Gonna be cold around these parts so I plan on making some chili. I am thinking a white chicken chili but before I start I want to get some ideas.
Pretty sure there have been several chili threads so links will help as well.
What ya got? All secrets welcome I won’t tell:D
There have been endless threads. Things sometimes disintegrate into carping at each other about things like beans and tomatoes and what’s “real” chili and what’s not. Good luck.
Funny
Never fuck with a man’s woman, taste in beers or scotch, BBQ or chili LOL
I should have known better:smack:
Lately I’ve been making a bowl of red, as I liked getting it at Tito’s Tacos when I lived in L.A. I’m still practicing. Someone in another thread suggested I purée the chiles in a blender, rather than try to ‘powder’ them. I’ll try that next time.
One of my favorite things to do in the winter is throw on my parka, brush the snow off the grill and make a variation of the following:
I use Ancho Chili powder, I usually just use two pounds of sirloin instead of the pork (my wife has a weird thing about “mixing” meats), and use at least two Jalapenos.
Well that sounds pretty damn good!
Wonder how the chili would turn out on a smoker?
Yeah, I like a mix of anchos and guajillos, at the least, for my chili. Anchos give a nice deep, earthy flavor, without being too spicy. Guajillos add another type of fruitiness to it with a bit more of a kick. (I think of anchos as being a bit pruny-raisin-y, and guajillos a bit more berry-like, but with some tannic astringency, too, if that makes any sense.) On top of that, if I want some more kick, arbols, piquins or cayennes for that sharp spice kick, and perhaps chipotle or morita for smokiness. Also, I like just plain ol’ Hungarian paprika in the base, as well, to add flavor, color, and red pepper sweetness to it without heat. Beyond that, cumin and oregano are essential, as well. I go back and forth between regular oregano and Mexican oregano (which is a different plant than Mediterranean oregano and has a different, more citrus-like flavor.) Then garlic and onions.
Or, if I’m lazy, just straight-up Gebhardt’s chili powder + cumin.
My preferences and approaches change a lot, but these days, I actually just like the approach of all dried chiles, no fresh chiles, to give it a deep, earthy taste. But feel free to use fresh chiles and fry them up with your onions or whatnot. I like to bloom my chili powder in the oil for about half a minute to a minute for the flavors to marry with the oil. I add this usually after frying up my onions & meat before adding tomatoes (if using) or beans (once again, if using.) I think it makes a good bit of difference to bloom the spices.
But chili is a wide open canvas to modify to your heart’s content. If you want ideas for “secret ingredients,” chocolate, cloves, coffee, cinnamon, are all fairly well-known not-so-secret ingredients. Or using a lager or stout (something not hoppy) as a liquid base–that’s pretty standard. You can use masa for thickening and adding a corn flavor, as well, or some people even add crushed tortilla chips or even Fritos. Just have fun with it. I also like to do mine all-beef, but with a combination of ground chuck and hand-cut boneless short ribs or chuck that’s been cubed into about 1/2-1 inch dice for textural variation. If using beans, I actually prefer navy beans, pinto beans, or something of that nature vs. kidney beans.
Our version of chicken chili uses chopped green chilies for a little heat.
PS, I used to be pretty creative. Made some Shark Chili once. 
Tastes sorta like pork, right??
It was edible…
<cracks knuckles>
<watches everybody smack their foreheads in a “Here we go again” manner>
<remembers that his students won a couple of major trophies at Stanford yesterday>
Go nuts. Just remember that you can never have too many chilis, too much cumin, or enough beer. Everybody has their own set of wrong opinions about chili. Sheldon Cooper speaks rightly.
OK, I’m in. This White Chicken Chili has always been successful for me.
Ingredients
• 1 whole Fryer Chicken, Cut Up (or 3 Cups Cooked Chicken)
• 1 whole Medium Onion, Diced
• 4 cloves Garlic, Minced
• 2 whole 4oz Cans roasted Green Chilies, Chopped
• 1 pound Dried Great Northern Beans, Rinsed
• 8 cups Chicken Broth (4 if you use the Fartless beans from below)
• 1 whole Jalapeno, Sliced (skip or reduce for wussies)
• 1-½ Tablespoon Ground Cumin
• ½ teaspoons Paprika
• ½ teaspoons Cayenne Pepper
• Salt To Taste
• White Pepper, To Taste
• 1 cup Whole Milk
• 2 Tablespoons Masa (corn Flour) OR Cornmeal
• Grated Monterey Jack, To Taste
• Sour Cream For Garnish
• Cilantro For Garnish
• Guacamole (optional)
• Pico De Gallo (optional)
• Corn Tortillas (warmed)
Preparation Instructions
Cover chicken and cook for 20 to 30 minutes or until done (or buy a Costco chicken).
Remove meat from bones and set aside.
In a dutch oven over medium-high heat, saute onions and garlic for 2 minutes.
Add chopped green chilies, then rinsed beans.
Pour chicken broth into the pan. Add sliced jalapenos.
Season with salt, pepper, and cumin.
Place lid on pot and reduce heat to low.
Cook for 2 hours (45-60 minutes with fartless beans) - until beans are done.
Halfway through the cooking process, add 3 cups of cooked chicken.
When beans are tender, mix milk with masa (or cornmeal) and pour into the chili.
Cook for an additional ten minutes to thicken.
Check seasoning and adjust, adding cayenne pepper and paprika if desired.
Add some Monterey Jack cheese to the pot and stir to melt.
Serve chili in a bowl. Garnish with cilantro, sour cream, extra cheese—
even pico de gallo and guacamole, if you have some on hand.
Roll up warm corn tortillas and serve on the side of the bowl.
Fartless Beans
• Bring water that is three times the volume of the dry beans to a boil (roughly 6 cups per pound of beans)
• Don’t forget that the beans will expand, so use a large enough pot!
• Add beans and continue boil for 2 minutes then let stand for 1 hour and then drain.
I’ve never smoked veggies, but I’m sure smoking the meat would be wonderful.
Smoke the meat, grill the veggies and I think you would have a winner. As others have said any chili “recipe” is just a starting point.
Amazing Ribs has a pretty good smoker chili recipe
I’m partial to this recipe, which I’ve been making for years. I’ll occasionally swap out the ground beef and sausage for chunks of chuck.
I’ve done this before, and it’s a nice change of pace with the extra smoky flavor. Also nice is mesquite grilling some chuck steak or beef short ribs until you get a nice crust, and chopping it down into 1/2 inch dice to add to your chili and cook for a couple more hours. Chili is just fun. 
Some of my less purist chilis have gone off the rails adding stuff like garam masala or one of the various Patak’s curry pastes into the mix to great, though a little off-the-beaten-path, results.