Any good chili recipes? [General]
2012 Mar 9
This is my go to recipe, with a few liberal adaptations here and there:
www.epicurious.com
I know that Pete-in-Ottawa has used the same recipe, with his own adaptations, and it's won prizes in chili contests. So what if they were at his kid's school?
www.epicurious.com
I know that Pete-in-Ottawa has used the same recipe, with his own adaptations, and it's won prizes in chili contests. So what if they were at his kid's school?
2012 Mar 9
You sound like you're off to a good start.
I normally use ground meat with onions and garlic. I like using a few fresh peppers (jalapeno, serrano, cubanelle) and I have a decent collection of dried peppers and I like to use a good mixture of those containing some hot ones and some sweeter/fruiter ones(habanero, new mexico, ancho, whatever), simmered in tomato/vegetable juice to rehydrate the peppers. Then I add some chipotles if I've got them and blend it all together into a thick, potent chili liquid. I normally add a can of tomatoes and a bunch of veggies too in order to bump my intake (carrots, celery, bell peppers) but I know some people are really strict about their chili and would frown even on the mention of tomatoes or beans.
For seasonings, I like to throw in a little bit of marmite or soy sauce if it's on hand, as well as some dark chocolate (85% or above, preferably) and some combination of cumin, paprika, cinnamon, star anise, and coriander. A little bit of coffee goes a long way, but it is good. I'm a black bean man myself but most beans work well. Although, I put chickpeas in my last one and wasn't a big fan, personally.
I find that the chili peppers provide a good range of flavours ranging from spicy to something akin to dark fruits to a much brighter, peppery flavour. The meat and the marmite/soy add a hefty dose of savouriness, the coffee and dark chocolate add a slightly sweet and slightly bitter roasted notes. Now I want chili...
I normally use ground meat with onions and garlic. I like using a few fresh peppers (jalapeno, serrano, cubanelle) and I have a decent collection of dried peppers and I like to use a good mixture of those containing some hot ones and some sweeter/fruiter ones(habanero, new mexico, ancho, whatever), simmered in tomato/vegetable juice to rehydrate the peppers. Then I add some chipotles if I've got them and blend it all together into a thick, potent chili liquid. I normally add a can of tomatoes and a bunch of veggies too in order to bump my intake (carrots, celery, bell peppers) but I know some people are really strict about their chili and would frown even on the mention of tomatoes or beans.
For seasonings, I like to throw in a little bit of marmite or soy sauce if it's on hand, as well as some dark chocolate (85% or above, preferably) and some combination of cumin, paprika, cinnamon, star anise, and coriander. A little bit of coffee goes a long way, but it is good. I'm a black bean man myself but most beans work well. Although, I put chickpeas in my last one and wasn't a big fan, personally.
I find that the chili peppers provide a good range of flavours ranging from spicy to something akin to dark fruits to a much brighter, peppery flavour. The meat and the marmite/soy add a hefty dose of savouriness, the coffee and dark chocolate add a slightly sweet and slightly bitter roasted notes. Now I want chili...
2012 Mar 9
I've done the beer and/or chocolate before and its really ends up what you feel like having, both do add a nice earthy flavor on the back palate. I find that sometime you need to add a bit of acidity to better bring out some of the spice flavors, and a bit of red wine vinegar can do the trick. I'm guessing this would help if you are using tomato paste rather than crushed.
2012 Mar 9
Trachinho:
Ottawa Foodies site has a rich history which includes discussions on many topics.
Thanks to FF for providing Google Search on the site.
One topic discussed from Dec 2007 to Oct 2010 has been chili.
Here is one of my entries, as well as the rest:
goo.gl/71h2b
Enjoy !!
Ottawa Foodies site has a rich history which includes discussions on many topics.
Thanks to FF for providing Google Search on the site.
One topic discussed from Dec 2007 to Oct 2010 has been chili.
Here is one of my entries, as well as the rest:
goo.gl/71h2b
Enjoy !!
2012 Mar 9
Good timing! I actually just won the Beckwith chili cookoff last weekend, beating last years champ, who beat the 4-peat champ. 3rd place went to the 2006 winner. It was a field full of previous winners, aside from me. I'm relatively new to cookoffs. My first entry, I placed 2nd, and now 1st. I have found that over the years, I have simplified my "recipe". I used to throw in everything I liked and could think of. Now, it's pretty much the basics, but just top quality ingredients and proper cooking/timing/order or adding...or LOVE.
2012 Mar 9
Congratulations Bobby Fillet, but you can't chime in like that without actually posting your recipe :-)
2012 Mar 9
Haha, I was afraid you'd ask that...
I can say that I used some Muir Glen products, some local beef, locally made sausage without casing, peppers, corn, carrots, tiny bit of maple syrup, vidalia onions, chili's from Grace, spices, and several other ingredients....but I still stick by it being the process in combination with the ingredients. I had my wife cook "my chili" before and it wasn't the same at all...seemed different. Of course, she can never know...
I can say that I used some Muir Glen products, some local beef, locally made sausage without casing, peppers, corn, carrots, tiny bit of maple syrup, vidalia onions, chili's from Grace, spices, and several other ingredients....but I still stick by it being the process in combination with the ingredients. I had my wife cook "my chili" before and it wasn't the same at all...seemed different. Of course, she can never know...
2012 Mar 10
I've made this one many times over the years: Martha Stewart's Texas Red Chili. It uses dried ancho and guajillo chilis and chunky beef rather than ground.
www.marthastewart.com
www.marthastewart.com
2012 Mar 10
I make my chili with the goal of it being rich and slightly sweet, rather than hot. I *really* miss the beans I used to be able to get - they were called Chili Beans in Chili Hot Sauce. They weren't spicy, but the sauce they were canned with added a nice background complexity to my chili. I also use ground beef, onions, garlic, chili powder, maybe a pinch of cayenne for a huge pot. I also like to toss in a little soy sauce, Worcestershire Sauce, and Pickapeppa Sauce. It's never exactly the same twice - sometimes now I use kidney beans, sometimes black beans, sometimes a mix. I've even used chickpeas before. It would never win a typical chili contest, but it suits our family well :-)
2012 Mar 11
I have tweaked this one due to inability to find some of the ingredients. Some arbol powder for heat and ancho for smoke and hickory salt a few of the tweaks.
www.thespicehouse.com
www.thespicehouse.com
2012 Mar 11
Captain Caper answers that question for you right here Saurian
Forum - slow cooker for vegetarian meals??post_id=14455#post_14455
Forum - slow cooker for vegetarian meals??post_id=14455#post_14455
2012 Mar 11
PB&A (above) and I have a similar philosophy. I take mole poblano as my inspiration, meaning:
1) First and foremost that chili should be about the .... chiles. I buy these once a year in the states at a Mexican market wherever I happen to be (for the record, my favourite is Cardenas, which is sort of the Mexican T&T of California, cardenasmarkets.com also sell fresh masa for tamales, but I digress...).
2) I use a mixture of chiles, usually centred on Mulato, Ancho, and Pasilla (as with mole poblano). Others sometimes find their way in (Guajillo, New Mexico, Chipotle Morita). Usually I make powder (as opposed to soaking and making a puree), after cleaning, stemming, seeding, and dry toasting the pieces in a dry skillet.
3) Spices I use are Mexican oregano, cumin (a good bit of each--far more than I would ever put in mole), coriander seed, Mexican cinnamon, black pepper, clove, and anise (last two are used quite sparingly).
4) Chili powder is used with a heavy hand--about 1/3 or even 1/2 of a cup per pound of ground beef. I add the chile powder to the ground beef once it is browned and let the powder cook a little to bring out its flavour before adding the liquid ingredients.
5) I use some tomato (usually puree), but not a lot--perhaps 2/3 cup per pound of beef. I don't really want it to taste tomato-y. If I have fresh tomatoes from the garden, they get roasted an pureed.
6) Lots of onions, of course--maybe one large one per pound of beef--sauted in lard until golden. I dry roast the garlic in the Mexican fashion and add it in as puree (I don't know if this step is worth it, but I do it anyway)--about three or four good cloves per pound of beef.
7) A bit of Mexican or dark chocolate--maybe an ounce per pound of beef--gets added at the end.
8) I think just a little of sugar helps bring balance out the chiles.
9) The liquid is ideally stock of some sort, though water works fine, too.
10) I personally don't fancy any sort of green pepper in this particular dish.
11) Beans are usually red kidney beans, but I have used just about every kind with equal success. I mainly like the size and colour of the red kidneys.
12) I have not added in any umami boosters, but I have noted that most of the award-winning recipes from the US have used these seasoning powders that contain a lot of MSG (e.g., Goya Sazon) or even [gasp] bouillon cubes. I can see how these or similar things (soy sauce, tamari, fish sauce, anchovy paste, Marmite) could complement the dish, even if I would not use them personally.
And there you have it--chili my way.
1) First and foremost that chili should be about the .... chiles. I buy these once a year in the states at a Mexican market wherever I happen to be (for the record, my favourite is Cardenas, which is sort of the Mexican T&T of California, cardenasmarkets.com also sell fresh masa for tamales, but I digress...).
2) I use a mixture of chiles, usually centred on Mulato, Ancho, and Pasilla (as with mole poblano). Others sometimes find their way in (Guajillo, New Mexico, Chipotle Morita). Usually I make powder (as opposed to soaking and making a puree), after cleaning, stemming, seeding, and dry toasting the pieces in a dry skillet.
3) Spices I use are Mexican oregano, cumin (a good bit of each--far more than I would ever put in mole), coriander seed, Mexican cinnamon, black pepper, clove, and anise (last two are used quite sparingly).
4) Chili powder is used with a heavy hand--about 1/3 or even 1/2 of a cup per pound of ground beef. I add the chile powder to the ground beef once it is browned and let the powder cook a little to bring out its flavour before adding the liquid ingredients.
5) I use some tomato (usually puree), but not a lot--perhaps 2/3 cup per pound of beef. I don't really want it to taste tomato-y. If I have fresh tomatoes from the garden, they get roasted an pureed.
6) Lots of onions, of course--maybe one large one per pound of beef--sauted in lard until golden. I dry roast the garlic in the Mexican fashion and add it in as puree (I don't know if this step is worth it, but I do it anyway)--about three or four good cloves per pound of beef.
7) A bit of Mexican or dark chocolate--maybe an ounce per pound of beef--gets added at the end.
8) I think just a little of sugar helps bring balance out the chiles.
9) The liquid is ideally stock of some sort, though water works fine, too.
10) I personally don't fancy any sort of green pepper in this particular dish.
11) Beans are usually red kidney beans, but I have used just about every kind with equal success. I mainly like the size and colour of the red kidneys.
12) I have not added in any umami boosters, but I have noted that most of the award-winning recipes from the US have used these seasoning powders that contain a lot of MSG (e.g., Goya Sazon) or even [gasp] bouillon cubes. I can see how these or similar things (soy sauce, tamari, fish sauce, anchovy paste, Marmite) could complement the dish, even if I would not use them personally.
And there you have it--chili my way.
2012 Mar 12
I did a Chipotle Chicken Chili the other week that got some pretty good reviews. One of the girls at work actually hid the leftovers so nobody else could try it, which is always a nice compliment.
Used a mix of ground chicken and finely cubed Breast and Thigh Meat, I cooked the chicken seperately with some allspice, cinnamon, chipotle peppers, arbol peppers, lime and onions.
The stock was a mix of tomoato paste and Creemore Lager, Used Black Beans, White Kidney Beans, Red Bell pepper, red onion, yellow pepper, celery and muchrooms + various spices, garlic, and chili seasoning (proprietary) chipotle paste and chipotle peppers.
I like heat so towards the end I ground more Arbol chilis and added themt o the mix. Chicken was also added towards the end, I only let it simmer in the mix the rest of the flavours for about 30-40 minutes, I have never made chicken chili and didn't know how a super long stew time woudl affect the texture.
Used a mix of ground chicken and finely cubed Breast and Thigh Meat, I cooked the chicken seperately with some allspice, cinnamon, chipotle peppers, arbol peppers, lime and onions.
The stock was a mix of tomoato paste and Creemore Lager, Used Black Beans, White Kidney Beans, Red Bell pepper, red onion, yellow pepper, celery and muchrooms + various spices, garlic, and chili seasoning (proprietary) chipotle paste and chipotle peppers.
I like heat so towards the end I ground more Arbol chilis and added themt o the mix. Chicken was also added towards the end, I only let it simmer in the mix the rest of the flavours for about 30-40 minutes, I have never made chicken chili and didn't know how a super long stew time woudl affect the texture.
2012 Mar 12
Thank for all the feedback. I cooked dried red kidney beans separately and still have to add them to my final product, but I think the results should be decent.
Otherwise, more or less followed the my plan outlined above: Diced onions, garlic and cubanello peppers sauteed in marrow fat, added fresh ground blade roast. Then added a mix of toasted and ground cumin, mex oregano, clove, fennel, coriander, anatto, bay, dried jalapeno, poblano and red chili, 1 small can of tomato paste, one beef stock cube (cheater), half a square of 75% chocolate, one shot of espresso and simmered all of that together with the marrow bones. After a few hours of simmering, refrigerated to let the flavours commingle.
Otherwise, more or less followed the my plan outlined above: Diced onions, garlic and cubanello peppers sauteed in marrow fat, added fresh ground blade roast. Then added a mix of toasted and ground cumin, mex oregano, clove, fennel, coriander, anatto, bay, dried jalapeno, poblano and red chili, 1 small can of tomato paste, one beef stock cube (cheater), half a square of 75% chocolate, one shot of espresso and simmered all of that together with the marrow bones. After a few hours of simmering, refrigerated to let the flavours commingle.
2012 Mar 12
Hmm, lots of ideas for my next batch. I used dried ancho and chipotle and one other, gave a nice depth to the heat. Someone said chocolate and some bitterness? I still have a bottle of Southern Tier Choklat Stout reserved for that very purpose... I had just black beans in my first try, will try those (better quality than no-name) and some red kidneys as well.
Tracinho
Ground meat v. chopped? Types of beans and peppers? Would you add dark chocolate or coffee?
At the moment, I'm thinking of making chili with fresh ground beef shank, dried pinto beans and a mixture of peppers that I grew and dried last summer. I think I will saute onion and garlic in a bit of bone marrow to start. Lots of cumin, coriander, chilies and smoked paprika - maybe a bit of tomato paste. After that, anything's game. Thoughts?