Sweet Potato Black Bean Chili from Jolene’s Recipe Journal
- Tamale Chili from Palatable Pastime
- Indian Spiced Chili from A Day in the Life on the Farm
- Easy Turkey Chili from Art of Natural Living
- Pizza Chili from Shockingly Delicious
Tamale Chili
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Tamale Chili

Tamale Chili
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 1 tablespoon chopped garlic
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup beef broth
- 8 ounces canned tomato sauce
- 15 ounces canned fire-roasted diced tomatoes
- 15 ounces canned red kidney beans drained
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 15 ounces prepared tamales cut into chunks
Instructions
- Brown the ground beef with the onion, garlic, salat and black pepper.
- Drain the fat.
- Add the beef broth, tomato sauce and canned tomatoes.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover and simmer for twenty minutes.
- Stir in the beans and chunks of tamales and simmer ten minutes more.
Notes
Nutrition
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Such a fabulous meal! My family loves its, can’t wait to make it again!!
Sounds delicious!!! Are the tamales fresh like you’d get at a restaurant or are they in a can?
You can use any type: homemade, from cans or jars, refrigerated or frozen.
I made this for lunch and it was easy to put together and tasted great. Let me tell you my favorite thing about it: it looked JUST LIKE THE PHOTO on this site when I served it. I would make this again!