Recipe Needed for Chili Cook-Off (1 Viewer)

[Brook K]

My daughter's school is having a chili cook-off on April 21st. The only chili I've ever cooked has come from a can, but I'd like to participate. Anyone out there in HTFland have a killer hot/spicy recipe?

I'll share any cash or fabulous prizes earned.

 

[Greg_R]

Is this for kids to eat? Do you want 'real' chili (no beans) or does it not really matter?

If ultra-hot is your only concern then go buy a bottle of Dave's Insanity hot sauce and dump a tablespoon in... that will clean out the ol' digestive tract...

 

[MarkHastings]

Yeah, I was gonna suggest my Beer Chili, but that might be a bad choice for kids.

 

[Kevin M]

Try 13 BEAN CHILI:

brown two lbs of hamburger with 1 or 2 large onions and a large bell pepper (or several of different colors for appearance) and a tomato until well browned
and add 1 can each of
ro-tel chili fixens
great northern beans
navy beans
pinto beans
black eyed peas
kidney beans
red beans
black beans
chili beans
garbanzo beans
butter beans
(and any other bean you can think of)
3 cans of red kidney beans
then add chili seasoning of your choice (I make my own seasoning but there are quite a few good pre-made ones)
add enough water to cover beans and everything else to 1 inch above and boil until it thickens, then add some corn flour for extra thickness and boil for another 20 min. Adjust water levels for desired consistency.

 

[Greg.K]

Wow, that's a lot of beans.

 

[GuruAskew]

You should make Mr. and Mrs. Tenorman Chili.

 

[JeremyErwin]

my favorite chili involves beer, so... (for some godawful reason, I've taken to making it with guinness)

 

[Alex-C]

My wife "discovered" this one from allrecipes.com and several people including myself have said its delicious, and I am not a big chili guy, but this one is perfect for me.
I told her, this is the only chili I would like for the rest of my life. We make it in the crock pot:

INGREDIENTS:
2 pounds lean ground beef
1 (46 fluid ounce) can tomato juice
1 (29 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15 ounce) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon white sugar
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/4 cup chili powder

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DIRECTIONS:
Place ground beef in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until evenly brown. Drain, and crumble.
In a large pot over high heat combine the ground beef, tomato juice, tomato sauce, kidney beans, pinto beans, onions, bell pepper, cayenne pepper, sugar, oregano, ground black pepper, salt, cumin and chili powder. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Simmer for 1 1/2 hours. (Note: If using a slow cooker, set on low, add ingredients and cook for 8 to 10 hours.)

 

[JeremyErwin]

wimps

 

[Lew Crippen]

While I will eat a chili that contains beans, real chili should have beans served on the side.

I prefer a chili made with cubed, not ground meat. I also like a combination of peppers, some for flavor (perhaps anchos) and some for heat.

I think that I may have posted this recipe before, but it has been my favorite for over 35 years (I found the technique in a cookbook somewhere in the distant past and have changed it over the years). This is a basic Texas Red recipe:

1.De-seed and crumble a dozen anchos (these are dried poblanos, if you are not familiar) and 15–20 dried hot, red chilies (arbols are particularly good). You can use other combinations, but personally I stay away from chipoltes (I don’t like the smoky-sweet flavor in chili) and even though habañeros are all the current rage, I find their flavor not correct for chili.
2.Soak in 1 ½ quarts of water for an hour (begin by pouring boiling water over the crumbled chilies, cover and move on to other prep work)
3.Cube about 5 lbs. of chuck and cook in a casserole or stock pot until the meat has lost its red color. Don’t use high heat (medium is best), as you don’t want to really brown the meat, just firm it up. If you are health conscious, you can cook in a neutral unsaturated or mono-saturated vegetable oil. Lard gives a lot of flavor, but perhaps is not quite a perfect marriage with beef. More work, but better is to render beef suet and use that as your cooking fat. Neither of the last two will work if you have heart problems.
4.Strain the chili water, making sure that you keep all of the water (very important). Set the chilies aside. Add about a quart of the chili-infused water (or a little less) to the pot and bring to a boil. Toss in a couple of bay leaves and reduce the heat so the chili just simmers. Partially cover and stir frequently for at least an hour.
5.Now toast a couple of tablespoons of cumin seeds (you can do this in an oven or in a small frying pan on the stove (no grease). This is the beginning of making your own chili powder (except it won’t be dry).
6.Here you really need a food processor—or you can use a blender in several batches. Put in the cumin, a head of garlic (in individual, peeled cloves), 2 ½ tablespoons of dried oregano, 5–6 tablespoons of paprika (try to find Hungarian and use the hot variety if you can find more than one type—there is a big difference), a tablespoon or so of dried basil, a couple of tablespoons of sugar and salt (correct to taste later) and blend together.
7.Add the chilies and the rest of the water they soaked in and blend until this is a paste.
8.Add this mixture to the pot and simmer at least another 30 minutes.
9.Taste and correct seasoning (especially the salt).
10.If not hot enough, add ground cayenne to taste (I usually add about a tablespoon)

I server this with Fritos, grated cheese, chopped white onions, rice and beans (pinto). Everyone can top their chili with the cheese and onion if they desire. I pretend not to see anyone who adds their Fritos directly to the chili (the same with the beans).

The beans and rice help moderate the chili.

Serve with plenty of beer (ones that are light in body and not particularly hoppy are best) and iced tea.

 

[Lew Crippen]

I should also mention that none of the above is sacred (except not putting beans directly in the chili while cooking), and you can use different combinations of chilies and different ingredients for your chili powder (well, paste actually). Also, different proportions.

Plus you can use ground beef instead of cubed chuck, but try to use a good quality meat, not cheap hamburger. Personally I think that the cubed meat picks up the flavor of the chili much better than does ground, but each to his own.

 

[Lew Crippen]

One more addition, after the chili is finished, if it is too thin, add something to thicken the liquid. A good choice for chili is yellow corn meal.

Bring the mixture to a boil and pour in 1–3 tablespoons in a thin stream, stirring all the while until thickened. Don’t be too impatient for the chili to thicken, or you will add too much cornmeal.

 

[Brook K]

Wow, thanks everyone. Looks like I have some shopping to do.

 

[MarkHastings]

Hmmmm, I never thought about that. But I like the ground meat because I like how the chili blends together that way, rather than a kind of stew, with meat chunks and sauce. Definitely 'to each his own'.

 

[Lew Crippen]

True, although if you use my suggestion of cooking in rendered beef suet—well

My wife perfers ground meat and she also likes other ingredients (tomatoes, onions, etc. in chili.

I’m the purist.

 

[BryanZ]

One of the best recipes I've ever run across for chili. Very tasteful. In a contest at her work, this one won second prize.

LC - Chili

2lbs. Chuck steak cubed

1lbs of ground beef
2 - 14.5 oz cans stewed tomatoes
1 - 6 oz can Tomato Paste
3 chilies – seeded, charred & diced
1 lg. onion (chopped)
2 cloves garlic (minced)
3 Tbsp. chili powder

Dash of Cumin
1 C. water
5 Packets of Splenda
1 C. Medium or Hot Salsa (I used a combination of med & hot)
1/2 C. Parmesan Cheese

In large pot – brown the ground beef & steak, onion, and minced garlic. (drain some of the fat after cooking if too much in pot). Add chili powder, diced green chili's and with hamburger as it is browning. In in the mean time put stewed tomatoes, tomato paste, splenda into food processor to chop up the tomatoes more. After this is chopped up and meat is done, add the tomato mixture with the meats. Then add salsa & water and bring to a boil. Add parmesan cheese and reduce heat, stir cheese in well. Simmer on low heat atleast 30 min, or up to 2 hours or put in crockpot to cook for 4-5 hours on low. (The longer you leave it on the low heat, the more tender your meat will become). Serve with shredded cheese (your choice) and or sour cream (optional).

 

[Marshall Alsup]

Hey guys, I love chili without beans. When you say "cubed," how big of cubes are we talking?

Thanks,
Marshall

 

[Lew Crippen]

1/2"

 

[Dennis Nicholls]

Then there's always hunter's camp chili. It requires a recently-shot deer, field dressed. http://www.idahostatesman.com/apps/p.../41004010/1136 You could substitute newly cooked beans and fresh tomatoes with more elaborate spices when cooking at home.

The frugal gourmet published this recipie:


I use this as a starting point, making changes as the seasons progress. I generally use chili as a way to use up leftover cooked meat at the end of the week, so often my chili includes chicken, pork, and beef in varying quantities. During the winter, I use Trader Joe's frozen green/yellow/red chopped bell peppers. You won't need any salt if you use the Worchestershire sauce. When I'm lazy I used canned kidney beans.

 

[Brook K]

The cook-off got pushed back a week due to weather so it's tomorrow. I've got my ingredients and will be cooking in a couple of hours. I decided to go with BryanZ's recipe but will be adding beans and not using so much meat as my wife and I are firmly in the "it's not chili if it doesn't have beans" camp.