Meaty Chile Con Queso: a Fabulous Recipe

I’m here to eat a little crow and share my Dad’s recipe for Meaty Chile Con Queso.

Let’s do the recipe first, and then, if you’re still interested, you can read all about me making a meal out of crow. (Eating crow is an American idiom that means admitting to being wrong or mistaken, often after stating a strong opinion.)

But first, the recipe. My friends, this recipe is SO EASY, SO GOOD, and SO TRADITIONAL (comfort food, recognizable, memory-conjuring) that you will fall in love like it was your very first time and be planning your future with it. I PROMISE.

Meaty Chile Con Queso Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 10 oz. can of Rotel tomatoes and green chiles: mild, hot or other variation based on your preference (see note)
• 1 lb. Velveeta cheese or other ‘processed cheese food’, AKA ‘American cheese’, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 2 cups Frank’s Chili, or your favorite chili (see note)

• Optional add-ins or garnishes
  • ¼ – ½ cup pickled jalapenos, chopped or sliced
  • 1 small fresh jalapeno, sliced
  • 1 tbsp. finely diced red onion
  • 1 tsp. or more chopped fresh cilantro

Cooking Instructions

Put the cubed cheese and the can of tomatoes and green chiles (with the juice / not drained) in a microwave-safe bowl and set the heat to melt based on the strength of your microwave. (Mine is a high-powered microwave and I set it at Power 4 for 3 minutes, then stirred, then set it for 3 more minutes.) Continue to heat until the cheese is fully melted and the can of tomatoes and green chiles is fully integrated.

Add the chili and stir well, and then heat until the queso is the right temperature to serve. In my microwave, it was another 3 minutes on Power 4, a quick stir, and then 30 seconds on High.

At this point, you can stir in the optional ingredients – all of them or just some of them – and/or top with your selections.

Notes:

• If you are outside of the US and/or don’t have access to Rotel tomatoes, you can substitute 7 oz. diced tomatoes and their juice and 3 oz. diced green chiles.
• This recipe was created by my Dad, Frank Harvell, as a wonderful way to use leftovers of his chili, although it’s so good that leftovers were rare and there’s a family story about my brother taking more than his share when we had guests… that’s a story called “Don’t Eat All the Chili” in the blog post with the Frank’s Chili recipe.
• You can use your own favorite chili! Dad’s recipe is a no-beans chili recipe, and it’s really, really good in this queso recipe. My own chili recipe has tons of beans (3 kinds!), and is also good with this queso. You might want to use your own chili, or even a can of store-bought chili. It’s ok!
• You can make a vegetarian version of this Meaty Chili Con Queso recipe by simply using your vegetarian chili. Go for it!
• You could also use Chicken Chili.
• In other words, this is a FLEX recipe (my favorite kind).

Choose your fave Rotel (or other tomatoes and green chiles) for your own special queso.

Join Me in the Kitchen

A friend and fellow foodie made the queso from Dad’s recipe. She was so gracious to send me photos, and far too humble. She said, “I put too much chilli in so it’s not as yellow as it probably should be BUT… it tastes FANTASTIC!”

However, I think she was WRONG – you can’t put too much chili in this recipe; it’s all based on personal preference.

For historical purposes, here’s Dads’ recipe, from my parents’ cookbook. If you’re interested, the backstory of their cookbook is in this post.

Eating Crow

Finally, I have a confession to make.

I’m a food snob.

I admit it.

I’m not ashamed of that.

But sometimes… a substandard ingredient that I have thrown darts at and reviled (in print) is exonerated. At least, in limited form… and that’s the case with my take on Velveeta.

It hurts to admit this. You’ll understand why if you read this post.

A Shocking Contradiction in Terms: Velveeta “Fresh Packs”

BUT.

Everything has its place, and Velveeta’s place is in American cheesy, sportsy-event queso. There’s no better choice.

There, I said it.

I can move on from this.

And YOU can enjoy the queso!

Tell me your feelings about Velveeta and share your queso experiences in the comments, please!

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