Let's all have a seat, crack open a beer, and talk about chili.

Cafe Society
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Because every single one of you will have a different idea of what works, and I want to hear them all.

Next month I’m going to be entering a chili competition. The only real chili recipe I have is from my father-in-law, who uses only 4 ingredients: cheap ground beef, pinto beans, McCormick chili powder, and Snap-e-Tom for the liquid. Obviously, the canned stuff is better that that.

So, I need some decent recipes and more importantly, some good tips. A few thoughts:

  1. I’m a Yankee, which means beans will be expected and must be included. I know the purists out there will get the vapors, but a bean-less chili would likely be laughed out of the contest. So what beans do you use?

  2. I’ve heard of people using Guinness or other dark beer for the liquid, but when pressed nobody can seem to answer why they do that—apparently it doesn’t add much to the flavor. Is it really worth it or just a macho thing?

  3. Thoughts on tomatoes? Folk around here are used to soupy chili, so having big chunks of tomatoes and diced chuck probably won’t go over very well. I’m thinking of using either a chili grind from my local butcher (or hell, maybe a mix of beef and pork… hmmm…) with tomatoes that have been diced small.

  4. Spices. I have chili powder available, the standard McCormick stuff available at every Safeway. What should I do to up my chili game? I’ve heard of adding cumin, chocolate powder, Mexican oregano, paprika, cinnamon… some of these are present in the commercial chili powder but I’m not sure which ones and in what proportions. Should I abandon the commercial chili powder and use individual spices? If so, tell me what works. Whatever I use it has to be available from my local grocery store. I don’t have a Penzey’s or similar local (although if there is something that is absolutely vital for good chili I’m willing to order some online).

  5. Heat. In a perfect world I’d put a big handful of Carolina Reapers and Scotch Bonnets in the blender with enough diced tomatoes to make them damp and blend it until the peppers are mostly puréed and then adding that to the chili (or maybe adding them to the onion as it browns in the pan after the meat). Anyway, since I’m going to be serving this to other people, my standard hot-enough-to-cause-chemical-burns approach probably won’t be appreciated. I’d like to make it hot enough to be noticeable but not so hot that people can’t eat it. So any other heat suggestions are welcome.

I’m hoping to keep this stuff simple. The finished product will have to be kept in a crock pot, which I don’t think makes much of a difference unless I’m using beer—I assume it would have to be simmered in a pot on the stove for a bit to burn off the alcohol.

Anyway, let’s talk chili!

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Pinto beans are the classic, red kidney beans are very nice in chili, and fava beans are unexpected and different and quite nice. I recommend against white navy beans for chili.

Real dried red chili peppers instead of powdered stuff. Get a string from Hatch NM.

Cumin is nice, so is the Mexican oregano, and I recommend Jamaican allspice.

I like your fondness for the hot peppers; I’d use them but dial it back until a randomly chosen test audience has at least 35% who can eat the stuff.

I like Guinness in my Guinness beef stew, but not in my chili.

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  1. Heathen.

1a. Kidney beans. Pinquito if you can find them. Goya makes them both dried and canned.

  1. Beer adds some flavor to the chili, but it’s really just an excuse to “add a little, drink a little.” There isn’t enough alcohol to make a difference one way or the other.

  2. Since you’ve already admitted that you aren’t making chili, but rather a “chili-like substance,” then add crushed tomatoes. If the pieces are too big for your tastes, crush them finer with your hands before adding to the pot.

  3. McCormick? Get a rope.
    4a. At the very least, step up your game to Gebhardt’s. Then go nuts. Garlic, cumin, dried chilis (I like guajillo myself), cumin, Mexican oregano, cumin, onion powder, cumin, Chipotles in adobo, cumin.

  4. Adjust the heat level by adding Aleppo chili flakes or dried chili flakes to the pot in stages if the dried peppers in your spicing aren’t bringing enough heat.

  5. Thicken as necessary by adding finely crushed tortilla chips to the pot. That is the easiest way to get masa in a deliverable form.

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You are in Yankee land, and things like tomatoes and beans are mentioned as eligible, so I can’t even…

Nevertheless, what I have found helps make a good pot of chili are multiple textures and multiple chiles.

I use a variety of dried peppers, including anchos, chipotles, smoked guajillos, arbols, and piquins. Mexican supermarkets are your friends here, although they may not have the smoked guajillos. Piquins and arbols are pretty hot. Be careful.

These are destemmed, opened, and placed on a warm skillet to lightly toast. I also like lightly toasting the whole spices, such as cumin, coriander, and black peppercorns. Be careful not to burn them, but you just want to bring out their scent.

Brown the meat thoroughly. I like using multiple cuts of meat, from a chuck roast, to ground beef, to cubed “stew meat.” I’ve done it with pork shoulder roasts, but I prefer beef. There should be enough fat from the meat to brown everything, but if not, feel free to add some.

Slice your onions longitudinally. The long slices will hold up better during cooking. If you don’t like onion strings, then do it differently. Different people like their onions more or less caramelized, so how long you cook them is up to you.

If I have time, I’ll use some brown stock to deglaze. Otherwise just water. Grind the toasted dry spices in a mortar pestle or a spice grinder. I often combine an onion with the toasted chiles, some garlic, the ground toasted spices, with most of a bottle of dark beer in a blender, and use the resulting paste to pour over the meat and onions. You can also cook up some mushrooms and add them to the blender.

I can’t use salt or carbs because of dietary restrictions, so a lot of additives like soy sauce, Worcestershire, an anchovy, or masa are out for me.

Stir up meat, chiles, onions, taste. Add water to desired consistency—I like mine very thick—and then let cook for awhile. Serve with chopped cilantro and fresh green peppers. Salvadoran cream and corn bread for me too. (I don’t have the restrictions.)

Chili competition chili may have some quirks or required elements that I haven’t listed. Try to talk to someone that’s entered this before, and knows what the judges want. I’ve never entered mine in a competition, but she likes it, and so do our friends, and that’s all that matters.

EDIT: saw silenus’s post and realized I’d forgotten the Mexican oregano. You want some. Also, the quality of the spices you use are going to make a big difference. I like Penzey’s much more than supermarket, but YMMV.

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I had to look that one up, never heard of it around here.

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Lucky bastard.

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1: Ditch the chili powder for making chili (and ditch McCormick’s chili powder for times when you need chili powder, such as in rubs, and choose Spice Islands (inexpensive and in many supermarkets) or Penzey’s (expensive, mail order)). Step Aside, Old Chili Powder: How to Prepare Whole Dried Chilies for the Best Powder and Purée. Store chili powder is mostly ancho chile powder. Mine is distinctive because I mix ancho (usually about 50% of total chiles) with guajillo, pasillo or mulatto, chipotle, and arbol.

2: Trimmed chuck roast is the way to go. Separate it along all the major muscles and trim all excess exterior fat, brown very well on all sides, and cook the large pieces in your chili. When it’s done, pull out those large pieces and shred them with two forks, then mix back into the chili. Bacon or chorizo in smaller quantities also will help with depth of flavor.

3: Check your supermarket for petite diced tomatoes. Recently, we’ve had cans of petite diced tomatoes with hatch chiles. Don’t know if that really added anything, as I used them in chicken tortilla soup and there were lots of flavors going on.

4: Liquid and other ingredients - after testing, Cook’s Illustrated determined beer, molasses, cocoa powder and cornmeal were worthy additions. I substitute masa harina for cornmeal. CI suggests a mild lager.

5: Oven at 300° F over stovetop for simmering.

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Soupy? Like a broth? Can’t help you. I use masa harina and tomato paste to thicken my chili. I use lots of chili powder, and red pepper flake for heat. Canned red beans, diced onions, and canned diced tomatoes. Salt, pepper garlic to taste, and bay leaves. My secret ingredients are minced anchovies and mole paste.

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here’s mine. chili is very forgiving so adding beans should be no problem, just adjust the amount of added liquid to get the desired consistency. Also, I’m always tweaking it. next time I make it I’m going to try different types of peppers, roasting them, and also using beef stock instead of the added tomato juice.

oh, and I strongly suggest getting the spices and spice mixes from a place like Spice House or Penzey’s. They’re so much fresher and millions of times better than the borderline stale stuff on the shelf at the supermarket.

1 large white onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1-3 medium bell peppers, seeded and chopped
3-10 fresh hot peppers, seeded and chopped (your choice, depending on desired heat level)
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
2 pounds beef, lamb, or pork (or mix as desired for 2lb. total) cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 tsp. plus 1/2 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. granulated sugar
1 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 tsp ground dried Mexican oregano
1 tbsp. ground cumin
5 tbsp. chili powder
1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
1 to 1-1/2 cup tomato or vegetable juice
1 tbsp. cornmeal

  1. Combine 1 tsp. salt, black pepper, chili powder, cumin, oregano, and sugar in a small cup; set aside.

  2. Heat oil in dutch oven or large skillet over medium-high heat. Brown meat at least on one side. Work in batches as necessary to prevent overcrowding, and cook off residual water/moisture in the pot between batches.

  3. Remove meat, leaving as much fat in the pot as possible. Return pot to medium high heat and add onion, peppers, and garlic with 1/2 tsp. of salt. Sweat mixture until soft.

  4. Add meat back to pot, stir briefly to distibute. Add the spice/herb mixture and stir briefly. Add tomato sauce, tomato/vegetable juice, and stir well.

  5. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a low simmer and cook, partially covered, for 3-4 hours. Afterward, add cornmeal to thicken and cook another 10-15 minutes.

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Just don’t do what Don Eastep did to win a chili cookoff in Texas in 2003. He asked for samples of everybody’s else’s entries, mixed them together, and won. When he confessed or was found out, people were…less than pleased. An Illustrated Look at the Terlingua Chili Cook-off – Texas Monthly

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That’s one snappy tomato! :stuck_out_tongue:

Last Summer I started a chili thread. My chili contains beef chunks (browned in bacon fat, and the bacon goes into the pot), chiles, onion, and water. It’s good. Based on recommendations in the linked thread, last time I used Gebhardt’s chile powder. I think it came out better than my from-scratch recipe, because the dried chiles have a slightly bitter taste.

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Here’s the recipe for my (in)famous Roadkill Chili. Enjoy!

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I always add corn. Mmmm, I love it! Adds lovely flavour, texture and colour .

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I prefer canned black beans to any other. They have more meaty flavor. Pinto would be my second choice, as I’ve never liked kidney beans. If you want to really up the umami game, add a tablespoon of fish sauce (nam pla) and a couple of packets of plain gelatin powder to the pot. For Penzey’s chili powder, I prefer their Chili 9000, which has a lot of good spicing going on, but very little heat. As mentioned above, use dried peppers (ancho and pasilla work well) that have been rehydrated ( simmer in liquid for about 15 min) and pureed in a blender, along with a couple of canned chipotle peppers. Instead of water, use chicken stock (not beef), or add a bottle of dark beer. Canned tomatoes have a lot of liquid, so you won’t need to add much additional.

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Best advice I ever heard was treat your chili like a beef stew flavored with chili. I am 100% victorious in chili contests (once at work)

  1. I don’t do beans but if I did I might experiment with cannellini beans.
  2. Alcohol releases flavor in the tomatoes. But I don’t use beer I use burbon - half in the chili half on the rocks
  3. Good canned tomatoes whether stewed, diced or crushed (S&W is my goto).
  4. McCormick Chili Powder?! WTF?! I always make mine homemade and any extra gets added to a Kansas City dry rub. Buy cumin seeds, pan roast them and grind them. The only (and I mean ONLY) ingredients that comes out a McCormick spice container is mexican oregano and garlic powder. But to be fair I have never tried Gebhardt’s so maybe I’ll do that next time.
  5. I use three or four different peppers in mine depending on my mood and what is at the store (hard to find good mexican produce section here). I find that when I cook for others 1 or 2 scotch bonnets are enough but for me, I make mine a little hotter then make chili burgers. Perfect.

Basic Recipe
Good stew beef. Chuck roast may not win a professional cook-off but it is great at home
Garlic
Onion
Tomatoes
Beef Broth
Burbon
Masa as a thickener
Various Peppers
Homemade chili powder from
Dried and roasted peppers (be careful or you’ll mace yourself when you open the oven)
Roasted cumin seeds (cumino)
Dried mexican oregano
Garlic powder
Grind until fine and divide into 3 dumps Feel free to add cumino andor oregano to later dumps depending on flafor development/

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Smoke your meats heavily, That adds a whole new level of flavor.

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I always start with Wick Fowler’s 2-Alarm Chili kit, ground chuck and red kidney beans. Add half a can beer to the pot and half to the cook. :wink:

Wonderful chili

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I don’t use dark beer when I make chili. I use whatever malty blond beer is handy. I mix some of this with masa flour to thicken the chili.

I saute the vegetables (onion, green bell pepper, fresh garlic, sometimes chopped celery) in corn or olive oil.

I boil the beans with chunks of salt pork before they’re added to the chili. Sometimes I fry the pork beforehand, making it crunchy.

My favorite store-bought chili powder is Carroll Shelby’s. Since this isn’t always available where I live, I make my own blend (paprika, oregano, basil, dried garlic, cayenne, lots of cumin) which is indistinguishable.

If I’m making chili without beans, I cook some pintos separately to serve on the side. I put in chunks of salt pork and chorizo, chopped onion, and red pepper flakes. Before serving, I stir in some mild white cheese (usually a blend of Gouda and Edam) to make a thick sauce.

Usually I use a good quality medium-fat ground beef. But I’ve used other kinds of meat as well: pork, lamb, venison, stewing beef.

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I feel the same way about the beans, and I also use a Penzey’s chili powder. For liquid I use beef broth and Cabernet - adds flavor and a nice rich color. Sriracha is great for bringing both heat and extra flavor.

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One of my professors used to say that the four essential ingredients for good chili were too much garlic, too much onions, too much peppers, and too much cumin.

I would never use chili powder in chili. You’re going to be adding peppers anyway; just find some peppers that have the amount of spice you like, for how many you’re going to be adding. For me, that’s about 15 jalapenos for a big pot (8-10 servings), but of course preferences will vary.

Aside from the peppers and the cumin, basil and oregano can go well. Actually, they both go well with pretty much anything containing tomatoes. I also like some cinnamon. I’ve heard that cocoa powder is also good, and I usually add some, but to be honest, I’m not sure if it actually does anything or not.

Bacon makes everything better, but of course you know that already. I also like to replace some of the ground beef with sausage. Between them, my chili generally ends up being more deadpig than deadcow.

I like using a variety of beans. My usual is equal parts kidney, garbanzo, and green.

A small can of crushed black olives can also add an interesting zing.