Learn Me: making good Chili

First off, I don't like beans in chili. A little are okay, but when it is mostly beans, I no likey.

I am thinking lean ground beef and some sausage cooked up with some taco seasoning.

Add some tomato paste / mushrooms / green peppers / sauteed red peppers / a SMALL amount of onion / Petes hot sauce

AND???

Anything I am blatantly missing? Anything I should add?

Thanks!

Rob R.

Depends what kind of chili you are trying to make, are you going for a Texas style, Cincinnati style, chili Con Carne?

(Adapted from Carrol Shelby's Chili Recipe, this is the Chili ~I~ make)

4 servings

2 pounds extra lean ground beef

2 large can Tomato sauce

1 can Beer(12oz ea)

1 green pepper

1/4 cup Red chile, hot, ground

2 Garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 Onion, small, finely chopped

1 1/4 teaspoons Oregano

1/2 teaspoon Paprika

1 1/2 teaspoons Cumin, ground

1 1/4 teaspoons Salt

1 1/2 tablespoons Cayenne pepper

3/4 pound Monterey Jack cheese, grated

1. Brown the meat evenly.

2. Add the tomato sauce, beer, pepper, ground chile, garlic, onion, oregano, paprika, 1 teaspoon of the cumin, and the salt. Stir to blend. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 1 hour. Stir occasionally.

3. Taste and adjust seasonings, adding the cayenne pepper. Simmer, uncovered, 1 hour longer.

4. Stir in the cheese and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of the cumin. Simmer 1/2 hour longer, stirring often to keep the cheese from burning.

Black coffee, some beer and some bittersweet chocolate/unsweet cocoa powder. Well, SkinnyG mentioned beer, but the coffee and chocolate add a ton of oomph!
Similar recipe to what I use. Adjust bean content to your liking.

I like this stuff:

Though IMHO, it should be prepared with cubes of stew meat, not ground. No veggies. I love veggies, but my ideal chili is just spiced meat and the sauce it cooked in. Serve with steamed, buttered corn tortillas.

Chicken. That's the secret.

A good chili ALWAYS starts with lots of sauteed onions and garlic.

Basically... just throw a bunch of E36 M3 you like in a pot and let it roll.

trigun7469 wrote: Depends what kind of chili you are trying to make, are you going for a Texas style, Cincinnati style, chili Con Carne?

Tasty Chili. It does not require a name or style

I think I will add some Chocolate Stout beer as well!

I might try some of those sexy spices as well and leave teh Petes Red hot alone.

So far, so good! Keep the suggestions coming!

Rob R.

I name my chili by whatever the beer is that I used to cook it, "... on fire."

The last batch I made was for a church potluck. I labeled it "Old Speckled Hen On Fire," with a warning.

Have some chopped green onions or chives to sprinkle on top after cooking. I serve mine with rice, saltine crackers, boat load of cheddar and sour cream.

Chili, like bbq, has many passionate supporters for its many varieties. However as a two time small-scale chili cookoff champion I find using beef broth instead of any water, beer or extra tomato juice works well in many recipes.

I have had to modify my recipe because of high cholesterol..... but here's mine:

1lb ground turkey (used to be beef)

2 cans of diced tomatoes.

1 can red chili beans

1 can kidney beans

2 chopped onions.

1 chopped red and 1 chopped green pepper

2 packets of chili seasoning

dash of cajun seasoning (big box store brand)

chili powder added as needed.

Brown meat with cajun seasoning and ground red pepper, mix all ingredients into crockpot. Leave in there all day. Turn off, put in fridge over night, reheat next day.

Skipping the last step is HUGE for some reason. I think it's because of the blandness of the Turkey and it takes time for the meat to soak in the surrounding flavors.

Add ground pork.

SkinnyG wrote: The last batch I made was for a church potluck. I labeled it "Old Speckled Hen On Fire," with a warning.

The idea of serving "Old Speckled Hen On Fire Chili" at a church potluck made me giggle. OK, it was more like a snort.

I will also note, in case it sounds like I'm all chili-purist, that I'll happily eat all sorts of crazy bastardizations, including canned turkey chili with beans and veggies. I'm slightly hesitant to call vegetarian chili "chili", but I've certainly enjoyed some spicy three-bean stew.

Here's question: Who adds noodles or rice to their chili? Or serves their chili over noodles or rice?

It's very common to have macaroni noodles in the chili in this area of Wisconsin. My wife, being from ... all over the country, can't wrap her head around putting such things in Chili. I mentioned this to my Grandma and she said it was just a way to make the chili last longer in big Catholic/farm families.

I like to use whole cuts of beef, usually whatever I can find cheap. I once found some "extra aged" (read: turning brown) London broil, and it was spectacular.

My last pot of chili was among my best: at the start, I threw in a few smoked pork neckbones. After simmering for a few hours, the smokiness gave it a great flavor, and the gelatin from the bone's connective tissue definitely improved mouthfeel.

When adding pasta or rice, remember to cook them separately and add them at the end. I once threw rice in a pot of soup to cook, and after the rice soaked up all of the broth, it was just a giant mushy glob.

There is no "right" way to make chili. Mine always has tomatoes, kidney beans tons of onions and garlic, and salt, pepper, ground cumin, chili powder, smoked and/or Spanish paprika, ground cayenne, and whatever fresh peppers I have laying around.

We canned a bunch of candied jalapenos last year. We diced them up and added them plus some candied juice to my wife's fairly standard chili recipe. Oh. My. Goodness. That's all I got.

My wife has an amazing chili recipe that I don't know. My chili recipe involves buying several types of canned chili and adding stuff to it that hit my hot button that day. I like adding crumbled sausage and sometimes beef tips.

http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/texas-beef-brisket-chili

This is amazing.

Otherwise we got with what Swank said.

Seriously, go with real meat instead of ground meat. I usually grill breakfast steaks or butcher down an inexpensive roast into crosscut chops and grill them and after they cool chop them into cubes. I'll also add up to a third venison if I can get it.

I use crushed tomatoes and tomato puree as my base because I prefer not to get big chunks.

RossD wrote: Here's question: Who adds noodles or rice to their chili? Or serves their chili over noodles or rice? It's very common to have macaroni noodles in the chili in this area of Wisconsin. My wife, being from ... all over the country, can't wrap her head around putting such things in Chili. I mentioned this to my Grandma and she said it was just a way to make the chili last longer in big Catholic/farm families.

I like my chili really spicy/hot, so i find that putting it on a small bed of macaroni can help tame it a little bit if i need it. Also: I like the texture.

I'm actually just about done with the last batch of chili that i made. I'll try to remember to put the whole recipe/procedure in here if i have time. Cooking chili for me is an all-day affair. Easy 2-3 hours of prep/active cooking. Very worth it.

RossD wrote: Here's question: Who adds noodles or rice to their chili? Or serves their chili over noodles or rice? It's very common to have macaroni noodles in the chili in this area of Wisconsin. My wife, being from ... all over the country, can't wrap her head around putting such things in Chili. I mentioned this to my Grandma and she said it was just a way to make the chili last longer in big Catholic/farm families.

My GF is from Iowa and pretty much everyone she knows there eats Chili with a peanut butter sandwich. She cannot abide not having bread and peanut butter with her chili. I tried it and was unimpressed. I will stick with corn tortillas or corn bread.

I am seriously hungry right now.

That is all.

I had the misfortune of unwittingly playing a gig at a biker chilli-cookoff/bash last summer(long story). The one redeeming fact was all the awesome chilli I got to try. One of my favorites wasn't what I'd consider a "chilli" at all - it was mad with slice polish sausages, and had a very sweet taste.

Myself I am not a fan of ground beef in chili. Or beef at all for that matter. I coarsely chop pork shoulder or the cheap "country style ribs" and cook that for a few hours with onions and garlic, new mexico, pasilla and california chilis and then add Jalepenos and a small amount of pinto beans.

We had a chili cookoff last year between friends. I came first with a caveat. Mine was described as the best way to cook meat and the ground beef versions were considered more traditional chili. I don't care it is a bowl with a spicy flavor bomb of a sauce, meat and beans. It's good.