This Carne Con Chile Colorado is a Mexican stew from the Northern states in Mexico. Cubes of pork (or beef) are cooked to a tender perfection in a rich and savory guajillo sauce. This Carne Con Chile recipe is Mexican comfort food at its best.
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Best Carne Con Chile
Mexican Carne con Chile is a dish that feels like home in every sense.
Imagine a hearty stew made with tender, slow-cooked pieces of beef swimming in a deeply flavored, vibrant chile sauce. It’s not just food; it’s a warm hug in a bowl, the kind of meal that can chase away a bad day or make a good one even better.
This flavorful Mexican stew is typically made with pork or beef. I like to use lean cuts of meat since the flavors come from the chile sauce. Serve it with Arroz Rojo and Refried Beans plus warm corn or flour tortillas to dip into the delicious juices.
Why you’ll love this recipe
- So healthy – It’s packed with protein, it’s low fat and low calories.
- So flavorful! – The chile colorado sauce is not spicy but packs a ton of flavor!
- Perfect for meal prep – The leftovers can be used in tostadas, burritos, nachos, or even frozen for another time!
I hope you give this recipe a try! It’s earthy, smoky, and with just the right touch of spice to keep you coming back for more.
🩷 xoxo, Ana
Ingredients
- The meat: for this recipe I’m using pork loin but you can also use beef stew meat.
- For the sauce: The original recipe uses chiles colorados but those are a little harder to find. You can also use chiles guajillos as it has the same taste profile and not spicy at all.
- White onion & garlic cloves
- The spices: dried oregano (preferably Mexican oregano), dried cumin, kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
- A little all purpose flour to dust the meat for browning.
- Water.
**A full ingredient list with exact amounts can be found in the recipe card below.**
How To Make Carne Con Chile (step by step)
This recipe is fairly easy to make with only 20 minutes of prep time. The rest it’s all about cooking the meat slow until it becomes very tender.
- 1) Trim any large chunks of fat from the pork loin. Cut into ½ inch cubes. Salt the pork evenly with 2 teaspoons of kosher salt.
- 2) Heat a large dutch oven or pot over medium high heat. Add the pork cubes with 1 cup of water.
- 3) Bring to a boil and reduce heat to medium low.
- 4) Cover and simmer for 1 hour or until meat is tender (about 90 minutes).
- 5) Uncover and let the liquid evaporate. Sprinkle the flour on all of the meat and mix.
- 6) Raise the heat to medium-high and let the meat brown on the sides.
Make the sauce while the meat cooks
- Remove the seeds and stem from chiles. Rinse under cool water to remove dust.
- In a large pot with about 3 to 4 cups of water (enough to cover the chiles) add the chiles, onion and garlic.
- To a blender or food processor, add the chiles, onion, garlic, spices plus 2 cups of the chile water where they cooked.
- Blend for a couple of minutes or until everything is pureed.
- Note: If the sauce is too dense, add 1/2 to 1 more cup of water for a more brothy consistency.
- Strain the sauce over the pot with the meat to remove any remaining seeds and skin.
- Cover and cook on medium-low heat for 20 or 30 more minutes or until the meat is fork-tender.
- Serve hot with tortillas, beans and rice.
This dish is perfect to serve as a Morisqueta. A crowd pleaser recipe!
Tips and Notes
- This recipe is very customizable as you can use your preferred meat. Want some vegetables too? Sure why not! Add carrots, green beans, potatoes, etc. Just add them when you add in the chile colorado sauce. This will give it enough time to cook the veggies perfectly.
- Patience is key. A long, gentle simmer allows the meat to become tender and the flavors to meld. Avoid boiling, as it can toughen the meat.
- If the stew is too thick, add a splash of broth or water to loosen it. If it’s too thin, let it simmer uncovered until it reaches the desired consistency.
How to Store
- Fridge: Cover tightly when completely cool and refrigerate up to 3 days.
- Freezer: Place in an airtight container and freeze for up to 4 months.
Reheating
Stovetop: Transfer your leftover Carne Con Chile into a pot and set it over medium-low heat. Gently stir in a few tablespoons of stock to improve the consistency. Reheat for 5 minutes (until bubbling) and then simmer for another 2-3 minutes.
Final thoughts
The beauty of this dish is how adaptable it can be. You’re not locked into a rigid recipe; you can tweak it to suit your mood or whatever you have on hand. You like garlic? Go for it. Want it spicier? Toss in a some chiles de arbol. It’s forgiving, comforting, and endlessly satisfying.
Don’t overthink it. Start with good meat, build up a rich sauce with those gorgeous dried chiles, and let it simmer its way to perfection. It’s one of those dishes that rewards patience and keeps getting better as it cooks.
And don’t forget the sides—warm tortillas are a must, and maybe some beans or rice to round it all out. It’s hearty, it’s flavorful, and most importantly, it’s yours. So, next time you’re in the mood for something that feels homemade but tastes like you’ve been cooking for hours (even if you haven’t), you know what to make.
More Mexican Recipes
Thank you for stopping by!
I hope you like this recipe! Do you have any questions I can help you with? Or if you made it, I would love it if you leave a comment or rating below. ⭐️
Gracias!!!! xx, Ana
print recipe:
Authentic Carne Con Chile Recipe
Equipment
- Large saucepan
- Blender or food processor
- Fine mesh strainer
Ingredients
- 2 pounds lean pork loin or beef stew meat (for this recipe I'm using pork)
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 10 large dried Chiles Colorados or Chiles Guajillos (2 oz)
- ½ small white onion
- 3 large garlic cloves
- 1½ teaspoon dried oregano (preferably Mexican oregano)
- ¼ teaspoon dried cumin
- 1 Tablespoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
- 1 Tablespoon all purpose flour
- 4 cups water
Instructions
Cook the meat
- Trim any large chunks of fat from the pork loin. Cut into ½ inch cubes. Salt the pork evenly with 2 teaspoons of kosher salt.2 pounds lean pork loin or beef stew meat (for this recipe I'm using pork), 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- Heat a large dutch oven or pot over medium high heat. Add the meat cubes with 1 cup of water. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to medium low.
- Cover and simmer for 1 hour or until meat is tender (about 90 minutes).
- Uncover and let the liquid evaporate. Sprinkle the flour on all of the meat and mix. Raise the heat to medium-high and let the meat brown on the sides.1 Tablespoon all purpose flour
Make the chile sauce while the meat cooks
- Remove the seeds and stem from chiles. Rinse under cool water to remove dust.10 large dried Chiles Colorados or Chiles Guajillos (2 oz)
- In a large pot with about 3 to 4 cups of water (enough to cover the chiles) add the chiles, onion and garlic.
- Bring to a soft boil and cook for 5 minutes. Remove pot from the stove and let the chiles sit in the hot water for about 10 minutes or until very soft.3 large garlic cloves, ½ small white onion
- To a blender or food processor, add the chiles, onion, garlic, spices plus 2 cups of the chile water where they cooked. Blend for a couple of minutes or until everything is pureed. Note: If the sauce is too dense, add ½ to 1 more cup of water for a more brothy consistency.1½ teaspoon dried oregano (preferably Mexican oregano), ¼ teaspoon dried cumin, 1 Tablespoon kosher salt, 1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
Now cook the meat with the sauce
- Using a fine mesh strainer, strain the chile sauce over the pot with the meat to remove any remaining seeds and skin.
- Cover and cook on medium-low heat for 20 or 30 more minutes or until the meat is fork-tender.
- Serve hot with tortillas, beans and rice.
Notes
Storing & Reheating Leftovers
- In fridge – Cover tightly when completely cool and refrigerate up to 3 days.
- Freezer – Place in an airtight container and freeze for up to 4 months.
- Reheating – Transfer your leftover Carne Con Chile into a pot and set it over medium-low heat. Gently stir in a few tablespoons of stock to improve the consistency. Reheat for 5 minutes (until bubbling) and then simmer for another 2-3 minutes.
I made this with beef ,my family love it!
Thank you Prude! I’m happy to hear your family loved this chile colorado recipe! Thanks for the review 🙂
Fantastically authentic
Glad you liked it Jody!
This is the closest recipe I’ve seen to authentic chile colorado. I was taught how to make chile colorado by women from Reynosa Mexico. Their recipe was simple like this one, dried guajillo chiles, garlic, onion, meat water and salt. I’ve tried different things through the years, broth instead of water, adding tomato sauce or paste, boiling the onion vs frying. I prefer sauted onions with the browned meat, and I add a teaspoon of white vinegar for a little sour. But otherwise mine is the same as this.
I loved this carne con chile recipe. I liked how I can adapt this recipe to my preference. I can make it less spicier for my kids while we enjoy spicy version.
I cooked this carne con chile colorado and it came out rich and hearty—the sauce was perfect with rice and warm tortillas!
Carbe con chile is delicious I have made it for our dinner. Family loved it.
I tried this Carne Con Chile Colorado and it was amazing! The meat was so tender and the guajillo sauce had the perfect depth of flavor. It’s the kind of comfort food I could eat again and again.
It’s amazing how deep flavor comes from guajillo chiles without heat. Will definitely try this!
This was my first time cooking with Colorado chiles, and it was fantastic! We loved this recipe and will definitely be making it again.
Ana,
I made your Chile Colorado and it took me back to my days growing up in Tucson. However, there is one item that was served with the Chile Colorado and that was paper thin flour tortillas. Can you help with a recipe?
Thank you.
Grover Mann
Hi Grover Mann! Oh I miss Tucson!! I’m so happy to hear you made this Chile Colorado recipe. I hope you liked it! Regarding the paper thin tortillas, I believe you’re talking about “water tortillas” or tortillas de agua. Usually they’re super large and made in a special comal. There is very little lard or shortening used in this recipe. My mom used to make them all the time! and since I love making tortillas, I’ll work on this recipe to be able to make it in any regular comal. Give me a few weeks so that I can write up the steps (sorry long answer lol)
Thanks so much for stopping by and the inspiration! I hope you have a great rest of your week.
Ana
Simple, straight-forward chile. Delicious.
I absolutely love this recipe! Especially made with lamb!
I made this tonight. It was wonderful! I love just about anything with guajillos. I grew two 50 foot rows of guajillos last summer and dried them.
Älskar ditt recept och att du är så tydlig och lätt att följa i texten (jag läser på svenska 😊)
Tack!
I love this recipe!! The only thing that I do different is add tomato to the sauce and blend New Mexico and guajillo chilies. 100% recommend.
Hi Ana. Doesn’t the sauce recipe include tomato?
Have you ever tried making Carne Con Chile Colorado at home, and if so, what tips do you have for achieving the perfect balance of flavors in the guajillo sauce?
Hi Cheryl,
This is my homemade recipe for carne con chile colorado. The recipe already has the perfect balance. Enjoy and thanks for the question.
xoxo,
Ana
Muchas gracias! The recipe is close to how my mother used to make it. She was from Tuape. My sisters and brother thought NOBODY made Chile con carne colorado like my mother’s. Since I am vegan I will use a plant-based b’f and see how it tastes. Wish me luck.
Excelente y deliciosa receta ?⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I made it! Added a little chicken broth at the end for a more juicy consistency. A wonderful recipe Thank-you