Let's see the recipes - here is mine

quote:

Originally posted by Scallion1

I'm not going to comment on these recipes; I'm sure a lot of them are great.

But several of them hit a nerve: there's absolutely no reason to use extra virgin olive oil to saute the vegetables. It goes against my chef's hatred of waste. The best palate ever born couldn't tell the difference between using xvoo and "pure" olive oil, or, for that matter, Wesson oil, in these circumstances.

I renege: I will comment. The following have no place in making chili: olives. tomato soup. liquid smoke. vinegar. dried parsely/dried cilantro (should both be outlawed). chicken stock. cheeses. store-bought chopped garlic (should be outlawed). green beans. cauliflower. pizza sauce.

Go ahead and scream. You may be making something that tastes good, but it sure ain't chili.

this is the only post on this entire thread that hit a nerve with me!!!
1st about using XV olive oil or reg. olive oil there is a very big taste difference....you must not have a pallet!!!!plus its healthier for ya.
one person said 3tbl chili powder and 1tbl cumin and you have chili EXACTLY thats the base flaver after that its up to you what to add what you like.....
as for the texan chili well....the only chili i like without beans is for my hotdogs no offence but im east coast thats how ive always had it growing up....
heres a recipe/or ingrediant that will probally upset scallion hope it doesn't but check this out....
i was working for a club in blue ridge summit pa we had a oyster feed...well the boys ordered a few to many oysters for the feed....
THIS IS A TRUE STORY lmao i shucked a bushel of them and made my chili (basic)but with no meat/salt.... added a quart or so of the liquer and turned off the heat and added the oysters.
they loved it till this day when i see someone from the club they ask for the recipe HOW YA DO THAT??? im thinking to my self rather than chucking a bushel of fresh oysters(that these jerks are gonna add to my food cost at the end of the month)i got rid of them all this was like a 30 gallon batch of chili i believe...and i quit there a month later after i cleaned up thier kitchen fired all the slack retrained everyone else got a system going they figured they didnt need the high priced guy from hanover/york pa....the only reson i didn't say chef is cause i learned it all the hard way. they don't teach ya in them culinary schools about what happens if 3 line cooks call off on a friday night.....thats another story and i feel im babaling....SORRY...bottem line food is food if you like it do it might be the next big thing like the buffalo wing ahhh.... the french dip.....
bye for now
ron in pa

The best i ever made.

Ingredients
6 ounces hot turkey Italian sausage
2 cups chopped onion
1 cup chopped green bell pepper
8 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound ground sirloin
2 jalapeño pepper, chopped
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cumin
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 bay leaves
1 1/2 cups Merlot or other fruity red wine
2 (28-ounce) cans Muir Glen Fire roasted tomatoes, undrained and coarsely chopped
2 (15-ounce) cans Progresso kidney beans, drained
shredded sharp cheddar cheese


Preparation
Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Remove casings from sausage. Add sausage, onion, and the next 4 ingredients (onion through jalapeño) to pan; cook 8 minutes or until sausage and beef are browned, stirring to crumble.
Add chili powder and the next 7 ingredients (chili powder through bay leaves), and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in wine, tomatoes, and kidney beans; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Uncover and cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Discard the bay leaves. Sprinkle each serving with cheddar cheese.

quote:

Originally posted by ocerg

The best i ever made.

Ingredients
6 ounces hot turkey Italian sausage
2 cups chopped onion
1 cup chopped green bell pepper
8 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound ground sirloin
2 jalape�o pepper, chopped
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cumin
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 bay leaves
1 1/2 cups Merlot or other fruity red wine
2 (28-ounce) cans Muir Glen Fire roasted tomatoes, undrained and coarsely chopped
2 (15-ounce) cans Progresso kidney beans, drained
shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Where's The BEEF?!?!?

[|)]

Ocerg, welcome to Roadfood! The chili threads here, and the links folks give, are the best on the net IMHO. Read it all if you can find the time. Your addition has made it even better.

I have made a few good pots of chili using plain/ol ground turkey. Your idea for the turkey Itailan sausage, and the Merlot, are a stroke of G*^$@. It sounds great! I will try it first chance I get. I think I will save the beans to serve on the side though.

Oh, Howdy is a chili purest. Not that there is anything wrong w/ that. He DOES know his chili!
Joe

quote:

Originally posted by PapaJoe8

Ocerg, welcome to Roadfood! The chili threads here, and the links folks give, are the best on the net IMHO. Read it all if you can find the time. Your addition has made it even better.

I have made a few good pots of chili using plain/ol ground turkey. Your idea for the turkey Itailan sausage, and the Merlot, are a stroke of G*^$@. It sounds great! I will try it first chance I get. I think I will save the beans to serve on the side though.

Oh, Howdy is a chili purest. Not that there is anything wrong w/ that. He DOES know his chili!
Joe

It's just that the fennel and sage in Italian sausage (turkey or pork) is sooooo wrong for chilli. I did spot the pound of sirloin in the ingredients list ... but, tasting the results of the recipe in my head tells me UH-OH!! Houston, we have a problem.

I have made semi-successful batches of chilli using turkey or chicken as the meat. I've also made chilli to good effect with lamb, mutton, pork, venison, snake and/or raccoon on the ingredients list.

But, the fennel (especially) and the sage in 6 oz of good Dago sausage takes the recipe out of the realm of chilli into a semi-spicy beef and sausage stew w/beenz.

I might even make it some day - I do weird stuff like that from time to time. If I can source the Muir Glen 'maters which sound like a Califunky thing. Not anything I've seen around here in the Great American Outback.

I have no doubt that it's tasty - sure looks that way. But, tasty or not, it ain't chilli

Ocreg, did your sausage have fennel? I see Itialan sausage w/ or w/o it. I have uses 1/3 Owens Itialan pork sausage and 2/3 chuck, and it turned out good. Not sure if that has fennel?
Joe

Thanks! This is one great site.

I use Shady Brook Farms Hot italian Sausage. 92% Fat-free

Ingredients:
Turkey, water, salt, spices, sugar, paprika, collagen casing.

In all the years that i've made it i never tasted the fennel, here in NJ the Shop-Rite super markets carry the Muir Glen fire roasted brand the tomatoes actually have a nice smoke flavor with bits of charred flesh, the ground sirloin i grind myself from sirloin tips from the costco chain. This recipe has been a hit at every party and fishing trip that i bring it to everyone loves it the sweetness of the brown sugar and merlot balance well with the smokiness of the fire roasted tomatoes and heat of the hot peppers and sausage. Sometimes i add an extra cayenne pepper or 2 to really kick it up, but that's usually when i make it just for me. It's not that high in fat and is actually a very lean chili packed with great flavor. I totaled up the calories and with a tablespoon of the chedder cheese
comes to about 375 calories per serving.

Inspired by that first recipe, I thought I would share this with everyone, the winning recipe from the time-out Chicago chili cookoff, created by me...

8 rib-eye steaks
4 lbs ground chuck beef
1 pkg bacon, chopped
4 jalapeno peppers
2 red bell peppers
2 green bell peppers
2 Anaheim peppers
2 poblano peppers
1 orange pepper
1 cubanelle pepper
2 medium onions, chopped
1 bunch green onions, chopped
8 sticks celery, chopped
6 cloves garlic chopped
2 32-oz cans of tomato sauce
2 cans stewed diced tomatoes
2 cans Tex-Mex pinto beans with juice
1 can beer (I use High Life)
1 can beef broth
1 cup fresh salsa
8 tbl of mild chili powder
1 package of Chili man's Chili seasoning
1 small can of diced pimento
2 small cans of chopped green chili's
2 tsp of pimenton
1 pkg of New Mexico chili powder
2 tbl ground cumin
1 tbl cayenne pepper
1 tbl ground chipotle powder
1 tbl hot paprika
1 tsp ground mustard
1 tsp white pepper
1 tsp black pepper
Adobo seasoning
1 tsp Mexican oregano
1 tbl Worcestershire sauce
Lawry’s seasoning salt to taste
Hot sauce if you like it spicy

Set grill for high and grill rib-eyes about 4 minutes on each side. Let cool. Proccedd to grill all the peppers and once blackened nicely chop them up.

Cook bacon pieces in large skillet until crisp, remove pieces from skillet and set aside then drain all but 1 tbl of the bacon fat. Add the peppers, onions, celery and garlic to the pot and sprinkle salt, pepper and Worcestershire sauce into the pot and mix and cook until onions are translucent.

Remove veggies from pan. Add ground beef to skillet. While meat is browning, cut rib-eyes into small chunks and remove any gristle.

When the beef is done drain the fat. Combine veggies, ground beef and rib-eye meat in a large stockpot. Add remaining spices, beer, beef broth, tomato sauce and stewed tomatoes and mix well.

Bring to a boil then simmer. Let cook uncovered for 4 hours stirring every now and then. After 4 hours, add the bacon pieces, salsa and beans and stir them through. Adjust seasonings to taste and let heat through for 10 minutes.

Hate to say it but I have to go with the "chili is a generic term crowd." Like it or not, usage is what determines the validity of a word in the long run. I sympathize with your pain, but it would probably be a good idea to recognize the inevitable and suck it up...

On the other hand, incessant bitching doesn't cost anything and it's a great hobby, right up there with tropical fish and vehicular homicide. Don't let me rain on your charade.

I will confess that there were a number of times that I looked at a recipe on this list and recoiled in horror... only to think it through and decide that I'd at least like to try a bowl before rendering judgment. This is obviously a ripe field for the display of eccentricity, but in my experience once you get certain flavors in the mix the essential nature of chili goes away and you wind up with a sort of muddy spaghetti sauce if you're lucky. I've got an amusingly appalling cookbook with a recipe for Chinese Chili by Buddy Hackett. It contains canned bamboo shoots and water chestnuts. Brrr...

I've been experimenting with chili since I was given a bowl of roast beef chili as a child. It was a restaurant meal and I'm pretty sure it was the result of having to find a use for leftovers but it was incredible. So I had to try and figure out how to beat it. (I'm working on giving up false modesty. I'll deal with the arrogance after I've got the FM whipped.)

These days I have two patterns for chili. One is very loosely based on the Stern's recipe for Cincinnati-style chili and is intended for use on hot dogs and such. Just gave my dad three pounds of it for his birthday and my guitar buddy half of what I had left. They both glowed, I'm here to tell you... Thank you, Sterns!

The other is a little something I call Chili con Carnage. It's a technique, not a recipe, and is dependent on a number of things that might not be readily accessible to everyone, but for the sake of curiosity and inspiration, here's how I do it. (As a side note, I once had a friend diagnosed with anemia. I gave her a substantial supply of the chili and she ate it every day for a couple of weeks. The next time she saw the doc he was amazed by her complete recovery. She credits the chili...)

The first ingredient is strong meat stock, the kind that turns into hard rubber at fridge temperatures. I'm in the habit of simmering meat in stock, freezing the stock, and then cooking the next chuck roast/pork shoulder/etc. in the same stock. I do this for as long as a year. Just meat, salt, and water -- if you use any seasonings the flavors accumulate in an unsavory fashion. (This probably is closer to a symptom than a technique...)

So I start off the chili by popping a bunch of meat into the crock pot and covering it with the stock. What I use depends on what looks good in the butcher counter, but I like to use chuck roast and then fill in the gaps with stuff like shank and oxtail. When I'm feeling dangerous I throw in a ham hock. (If the people who made oxtail and flank expensive ever find out how good chuck actually is I may have to switch over to an Anthro-vegetarian diet for economy's sake.) I let it simmer on low overnight -- at the lowest setting the meat cooks fork-tender, the fat and connective tissue melt, and the meat still stays pink through.

The next day I let the crock pot full of dead animal parts cool, then pop it into the refrigerator overnight to give the fat a chance to rise and solidify for easy removal.

The next day I go out hunting for chilies. I get a mix of everything that wants to go in the pot, if you know what I mean. I use a mix of fresh and dried chilies. I get a lot more fresh chilies than you'd think, including a few pounds of red, orange, and/or yellow bell peppers.

Back at the kitchen I degrease the meat and put the meat itself into a separate pot, removing any bones and visible chunks of fat and then shredding the meat with my hands. No chopping, no cutting. It's the long disintegrated fibers that will dominate the finished dish.

Then I start processing the chilies.

The fresh chilies go into my wife's Champion juicer. You don't wanna hold your face too close to the works when you put the habeneros and scotch bonnets through there... I run the pulp through twice to get as much of the juice as possible. Dump it in with the meat. There should be a lot of it, enough to make the meat soupy. Put it in the fridge.

I do this at the same time that I'm dealing with the dried chilies. Since the dried chilies will have to cool, try and time it so that you're done with them as soon as possible, but the process includes some waiting time and while you're in the kitchen you may as well cook.

The dried chilies I look at and decide which ones are gonna be used straight and which are going to be roasted. It's about a fifty/fifty mix, tie goes to the roasted. The ones to be roasted go into a 350 oven until they get fragrant and display a few dark spots. This provides a hint of nearly-burnt flavor that is another crucial element in this death-laden hellbrew. After roasting, they go into a pot with the stock in which the meat was cooked and simmered until they're soft and rehydrated. Let them cool until they can be handled comfortably.

At that point I pull out the food mill my sister gave me with the specific intent of getting more chili out of me, put in the finest screen and run the dried chilies through it, putting the pulp into a bowl. Keep the skins and seeds out of the pulp; if you slop some in, run it through the food mill again.

Then add the pulp/stock mix to the pot with the meat and chili juices. Put it on the stove and start it simmering. Grind as much black pepper as you think it's gonna take into the pot.

Then start chopping garlic. Don't be shy -- I think in terms of multiple heads. They mellow when cooked, you know, and I stink anyway.

Then simmer and stir the chili until it boils down to a thick paste. Taste while you're doing this and adjust your levels of salt, pepper, and garlic.

At this point start adding baker's chocolate or cocoa powder. I can't for the life of me figure out why, but the bitterness of the chocolate restrains the bitterness of the chilies and gives the whole dish a smoothness and coherency it would otherwise lack.

And there you are. I've been tempted for years to add the other traditional seasonings -- cumin, onions, tomato, Mexican oregano -- but the stuff doesn't want to be messed with.(I'm a firm believer that food, like any other work of art, has its own set of intentions and the trick is listening to what the work has to say.)

I prefer to make it in large quantities and freeze most of it.

I serve it with rice and beans or a three-bean salad as my first choice. I'll use it as burrito filling. I'll spread some on a slice of bread and top it with cheese and pop it in the broiler. I'll serve it party-style with onions, sour cream, grated cheese, green onions, chopped tomatoes, avocado, etc,etc. I'll throw leftovers into beans, add homemade barbecue sauce and adjust the seasonings for ranch-type beans.

This isn't a daily occurrence, something more like a once-or-twice a year ritual.

And I'll tell you what. If it really bothers you to hear me describe it as chili, give me a functional noun and I'll use it. Or not. I have to confess that the minute I saw the slogan, "Don't mess with Texas," I immediately started trying to figure out how to mess with an entire state. If this will do the job I might not be able to resist...

(And it has to be said that Texas ain't the first state I'd choose to mess with. Too many good people there, too much good food I'd like to eat someday. California I'd love to mess with because I'm from here and I know why it deserves a little pain. Delaware also ranks high on the list... for political/economic reasons. On the other hand, they didn't put a flat-out demand for impertinence on a friggen' license-plate frame, now did they?)

tonights chili.
top round dry rubbed (figure it out) and charcoal seared with a redpepper.
dice red pepper, onion and leave garlic whole.
chill top round and dice large.
sautee raw pot roast meat and add veg after seared again, deglaze with a can of beer, add drops of worcestshire and balsamic, one can of tomato's one can of tomato sauce. then get bored of telling people what you made and stop typing.

Chili is one of those things that everyone has their own special style, ingredient, techique and it's great to see all the different recipes. I like to take a little of everyone's ideas and come up with a delish chili or whatever.

quote:

Originally posted by craven.sean

Hate to say it but I have to go with the "chili is a generic term crowd." Like it or not, usage is what determines the validity of a word in the long run. I sympathize with your pain, but it would probably be a good idea to recognize the inevitable and suck it up...

On the other hand, incessant bitching doesn't cost anything and it's a great hobby, right up there with tropical fish and vehicular homicide. Don't let me rain on your charade.

I will confess that there were a number of times that I looked at a recipe on this list and recoiled in horror... only to think it through and decide that I'd at least like to try a bowl before rendering judgment. This is obviously a ripe field for the display of eccentricity, but in my experience once you get certain flavors in the mix the essential nature of chili goes away and you wind up with a sort of muddy spaghetti sauce if you're lucky. I've got an amusingly appalling cookbook with a recipe for Chinese Chili by Buddy Hackett. It contains canned bamboo shoots and water chestnuts. Brrr...

I've been experimenting with chili since I was given a bowl of roast beef chili as a child. It was a restaurant meal and I'm pretty sure it was the result of having to find a use for leftovers but it was incredible. So I had to try and figure out how to beat it. (I'm working on giving up false modesty. I'll deal with the arrogance after I've got the FM whipped.)

These days I have two patterns for chili. One is very loosely based on the Stern's recipe for Cincinnati-style chili and is intended for use on hot dogs and such. Just gave my dad three pounds of it for his birthday and my guitar buddy half of what I had left. They both glowed, I'm here to tell you... Thank you, Sterns!

The other is a little something I call Chili con Carnage. It's a technique, not a recipe, and is dependent on a number of things that might not be readily accessible to everyone, but for the sake of curiosity and inspiration, here's how I do it. (As a side note, I once had a friend diagnosed with anemia. I gave her a substantial supply of the chili and she ate it every day for a couple of weeks. The next time she saw the doc he was amazed by her complete recovery. She credits the chili...)

The first ingredient is strong meat stock, the kind that turns into hard rubber at fridge temperatures. I'm in the habit of simmering meat in stock, freezing the stock, and then cooking the next chuck roast/pork shoulder/etc. in the same stock. I do this for as long as a year. Just meat, salt, and water -- if you use any seasonings the flavors accumulate in an unsavory fashion. (This probably is closer to a symptom than a technique...)

So I start off the chili by popping a bunch of meat into the crock pot and covering it with the stock. What I use depends on what looks good in the butcher counter, but I like to use chuck roast and then fill in the gaps with stuff like shank and oxtail. When I'm feeling dangerous I throw in a ham hock. (If the people who made oxtail and flank expensive ever find out how good chuck actually is I may have to switch over to an Anthro-vegetarian diet for economy's sake.) I let it simmer on low overnight -- at the lowest setting the meat cooks fork-tender, the fat and connective tissue melt, and the meat still stays pink through.

The next day I let the crock pot full of dead animal parts cool, then pop it into the refrigerator overnight to give the fat a chance to rise and solidify for easy removal.

The next day I go out hunting for chilies. I get a mix of everything that wants to go in the pot, if you know what I mean. I use a mix of fresh and dried chilies. I get a lot more fresh chilies than you'd think, including a few pounds of red, orange, and/or yellow bell peppers.

Back at the kitchen I degrease the meat and put the meat itself into a separate pot, removing any bones and visible chunks of fat and then shredding the meat with my hands. No chopping, no cutting. It's the long disintegrated fibers that will dominate the finished dish.

Then I start processing the chilies.

The fresh chilies go into my wife's Champion juicer. You don't wanna hold your face too close to the works when you put the habeneros and scotch bonnets through there... I run the pulp through twice to get as much of the juice as possible. Dump it in with the meat. There should be a lot of it, enough to make the meat soupy. Put it in the fridge.

I do this at the same time that I'm dealing with the dried chilies. Since the dried chilies will have to cool, try and time it so that you're done with them as soon as possible, but the process includes some waiting time and while you're in the kitchen you may as well cook.

The dried chilies I look at and decide which ones are gonna be used straight and which are going to be roasted. It's about a fifty/fifty mix, tie goes to the roasted. The ones to be roasted go into a 350 oven until they get fragrant and display a few dark spots. This provides a hint of nearly-burnt flavor that is another crucial element in this death-laden hellbrew. After roasting, they go into a pot with the stock in which the meat was cooked and simmered until they're soft and rehydrated. Let them cool until they can be handled comfortably.

At that point I pull out the food mill my sister gave me with the specific intent of getting more chili out of me, put in the finest screen and run the dried chilies through it, putting the pulp into a bowl. Keep the skins and seeds out of the pulp; if you slop some in, run it through the food mill again.

Then add the pulp/stock mix to the pot with the meat and chili juices. Put it on the stove and start it simmering. Grind as much black pepper as you think it's gonna take into the pot.

Then start chopping garlic. Don't be shy -- I think in terms of multiple heads. They mellow when cooked, you know, and I stink anyway.

Then simmer and stir the chili until it boils down to a thick paste. Taste while you're doing this and adjust your levels of salt, pepper, and garlic.

At this point start adding baker's chocolate or cocoa powder. I can't for the life of me figure out why, but the bitterness of the chocolate restrains the bitterness of the chilies and gives the whole dish a smoothness and coherency it would otherwise lack.

And there you are. I've been tempted for years to add the other traditional seasonings -- cumin, onions, tomato, Mexican oregano -- but the stuff doesn't want to be messed with.(I'm a firm believer that food, like any other work of art, has its own set of intentions and the trick is listening to what the work has to say.)

I prefer to make it in large quantities and freeze most of it.

I serve it with rice and beans or a three-bean salad as my first choice. I'll use it as burrito filling. I'll spread some on a slice of bread and top it with cheese and pop it in the broiler. I'll serve it party-style with onions, sour cream, grated cheese, green onions, chopped tomatoes, avocado, etc,etc. I'll throw leftovers into beans, add homemade barbecue sauce and adjust the seasonings for ranch-type beans.

This isn't a daily occurrence, something more like a once-or-twice a year ritual.

And I'll tell you what. If it really bothers you to hear me describe it as chili, give me a functional noun and I'll use it. Or not. I have to confess that the minute I saw the slogan, "Don't mess with Texas," I immediately started trying to figure out how to mess with an entire state. If this will do the job I might not be able to resist...

(And it has to be said that Texas ain't the first state I'd choose to mess with. Too many good people there, too much good food I'd like to eat someday. California I'd love to mess with because I'm from here and I know why it deserves a little pain. Delaware also ranks high on the list... for political/economic reasons. On the other hand, they didn't put a flat-out demand for impertinence on a friggen' license-plate frame, now did they?)

FOR GOD'S SAKE, JUST TELL US WHAT TIME IT IS, NOT HOW TO BUILD A WATCH!!!! [|)][|)][|)] I fell asleep half way through this Epistle!!

How about some pics of these great chili's........

quote:

Originally posted by Foodbme

quote:

Originally posted by craven.sean

Hate to say it but I have to go with the "chili is a generic term crowd." Like it or not, usage is what determines the validity of a word in the long run. I sympathize with your pain, but it would probably be a good idea to recognize the inevitable and suck it up...

On the other hand, incessant bitching doesn't cost anything and it's a great hobby, right up there with tropical fish and vehicular homicide. Don't let me rain on your charade.

I will confess that there were a number of times that I looked at a recipe on this list and recoiled in horror... only to think it through and decide that I'd at least like to try a bowl before rendering judgment. This is obviously a ripe field for the display of eccentricity, but in my experience once you get certain flavors in the mix the essential nature of chili goes away and you wind up with a sort of muddy spaghetti sauce if you're lucky. I've got an amusingly appalling cookbook with a recipe for Chinese Chili by Buddy Hackett. It contains canned bamboo shoots and water chestnuts. Brrr...

I've been experimenting with chili since I was given a bowl of roast beef chili as a child. It was a restaurant meal and I'm pretty sure it was the result of having to find a use for leftovers but it was incredible. So I had to try and figure out how to beat it. (I'm working on giving up false modesty. I'll deal with the arrogance after I've got the FM whipped.)

These days I have two patterns for chili. One is very loosely based on the Stern's recipe for Cincinnati-style chili and is intended for use on hot dogs and such. Just gave my dad three pounds of it for his birthday and my guitar buddy half of what I had left. They both glowed, I'm here to tell you... Thank you, Sterns!

The other is a little something I call Chili con Carnage. It's a technique, not a recipe, and is dependent on a number of things that might not be readily accessible to everyone, but for the sake of curiosity and inspiration, here's how I do it. (As a side note, I once had a friend diagnosed with anemia. I gave her a substantial supply of the chili and she ate it every day for a couple of weeks. The next time she saw the doc he was amazed by her complete recovery. She credits the chili...)

The first ingredient is strong meat stock, the kind that turns into hard rubber at fridge temperatures. I'm in the habit of simmering meat in stock, freezing the stock, and then cooking the next chuck roast/pork shoulder/etc. in the same stock. I do this for as long as a year. Just meat, salt, and water -- if you use any seasonings the flavors accumulate in an unsavory fashion. (This probably is closer to a symptom than a technique...)

So I start off the chili by popping a bunch of meat into the crock pot and covering it with the stock. What I use depends on what looks good in the butcher counter, but I like to use chuck roast and then fill in the gaps with stuff like shank and oxtail. When I'm feeling dangerous I throw in a ham hock. (If the people who made oxtail and flank expensive ever find out how good chuck actually is I may have to switch over to an Anthro-vegetarian diet for economy's sake.) I let it simmer on low overnight -- at the lowest setting the meat cooks fork-tender, the fat and connective tissue melt, and the meat still stays pink through.

The next day I let the crock pot full of dead animal parts cool, then pop it into the refrigerator overnight to give the fat a chance to rise and solidify for easy removal.

The next day I go out hunting for chilies. I get a mix of everything that wants to go in the pot, if you know what I mean. I use a mix of fresh and dried chilies. I get a lot more fresh chilies than you'd think, including a few pounds of red, orange, and/or yellow bell peppers.

Back at the kitchen I degrease the meat and put the meat itself into a separate pot, removing any bones and visible chunks of fat and then shredding the meat with my hands. No chopping, no cutting. It's the long disintegrated fibers that will dominate the finished dish.

Then I start processing the chilies.

The fresh chilies go into my wife's Champion juicer. You don't wanna hold your face too close to the works when you put the habeneros and scotch bonnets through there... I run the pulp through twice to get as much of the juice as possible. Dump it in with the meat. There should be a lot of it, enough to make the meat soupy. Put it in the fridge.

I do this at the same time that I'm dealing with the dried chilies. Since the dried chilies will have to cool, try and time it so that you're done with them as soon as possible, but the process includes some waiting time and while you're in the kitchen you may as well cook.

The dried chilies I look at and decide which ones are gonna be used straight and which are going to be roasted. It's about a fifty/fifty mix, tie goes to the roasted. The ones to be roasted go into a 350 oven until they get fragrant and display a few dark spots. This provides a hint of nearly-burnt flavor that is another crucial element in this death-laden hellbrew. After roasting, they go into a pot with the stock in which the meat was cooked and simmered until they're soft and rehydrated. Let them cool until they can be handled comfortably.

At that point I pull out the food mill my sister gave me with the specific intent of getting more chili out of me, put in the finest screen and run the dried chilies through it, putting the pulp into a bowl. Keep the skins and seeds out of the pulp; if you slop some in, run it through the food mill again.

Then add the pulp/stock mix to the pot with the meat and chili juices. Put it on the stove and start it simmering. Grind as much black pepper as you think it's gonna take into the pot.

Then start chopping garlic. Don't be shy -- I think in terms of multiple heads. They mellow when cooked, you know, and I stink anyway.

Then simmer and stir the chili until it boils down to a thick paste. Taste while you're doing this and adjust your levels of salt, pepper, and garlic.

At this point start adding baker's chocolate or cocoa powder. I can't for the life of me figure out why, but the bitterness of the chocolate restrains the bitterness of the chilies and gives the whole dish a smoothness and coherency it would otherwise lack.

And there you are. I've been tempted for years to add the other traditional seasonings -- cumin, onions, tomato, Mexican oregano -- but the stuff doesn't want to be messed with.(I'm a firm believer that food, like any other work of art, has its own set of intentions and the trick is listening to what the work has to say.)

I prefer to make it in large quantities and freeze most of it.

I serve it with rice and beans or a three-bean salad as my first choice. I'll use it as burrito filling. I'll spread some on a slice of bread and top it with cheese and pop it in the broiler. I'll serve it party-style with onions, sour cream, grated cheese, green onions, chopped tomatoes, avocado, etc,etc. I'll throw leftovers into beans, add homemade barbecue sauce and adjust the seasonings for ranch-type beans.

This isn't a daily occurrence, something more like a once-or-twice a year ritual.

And I'll tell you what. If it really bothers you to hear me describe it as chili, give me a functional noun and I'll use it. Or not. I have to confess that the minute I saw the slogan, "Don't mess with Texas," I immediately started trying to figure out how to mess with an entire state. If this will do the job I might not be able to resist...

(And it has to be said that Texas ain't the first state I'd choose to mess with. Too many good people there, too much good food I'd like to eat someday. California I'd love to mess with because I'm from here and I know why it deserves a little pain. Delaware also ranks high on the list... for political/economic reasons. On the other hand, they didn't put a flat-out demand for impertinence on a friggen' license-plate frame, now did they?)

FOR GOD'S SAKE, JUST TELL US WHAT TIME IT IS, NOT HOW TO BUILD A WATCH!!!! [|)][|)][|)] I fell asleep half way through this Epistle!!

IMHO...I agree...too long winded....[|)]

I liked that post. Sooo glad you guys made it bigger by quoting it twice!
joe

quote:

Originally posted by PapaJoe8

I liked that post. Sooo glad you guys made it bigger by quoting it twice!
joe

Hardee har har....Thats funny Papa!..
Nice to see you back again....
I knew I could find you sniffing around the chili threads!

Chili #3

4 Ancho Chiles
1 Dried Habenero Chile

4 slices thick, smoked bacon, diced

2 Tbsp. Coarsely-chopped Garlic
2 Cups Coarsely-chopped Onion

2 lbs. Chuck, 1 lb. diced, 1 lb. ground
1/2 lb. Pork, ground

1 Qt. Beef Broth
40 Oz. Canned Tomatoes

2 Tbsp. Ground Cumin
1 tsp. Dried Oregano, preferably Mexican
1 tsp. Sugar
1 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Black Pepper

1 Green Bell Pepper, chopped
32 Oz. Canned Dark Red Kidney Beans

Pulverize chiles in a spice/coffee grinder. Alternately, chop and place in a blender with a little water, blend until finely pureed.

In a large pot or dutch oven, brown bacon. Remove with slotted spoon.

Carefully brown onion and garlic. Don't burn garlic! Remove with slotted spoon.

Brown meats. May take two batches, depending upon pot size.

Add broth, tomatoes, bacon, onions, garlic, herbs and spices.

Simmer, and stir regularly, until flavors develop, and meat is tender (2-3 hours). Add bell pepper and beans, simmer an additional thirty minutes. Adjust seasonings to taste.

I searched for YEARS for the correct recipe for CINCINNATI CHILI -- finally, a friend whose great aunt worked at the original EMPRESS CHILI (the very first Cincy Chili restaurant!) for eons gave me the correct recipe (there's NO chocolate in Cincinnati Chili if it's made correctly!). I substituted canned chicken broth for the water and this one now tastes most closely like GOLD STAR CHILI. Home made chicken STOCK, de-fatted, makes it even better. Enjoy, my friends!

REAL CINCINNATI CHILI
by Patrick W. Crabtree

1 quart water (or, substitute chicken broth/stock for Gold Star)
2 pounds ground chuck (never ground round -- too lean!)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 large onions, chopped
1 toe fresh garlic, whole
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon table salt
1 1/2 teaspoons ground allspice
1/2 tablespoon cayenne (ground red) pepper
1 6-oz. can tomato paste
1 1/2 teaspoons cider vinegar
3 large bay leaves, whole
2 16-oz. cans dark red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 jalapeno pepper, whole
2 pounds dry Cappellini or other spaghetti
few drops of olive oil for spaghetti water

1. In a large cooking pot, break up the burger into the water or stock.

2. Add all other ingredients, except for the jalapeno pepper, the beans, (and, excepting of course the spaghetti and olive oil), and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer (slow bubble is best) and continue, covered, for 3 hours, stirring often.

3. At the end of three hours, remove the garlic toes and bay leaves and add the jalapeno pepper and simmer, covered for two more hours.

4. At the end of this time, add the drained and rinsed kidney beans and simmer, covered, for one additional hour.

5. In the last hour of cooking, start the two pounds of spaghetti in several quarts of boiling water which has been salted (1 Tbsp.) and to which a few drops of olive oil has been added.

6. When Chili and Spaghetti are done, make sure Sharp Cheddar Cheese (shredded fine) and Tabasco Sauce are available at the table.

If you try to shortcut this ancient recipe (1922) by cutting back on time, or by changing/subbing ingredients, you'll be disappointed. Also, use a thick-bottomed pot over VERY low heat, covered (barely boiling) or it will scorch.

This chili can be eaten as is, over spaghetti with toppings (cheese, Tabasco, etc.), or, as the very best hot dog/coney sauce. Cincinnati Chili purists will note that the kidney beans are heated separately at all the cincy chili outlets (Skyline, Gold Star, Empress, and Dixie) and placed on top of the respective dish, IF they use beans at all. I mix mine into the chili during the final hour or so with good results. I also toss my hot dogs right into the chili for the last half-hour of cooking time.



pat

I'm sort of the "Chili Emperor" around south-central Ohio and you'll find most of my chili recipes (I don't know, about 8 or 10) here:

http://www.recipezaar.com/recipes.php?chef=196369


....and here is a chili spin-off (pseudo-Mexican) that everyone around here loves. They bug me to make it all the time. Even the neighbors "drop in" when they know that I'm making this one:


http://www.recipezaar.com/180678



My final comment is that the key to a good regular chili is partly due to using a great chili powder. Here is an outlet who use my "chili" recipes to advertise their products:

http://www.kokopelliskitchen.com/pasetechno4.html

http://www.kokopelliskitchen.com/oscachre.html

enjoy!

pat

quote:

Originally posted by Bone Man

I searched for YEARS for the correct recipe for CINCINNATI CHILI -- finally, a friend whose great aunt worked at the original EMPRESS CHILI (the very first Cincy Chili restaurant!) for eons gave me the correct recipe (there's NO chocolate in Cincinnati Chili if it's made correctly!). I substituted canned chicken broth for the water and this one now tastes most closely like GOLD STAR CHILI. Home made chicken STOCK, de-fatted, makes it even better. Enjoy, my friends!

REAL CINCINNATI CHILI
by Patrick W. Crabtree

1 quart water (or, substitute chicken broth/stock for Gold Star)
2 pounds ground chuck (never ground round -- too lean!)

Thanks for this. I used to have this recipe - but, it got toasted when I lost my Meal Master data base in a hard drive crash and my backup disks were corrupted.

Couple things, though - I have better luck with a very fine grind beef (i.e. 73% lean) rather than chuck grade.

What brand chilli powder do you use? They are all different and they all give a different result. I mostly use Mexene for stuff like this as Chilli Man has been changed by its new owners (Faribault Foods) and is severely lacking in all the things that makes chilli chilli.

Why would you de-fat your chicken stock? This ain't, and never will be, a heart-healthy dish. And fat carries flavour. Which is one of the reasons that I use ground beef vs ground chuck.

ENJOY!!!

"Dying is a very dull, dreary affair. And my advice to you is to have nothing whatever to do with it." -- W Somerset Maugham

From a female friend at work;

White Chile

3 15-oz. cans Great Northern beans, drained
48 oz. cooked and shredded chicken breasts
1 cup chopped yellow, red, orange, and green peppers
Minimum of each
1 ½ cup chopped onion
2 jalapeno chili peppers, stemmed, seeded, and chopped (optional)
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp. ground cumin
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. dried oregano
3 ½ cups chicken broth
Shredded cheddar cheese
Tortilla chips or Tostitos

1. Combine all ingredients except cheddar cheese and chips in slow cooker.
2. Cover. Cook on Low 8-10 hours, or High 4-5 hours.
3. Ladle into bowls and top with cheese and chips.

see i don't eat red meat - and sometimes i'll make chili with ground turkey, but i also like this vegetarian chili from parents connect:

http://www.parentsconnect.com/dishes/vegetarian_chili.jhtml

* 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
* 1 10-ounce package frozen chopped onions
* 1 10-ounce package frozen chopped green pepper
* 1 tablespoon bottled minced garlic
* ¼ cup chili powder
* 1 tablespoon ground cumin
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 2 14 and ½-ounce cans Mexican-style stewed tomatoes
* 1 15-ounce can lentils, rinsed and drained
* 1 15-ounce can red kidney beans or pinto beans, rinsed and drained
* 1 15 and ¼-ounce can whole kernel corn, drained

Dish It Out:

1. In a large pot over medium heat, heat the vegetable oil.
2. Add the onion, pepper, and garlic, and cook until tender, about 10 minutes.
3. Add the chili powder, cumin and salt, stirring well to mix. Cook for 2 minutes to release flavors, stirring frequently.
4. Add the tomatoes, lentils, kidney beans or pinto beans, and corn, stirring well to mix.
5. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 10 minutes.

* Chili powder and cumin are the "hot-makers" in this recipe. Feel free to adjust them, according to your tolerance.
* Serve the individual bowls of chili with shredded sharp Cheddar cheese, a dollop of sour cream and/or a scoop of leftover rice on top.

I guess I make your basic run-of-the-mill chili with beans (black, red, and dark red kidney), the only thing I may do differently is throw in a pound or two of hot chorizo when I can get my hands on it. I cook it up with the ground beef or cubed steak, garlic, onions and green peppers, then throw in tomato paste and make a thick ragu, and let it almost start to burn while stirring it around, then put the canned whole and crushed tomatoes in, then everything else, and let it simmer a few hours. Always better the next day!

quote:

Originally posted by ocerg

The best i ever made.

Ingredients
6 ounces hot turkey Italian sausage
2 cups chopped onion
1 cup chopped green bell pepper
8 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound ground sirloin
2 jalapeño pepper, chopped
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cumin
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 bay leaves
1 1/2 cups Merlot or other fruity red wine
2 (28-ounce) cans Muir Glen Fire roasted tomatoes, undrained and coarsely chopped
2 (15-ounce) cans Progresso kidney beans, drained
shredded sharp cheddar cheese


Preparation
Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Remove casings from sausage. Add sausage, onion, and the next 4 ingredients (onion through jalapeño) to pan; cook 8 minutes or until sausage and beef are browned, stirring to crumble.
Add chili powder and the next 7 ingredients (chili powder through bay leaves), and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in wine, tomatoes, and kidney beans; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Uncover and cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Discard the bay leaves. Sprinkle each serving with cheddar cheese.

Made this, with the following modifications:

Subbed turkey for the beef (unless I want to eat the whole batch to my head, I have to use turkey).

Used a different brand of canned tomato (but it was still fire roasted).

It definitely tastes better the next day and actually aged quite well. The merlot is just wierd--this may not be chili--it comes out more like a bourginon stew or something--tasty, but nmot what I think of when I think of chili.

Having said that, a bottle of strong beer might be a good substitute for the merlot (which was awfully sweet).

This is more for when you need supper in half an hour, but it's not bad if you keep that in mind

1. Nuke a pound of ground beef until the pink's all gone.
2. Carefully remove the blood for the dog. If you don't have a dog, send it to me.
3. Remove all the fat and get rid of it. One day, I'll get some lye and make soap out of it, perhaps. If the dog gets hold of it, it will make him/her EXTREMELY gassy and difficult to receive kisses of gratitude from. Never mind how I know this.
4. Break the beef with a stick blender while nuking some chopped onions and/or peppers for 45 seconds.
5. Mix your beef with your onions and/or peppers.
6. Add a bag of taco seasoning or whatever spices you like, and a 14 oer 15 oz. can of diced tomatoes.
7. Nuke the mix for one or two more minutes.
8. Eat.

This recipe will feed me and Big Beautiful Mich, and the dog gives us much kisses of gratitude when she finishes her portion.

Here's mine, I have it posted to Recipezaar as well.

Christmas Chili Recipe #105517
From U of Alabama's "Nothing but the Best!" I made this for a football party Dustin hosted and everyone enjoyed it!
by Barenaked Chef
2½ hours | 20 min prep

SERVES 12

1 1/2 lbs ground round
2 medium white onions, diced
2 large bell peppers, diced
3 tablespoons chili powder, divided
2 tablespoons garlic powder, divided
1 teaspoon basil
3 (14 1/2 ounce) cans stewed tomatoes
3 (14 1/2 ounce) cans chili beans
1 (8 ounce) can beer
1 tablespoon black pepper
grated cheddar cheese
chopped onions
Place beef, onions and bell peppers in large Dutch oven.
Sprinkle with 1 ½ tablespoons chili powder, 1 tablespoon garlic powder, and basil.
Using a wooden spoon, blend together and brown very slowly.
You may drain if desired, but mine didn’t have a lot of grease, so I didn’t bother.
Place tomatoes in food processor and process just long enough to cup up large pieces.
Put tomatoes, beans and beer in with meat and bring to a low simmer.
Add remaining chili and garlic powder.
Add pepper.
Cook slowly for at least 2 hours.
Serve with cheese and onion.



Edited to add a picture of my chili.

Remember me? Yes, even I can cook simply.

Crazy Ed’s White Pork Chili

1 Tbsp.
olive oil

4 cloves
chopped garlic

1 large sweet onion,
chopped

1 - 4 oz.
can chopped green chilies

1 jalapeno - diced

3/4 tsp.
ground cumin

1 tsp.
Italian herbs

2 – 16 oz. cans
Great Northern beans – undrained

32 oz. chicken stock

3 pounds pork loin, cooked and cut into large pieces

8 oz. shredded
Monterey Jack cheese

¼ tsp. salt and coarse ground black pepper to taste

Makes 4 quarts.

Instructions:

Using the olive oil and onion, cook until golden. Add the garlic and cook one more minute. Then add the chilies, cumin, Italian herbs and jalapeno sautéing 1 more minute. Transfer ingredients to a 6-quart slow cooker. Add the beans and stock. Add the prepared pork (rubbed) and grated cheese, along with your salt and pepper adjustments. Make sure to fully incorporate the cheese as it begins to melt. Cook until fully heated or until the pork reaches the texture of your choice.

Z, I like that one! Bell pepper, green chiles, and jalapenos are things I like in chili! A variation... leave out the great northerns and serve over wild rice.
Joe

I do love this thread.

I thought I would share a previous thread I had on about.com's food thingy.

I always like a good chili discussion.

http://forums.about.com/n/pfx/forum.aspx?tsn=1&nav=messages&webtag=ab-homecooking&tid=412

E

I love chili; here are my two favorites.

The "quick way" is to get Wick Fowler's "Two Alarm Chili" spices and play with the ingredients to taste. I did this for years and still do when I'm in a hurry.

The "other way" is this 2003 "from scratch" recipe from Emeril; it is OMG good and is just as good the next day, week, or month out of the fridge or freezer. The only ingredient I don't add is the tequila simply because we only keep bourbon and wines in the house:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-live/texas-style-chili-recipe/index.html

(After you "click" the URL, don't forget to read the reviews! Several of the reviewers even admit to winning "chili cookoffs" with this recipe).