Our Dead Man’s Party theme continues with this gross looking chili inspired by Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark. I took my Hatch Chili recipe that I make every 4th of July and made a version of Toe Stew by adding classic hotdog fingers… or in this case, hotdog toes by using mini sausages. I know what you’re thinking…and the answer is yes, it is a bit of work to make them. They’ll definitely keep you on your toes(Ha!), but they’re a fun and spooky addition to our Halloween BBQ. Enjoy!
Note: This chili is hot, so if you don’t like a lot of spice in your chili, feel free swap the hatch chiles with Anaheim or poblano chiles for less heat. 
Toe Chili
This spooky recipe will make your toes curl on Halloween by adding mini hotdog toes to your favorite chili.
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Servings: 12
Ingredients
- 3 lbs. ground beef
- 2 tubes beef chorizo
- 2 medium yellow onions
- 1½ cups Hatch Chiles, chopped
- ¾ cup roasted red bell peppers, chopped
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 14 oz. diced tomatoes
- 3 tbsp. tomato paste
- 2 tbsp. chili powder
- 2 tsp. cumin
- 1 tsp. Epazote
- 5 14 oz. Black Chili Beans
- 1 package little smokies kielbasa (with added onion nails)
Instructions
- Brown ground beef and drain the fat. Add chorizo, onions, hatch chiles, roasted red bell peppers, garlic, tomatoes, tomato paste, chili powder, cumin epazote, and beans. Stir and simmer on low heat for a minimum of one hour, stirring occasionally. Or place in a crockpot on low for 5 hours.
- Slice a wedge out of the little smokies to create the nail bed for the onion nail. Cut onions into thin rectangular slices.
- Add onions into the nail bed. For some of the longer pieces of onion, I pushed it into the cut part of the sausage so it would stay put. Then cut shallow slices into sausages to mimic the creases of toes with a paring knife. Place them on a parchment lined cookie sheet.
- Place prepared sausages toes under the broiler for 2 minutes to heat the sausages enough to allow the creases to separate and to barely cook the onions. Some of the onions will fall off after cooking, but just reposition back onto the toes.
- Add sausage toes to the top of the chili about 10 minutes before serving to allow them to heat through. Serve with green onions.
So creepy just like the movie.
Thank you Jose. I was going for the gross toe look with the yucky jagged toe nails, but worried they looked too much like fingers.
Thanks for commenting. 
Lori
I think this would be great for a school Halloween party
I think so too! It’s pretty easy since it’s chili and it travels well. The toes are a little bit of extra prep, but it’s the details that make it special.
Happy Halloween
Lori
No liquid? Won’t it be very think? It looks so cool and I am making it but worried at how thick it is.
Hi Dee
The liquid comes from the tomatoes and the 5 cans of chili beans but feel free to add broth to get it to your desired consistency. Happy Halloween!
Lori