I follow this recipe today, with a couple substitutions, and it came out great. I left out the ham because it seemed like a weird ingredient for chili. The guy definitely knows his stuff, in terms of getting the most flavor out of each ingredient.

Just smash them as it cooks

A pretty good recipe overall, but I have a few quibbles:

"1 can of Chipotle in Adobo Sauce or 1/2 oz Dried Chipotle steeped in Beer". Do chipotles in adobo come in only one size of can? Even if they do, I think a whole small can (I get 6.5 oz here) is a lot more potent than 1/2 oz dried chipotle steeped in beer. (Maybe I am underestimating the size or potency of 1/2 oz dried chipotle - I don't use dried chipotles.) Using a whole can of chipotles is OK if you are not using any jalapenos or habaneros.

"3 large Green Peppers" - surely he doesn't mean green sweet bell peppers! If using bell peppers, go for the ripe ones - almost any colour other than green. The green ones are too bitter (maybe that's why he needs molasses). Better would be Poblanos.

Use the smokiest bacon you can find - and he's right: not slices. I prefer diced to julienned.

He doesn't specify whole cumin or ground cumin. Cook whole spices longer than ground ones. I like using whole cumin (and pepper flakes) to start, and adjusting flavours later with ground.

Really should consider Cinnamon.

I think this recipe has too much meat for the amount of the other ingredients. 6.5 lbs of meat and only three peppers, 2 onions, two tomatoes and one can of beans? It's called chili con carne, not carne con chili. For this much meat, you definitely need more vegetables.

If you are going to put beans in your chili (Texas purists will shudder, but Mexicanos will understand) they should come closer to balancing the amount of meat. Either leave out the beans altogether or put in more. They are there as a protein source, not a flavouring ingredient. Don't put in just enough to adulterate the stew. BTW, it is just as correct to use beans and leave out meat as it is to use meat and leave out beans.

Whether to stir in the cheese or add it on top is a mattter of personal taste. Leave it to each guest to decide.

I have to wonder about diced chuck being at the fall apart stage after only one hour of slow cooking.

Molasses is an appropriate sweetener, but if you are not a Gringo Americano you probably don't need it, esp if you added cinnamon and used ripe (not green) bell peppers.

Gotta strongly endorse his comments about doing things in the right order, cooking the spices in the bacon fat, using dark beer as liquid only if needed, and the use of unsweetened or bittersweet chocolate to finish the flavouring.

Thanks, I'll try the cinnamon next time. I also added a little coriander based on a friend's suggestion. It wasn't very noticable, but hey, it didn't hurt anything.

Fantastic post, thank you for this, I really appreciate it.

By the way, if folks took every single possible use of green bell pepper, and replaced it with Poblanos, they would universally live happier, more fulfilled lives.

the only spot where I would use green bell pepper over poblano would be maybe as part of a gazpacho. In general, Poblano is so superior.

A truer statement has never been made.

I tested this chili recipe today, with some changes as well.

I cooked 1.5 lbs of cubed chuck and .5 lbs of short ribs (with bone). 1/4 lb Niman ranch applewood smoked bacon. No ham.

-I used 1/3rd of each spice.
-1/2 Tbsp of cinnamon
-All the juice from 16oz can of crushed tomatoes + 2-3 of the small tomatoes in the can.
-About 30% of bottle of Kona Moon Coffee Porter
-All of juice and 2 chipotles from 7oz Chipotle in Adobo can
-3 diced dried pasilla aka poblano peppers
-1 large anaheim pepper (diced)
-10-15 drops of sriracha hot sauce- i'm guessing 3/4 Tbsp * be careful*- you can always add this in later to make it spicier.
-1 whole yellow onion **like DoTheMath said that recipe needs higher vegetable/meat mix
-1 shot of wild turkey
-adding the bittersweet chocolate + TINY bit of molasses at the end was very important in smoothing out the spiciness.
-***once the meat was added back into the spice mix it took at least 3.5 hours for the meat to break down to the right consistency. This is especially true if you use short ribs. At about the 3 hour mark I took out the 4 pieces of short rib that still had bone attached , removed the meat from bone with fork, and put the meat back in. Also, used wooden spoon to smoosh the meat throughout the 3hr simmer.
-anything else not mentioned here I just followed his recipe but used proportionally less ingredients/spice based on 2lbs of meat.
- there are no ****ing beans in chili


Also, if anyone is in San Francisco and would like to come to our 8th annual SF Chili Cookoff in Golden Gate Park(Oct 29) PM me. It's an informal chili cookoff of my friends. Usually about 8-9 chilis entered, and people do side dishes as well. There is an annual drunken kickball game, petanque, and general shennanigans with about 50-75 fun peoples.

Beans in chili are a lot more authentic than sriracha sauce - That stuff comes comes from a non-western-hemisphere pepper.

Despite that, the recipe sounds delicious.

interesting, will keep this in mind next time I make chili, which may be this weekend lol.

Not to pick nits, as I agree with you on principle, beans are more authentic than sriracha, but ALL peppers are western hemisphere peppers.

I make a pretty 'friendly' chili...one which is primarily ground beef, water, and milder spices (chili powder being the strongest). It's simply, very tasty, and has almost no heat. My kids generally don't like veggies in their chili, and my wife doesn't like it too spicy. I add sriracha to mine after serving, and the stuff is amazing. I love it it everything, but the flavor/punch combo is IMPOSSIBLE to beat as a bottle add in.

Folks should try Sambal Oelek:



Freaking amazing. Just chili, no sugar, no garlic, no nothin' but chili. Awe inspiring.

NP, I like my nits picked.

I'm aware that all chili peppers grown in the world descend from chilis exported from the Western Hemisphere hundreds of years ago.

What I meant is that sriracha sauce is a Thai condiment, made from chili cultivars that are grown in Thailand, but which have not been, to my knowledge, widely grown in the Americas over the past century.

I have no idea if US-produced "sriracha", which differs in detail from the authentic Thai stuff, uses the Thai cultivars, or whatever was already on hand in America.

Not too surprisingly, different cultivars have different flavours. US-produced "sriracha" tastes different from authentic Thai sriracha too. Therefore it is likely that using sriracha (whether authentic or US), introduces flavors into a chili that are different from what would have been found in what has been a traditonal greater-Mexico dish for hundreds, and probably thousands of years.

Ship the SF Chili Cookoff Grand Champion and Best Presentation imo. Thats the 100% Pewter Grand Champ belt buckle in my hand, tyvm.





Chili de los Muertos

4 lbs chuck steak - 1 inch cubes
1 lb short ribs
1 lb niman ranch applewood smoked bacon
2 1/2 large yellow/sweet onions
2 large anaheim peppers
4-5 medium sized ancho/pasilla peppers
1/2 cup finely chopped garlic
1 7oz can of chipotle in adobo sauce
1 16oz can of crushed marzano tomatoes
6 oz tomato paste
3 shots of wild turkey/bourbon
3 Tbsp Chili Powder
3 Tbsp Cumin
3 Tbsp Smoked Paprika
3 Tbsp Garlic Powder
3 Tbsp Onion Powder
1 Tbsp Cayenne Powder
10 pinches of smoked sea salt** to taste
2-3 squares of bittersweet chocolate***to taste
1/4 cup of molasses**to taste
1.5 Tbsp cinnamon
Good chocolate stout or porter


In a two gallon heavy bottom pot Heat enough oil to coat the bottom, wait till its almost smoking, then add your diced beef. The trick here is to get a nice brown sear, Very hot oil and the meat should never release any liquid, if you have to do the meat in Batches so be it. Once all the meat is golden brown, using a slotted spoon, pull the meat out and let drain. Now, with the heat still rolling, dont try to clean the pan, and dont drain anything from the pan. Add the bacon and begin rendering. Once the bacon is fully cooked, add all the spices and stir constantly until the smell of the spices starts to take your breath away. . Cook for no more than 4 min, be careful not to burn the spices. They do that pretty quick so be careful. Now add all the vegetables except the tomato products. For the pasillas we basically turned them into paste, seeds and all in the food processor. Mix thoroughly to be sure to get all the pockets of spices that could potentially burn. Scrape the bottom of the pan very well. Cook this mixture for about 10-15 min, or until almost mushy, add the tomato paste and let cook for another five min still on high. Now add your chipotles, Tomatoes and the seared beef. YOu can add a tiny bit of beer and the bourbon now to get some liquid. Lower to a slow simmer and cover. Let cook for about 4 hours, check moisture content often. If all this is done correctly, the beef and the tomatoes should release enough juices to make the CHili perfect.
Test the meat, it should fall apart in your mouth, if not keep cooking till it does. Smoosh the short ribs and rest of meat with spatula. Remove short ribs and make sure meat is off bone after about 4 hours.
season to taste with the chocolate, molasses and salt.

* we actually used mexican chocolate, which has cinnamon instead of adding cinnamon powder. So , this is obviously a modified version of that epicurean recipe posted earlier. My old technique and flavor was very similar but I like this version.

damn you guys use a lot of ingredients and make it real complex ...
heres mine and i cheat a little bit ...
1 package of ground pork
1 package of ground chuck
2 packages of hot chili powder mix (yea its prolly bad form but it gets the job done)
1 can of stewed tomatoes
2 can of dark kidney beans
chili powder, chopped onions, chopped garlic, cumin, salt, pepper

brown the meat and just add everything. cook for about an hour or 2. its spicy, hearty, and doesn't require a ton of ingredients and its tasty

+1 here, have used with great success. Serious heat, i usually put 4 oz. into my chili, and it heats it up plenty.

Love the thread, how did some of you guys come up with such complex recipes? Could you actually taste that stuff or did it come from combining recipes you liked?

hell yes bdaddy.

All,

It's chili season again!

bdaddy,

In your recipe, it looks like you've skipped the early steps with the short ribs. (I could be wrong.) Looks like the first time they're mentioned is after the 4 hour cook time. Do you sear them at the beginning (on the bone?)/add them back with the cubed meat, or is there more to it?

Thanks!

Yeah, that was just a typo. All the meat gets seared first and then added at same time. Short ribs get seared on the bone.

Rando chili things I do -

- Brown the meat/veg on a really high heat as colour = flavour
- After browing the meat/veg I add a large glass of red wine and two beef stock cubes to deglaze the pot. Might not be traditional but adds a really nice depth, something I find that beer lacks when adding to a stew
- Add kidney beans ten minutes before the end so they don't burst
- I find bacon adds very little to the overall flavour once the spices etc. have had time to cook in to the dish, so will happily omit this from both a cost and fat content pov
- Using both casserole steak and mince is a winner
- Haven't tried the chocolate but will next time, amd might trade the wine for bourbon
- Cook slowly for a long time, as the water cooks off the flavours intensify

Questions:

- wtf is the tortillia chips in the mix about? Thickener? I would have thought, if you cook for long enough, you can do without them
- What does chocolate bring to the party?

Edit:

Totally agree that it's a question of personal taste!

Anyone have a good green chili recipe?

Superrams, the chocolate really smooths out the spiciness of the chili, and just adds some more complexity to the flavor. The second to last batch I made, when I used a coffee stout even had a little bitterness to it and the chocolate really helped with that.