Chuck Roast: What Next?

I got a good deal on boneless chuck roast a few days ago.  Usually, I do the ol' crockpot beef stew thing: carrots, onions, garlic and new potatoes.  Neil loves coming home and opening the front door to that kind of aroma.  So I usually don't even tell him I'm making it so he'll be surprised.

But this time I wanted to do something else.  Surely people use this meat for something other than my usual, right?  I turned to the trusty Internet to seek out recipes.  One of the first ones I came across was for chili.  I immmediately skipped over it because a) chili recipes seem to abound and b) I have chili in the freezer.  But after perusing countless "roast" and "stew" recipes, I returned to the chili and actually read it.  Then, I read people's reviews.  That's what convinced me to give it a whirl.  I didn't have everything exactly as the recipe called for, so I improvised and made it my own.  Neil and I were both very pleased with the result.  

This is Neil's idea of manna from Heaven

Chunky Beef Chili

3 lb boneless chuck roast, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 Tbs chili powder
2 6-oz cans tomato paste (I was out; see note at tomato sauce below)
32 oz beef broth (I used chicken broth and added beef bouillon)
2 8-oz cans tomato sauce (I used a can of diced tomatos and pureed with sundried     tomatoes to give it the earthy flavor that the tomato paste would have added.)
2 tsp granulated garlic
1 tsp  salt
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp cumin (generous tsp; I love cumin)
1 tsp Spanish smoked paprika
1 tsp freeze-dried minced onion
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne (I am out, so I used Hot Hungarian paprika)

In a Dutch Oven or stockpot, brown the steak pieces.  Remove meat, reserving the drippings in the pot.  Add chili powder and cook, stirring constantly about 2 minutes.  Stir in tomato paste, if using.

Return beef to the pot. Stir in broth and next 9 ingredients; bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally for 1 1/2 hours or until the beef is tender.  

We topped ours with cheddar, sour cream, and Fritos.  Neil added some kidney beans to his bowl.  The reviews I read state that this is very "Texan" because of its lack of beans, but as I like to point out...it's your chili.  You want beans, add beans!  I think it would also be interesting to brown the meat in larger pieces and then shred.  Just a thought.