--- title: The 4 Best Beef Cuts for Chili description: Use less expensive cuts of beef that are best cooked through. canonical: https://time.com/3664454/best-beef-cuts-chili/ author: TIME article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-01-12T20:16:53.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T08:56:35.178Z og:title: The 4 Best Beef Cuts for Chili og:description: Use less expensive cuts of beef that are best cooked through. og:url: https://time.com/3664454/best-beef-cuts-chili/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbc5134cb34aa514f/6987798355a8593b8ba85359/chili.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3898 og:image:height: 2193 og:image:alt: Chili og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: The 4 Best Beef Cuts for Chili twitter:description: Use less expensive cuts of beef that are best cooked through. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbc5134cb34aa514f/6987798355a8593b8ba85359/chili.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # The 4 Best Beef Cuts for Chili > Sponsored content. 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It is a free newsletter available at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-worth-2026q3/newsletters?i=3b379a10-b7b0-470a-98b1-b3f563ebb2d6&cr=time-nl-worth-2026q3-v1) by [Kristin Donnelly / Food & Wine](https://time.com/author/food-wine-2/) ## Kristin Donnelly / Food & Wine Jan 12, 2015 8:16 PM UTC  Getty Images by [Kristin Donnelly / Food & Wine](https://time.com/author/food-wine-2/) ## Kristin Donnelly / Food & Wine Jan 12, 2015 8:16 PM UTC Save the steak for the grill (or your cast-iron skillet). For chili, use less expensive [cuts of beef](http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/recipe-collections-favorites/popular-ingredients/ten-ideas-for-ground-beef) that are best cooked through. **1\. Ground beef** This is the quickest and least expensive type of beef to use for [chili](http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/beef-chili-with-beans). Yes, the dish still simmers for a while, but you don’t have to worry about tenderizing the meat. **2\. Beef chuck** Diced beef chuck, which comes from the shoulder, is tough, but it becomes nicely tender when stewed for at least 90 minutes. It also has a beefier flavor than the ground stuff. **3\. Brisket** This huge cut is usually barbecued or braised, but if you cut it into pieces, it works well in chili. After stewing for at least two hours, the chunks will pull into [delicious shreds](http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/mexican-shredded-beef-with-red-chiles) that can be piled onto tacos. **4\. Short ribs** Short ribs are usually served whole, but they don’t have to be. Pull the meat off the bones and dice it up for a more luxe and [luscious take on chili](http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/julies-texas-style-chili-with-beer). _This_ [_article_](http://www.foodandwine.com/blogs/2015/1/4/4-cuts-of-beef-to-use-for-chili) _originally appeared on_ [_Food &Wine_](http://www.foodandwine.com)_._ _More from Food & Wine:_ * [Delicious Chili Recipes](http://www.foodandwine.com/slideshows/chili-recipes?xid=PS%5Ftime) * [Hearty Stews](http://www.foodandwine.com/slideshows/hearty-stews?xid=PS%5Ftime) * [Beef Stew](http://www.foodandwine.com/slideshows/beef-stew?xid=PS%5Ftime) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3664454/best-beef-cuts-chili/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3664454/best-beef-cuts-chili/"},"headline":"The 4 Best Beef Cuts for Chili","datePublished":"2015-01-12T20:16:53.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T08:56:35.178Z","description":"Use less expensive cuts of beef that are best cooked through","url":"https://time.com/3664454/best-beef-cuts-chili/","keywords":["Living","Cooking","beef","food and drink"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbc5134cb34aa514f/6987798355a8593b8ba85359/chili.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Kristin Donnelly / Food & Wine"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbc5134cb34aa514f/6987798355a8593b8ba85359/chili.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Chili","caption":"","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-living/","name":"Living"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3664454/best-beef-cuts-chili/","name":"The 4 Best Beef Cuts for Chili"}}]}] ```