Thinking about entering a chili contest

[Evo]

It's the annual chili cook off at work, and based on the sorry, pathetic entries last year, someone needs to show these people what real chili is. Real chili is not soupy nor does it contain bell peppers. Bell peppers are not what they're referring to when a chili recipe calls for peppers. Some of the entries were full of sugar. Terms like "disgusting" and "inedible" came to mind as I sampled the entries.

Anyone want to share their chili secrets with me? There is no prize, just an office cook off.

 

[Evo]

And real chili is not made with bottled salsa.

My recipe *does* include a bottle of beer and a "secret ingredient" that I picked up from the mother of an old boyfriend. It really added a great flavor.

I wish I could get my hands on some "hot" paprika for the chili.

 

[hypatia]

2 teaspoons oil
2 onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb lean ground beef
3/4 lb beef sirloin, cubed
1 (14 1/2 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 can dark beer
1 cup strong coffee
2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
2 cans beef broth {get the good stuff}
1 tablespoon cumin
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon salt
2 peppers of your choice
secret addition...{shhhhh}1 tablespoon cocoa powder

brown the meat in the oil, add the onion and garlic, cook together about 10 more minutes..then add the rest of the stuff..cook over low heat for at least 2 hours, until the cubed meat is falling apart tender.

If you want to add beans add them one hour into the cooking..but REAL chili does not have beans. Brooks chili hot beans work well with this mix.

 

[Evo]

2 teaspoons oil
2 onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb lean ground beef
3/4 lb beef sirloin, cubed
1 (14 1/2 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 can dark beer
1 cup strong coffee
2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
2 cans beef broth {get the good stuff}
1 tablespoon cumin
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon salt
2 peppers of your choice
secret addition...{shhhhh}1 tablespoon cocoa powder

brown the meat in the oil, add the onion and garlic, cook together about 10 more minutes..then add the rest of the stuff..cook over low heat for at least 2 hours, until the cubed meat is falling apart tender.

If you want to add beans add them one hour into the cooking..but REAL chili does not have beans. Brooks chili hot beans work well with this mix.

I've got to try this, sounds good!

 

[Moonbear]

Okay, when I make chili, I add bell pepper...just one. I like the flavor it adds. But, yeah, on everything else, shouldn't be watery (that's called soup, not chili), and shouldn't have sugar , and should be HOT!

 

[scorpa]

I always put homemade salsa in my chili, sometimes corn and always lots of chopped garlic. Last time I used buffalo instead of ground beef and it was great!

 

[Evo]

I always put homemade salsa in my chili, sometimes corn and always lots of chopped garlic. Last time I used buffalo instead of ground beef and it was great!

corn and salsa..NOOOOOOOOO

I'm talking traditional chili, no veggies, no fish, no chicken (buffalo is good) no noodles, no tofu or soy products.

You young people don't even know what real chili tastes like.

 

[shmoe]

I like bell peppers in my chilli also, I'd agree not as a 'spice' though.

I have a supply of some kind of small red pepper I've dried (I have no idea what kind, my girlfirend gave me a plant). They make my face burn.

The rest of the ingredients are pretty random, but a few different kinds of beans are mandatory (so is ground beef!). The texture of the beans is always the trickiest part, I don't like them mushy or too firm.

 

[Evo]

It's against the law to put beans in Texas chili. Well, perhaps not illegal, but chili con carne is the "Official Texas State Dish" proclaimed by the 1977 Texas Legislature.

I like beans in chili, but it is considered sacrilage by true chili afficianados.

Bell peppers do not exist in real Texas chili. <sigh> Oh, and no ground beef, cubed beef or chili grind at the least.

 

[scorpa]

corn and salsa..NOOOOOOOOO

I'm talking traditional chili, no veggies, no fish, no chicken (buffalo is good) no noodles, no tofu or soy products.

You young people don't even know what real chili tastes like.

Haha I know what good chili tastes like I just add in everything possible to make it last longer now.

 

[Evo]

Haha I know what good chili tastes like I just add in everything possible to make it last longer now.

The "only" thing acceptable is pouring it over rice.

You guys are killing me.

 

[shmoe]

beans add so nicely to the, uhh, after eating experience though.

 

[scorpa]

OK yeah i will admit I thought chili was supposed to have beans...I have never heard of it not having those.

 

[Evo]

Cooking for the Chili Appreciation Society International was Wick Fowler, legendary chief cook of that organization, which was formed in 1951 by George Haddaway. So profound a lover of chili was Haddaway that he once physically attacked a Houston chef who put Boston baked beans in his chili. The police came and, according to reports, yelled at the chef.

http://www.carrollshelby.com/chili.htm

 

[shmoe]

I hate baked beans, at least those gross things that come in a can. A nice firmish, red kidney bean adds a nice texture. *shrug* I guess I don't know anything about making chili. I only know how to make food I find delicous, I can live with that.

 

[Evo]

A nice firmish, red kidney bean adds a nice texture. *shrug* I guess I don't know anything about making chili.

Even the blasphemers only use pinto beans. EGADS!

Yeah, I like beans in my chili sometimes, but the only beans for that are pinto. Funny, I've been reading all night about what not to put in chili.

The original chili didn't even have tomatoes, but I like a bit of tomato in my chili, but I still hold very true to the simple original recipes. The simpler, the better for chili.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

1) eye of newt
2) wing of bat
776) antenna of fire ant

 

[scorpa]

Ok if chili doesn't have beans, or tomatoes what exactly does it have haha?

 

[zoobyshoe]

It's against the law to put beans in Texas chili. Well, perhaps not illegal, but chili con carne is the "Official Texas State Dish" proclaimed by the 1977 Texas Legislature.

I like beans in chili, but it is considered sacrilage by true chili afficianados.

Bell peppers do not exist in real Texas chili. <sigh> Oh, and no ground beef, cubed beef or chili grind at the least.

I didn't realize any of this, and it looks like I have never had real chili.

 

[Astronuc]

Ok if chili doesn't have beans, or tomatoes what exactly does it have haha?

Meat and spices.

1) eye of newt
2) wing of bat
776) antenna of fire ant

But you forgot 'Thirteen Black Widow Spiders - Pureed', a pinch of stinger of black scorpion, and one large 'Red Tarantula'. Stir vigourously and let simmer. Add rattlesnake venom to taste.

 

[Astronuc]

Anyone want to share their chili secrets with me? There is no prize, just an office cook off.

OK, I'll get serious for a moment. As a former fellow resident of the 'Lone Star' State -

http://www.chili.org/recipes.html

http://www.tpoint.net/~wallen/chili.html

Chili is real serious business.

 

[Moonbear]

I'm starting to think I wouldn't even like real chili if real chili doesn't have beans or tomato in it. What's the point of a chili contest if everyone is going to make it exactly the same way though?

Shmoe, I put kidney beans, and white beans, in mine too. And corn. And tomatoes, and green pepper. A bit of celery, onions, garlic. Of course it needs plenty of ground meat...but I mix it up...beef and pork (I like to use hot Italian sausage meat...already has some spice). Let's see, lots of spices...but NOOOOOOO cocoa! Ewww...that's the icky stuff they make in Cincinnati (they leave out all the hot stuff too...wimps) and it makes me sick to my stomach.

My grandmother used to make some sort of chili for chili dogs that was pretty much nothing but ground meat, some tomato sauce, and spices. I didn't like hot dogs or her icky chili, and having to eat the two together was just cruel.

 

[turbo]

I don't use recipies, but here are some guidelines for killer chili, IMO.

Brown some hamburg, yellow onions, bell peppers and garlic (seasoned with salt and black pepper) in a cast-iron skillet. Don't just simmer the stuff in its juices - drain the juices often (into the chili pot of course) and actually BROWN these ingredients. Carmelization is critical to flavor and it lends a richer, sweeter taste to the chili.

Throw all the browned stuff into a big pot, add tomato products to taste and simmer for hours until thick, stirring occasionally. We use fresh tomatoes in season (canned, out of season), and some tomato paste for thickening and flavor. Always add a big can of red kidney beans for body, protein, and their thickening qualities. Chili is better on the second day, after the beans have had a chance to absorb liquids and flavors overnight in the refrigerator.

You can spice the chili to taste - use your imagination. For "heat", get as many different kinds of peppers into the chili as possible, including cayenne, crushed red pepper, fresh jalapeno, and habanero. They are not all the same, and they will create a complex "burn" that does not have to be really hot to be enjoyable. You can pretty much "wing it" with quantities.

 

[Evo]

I'm starting to think I wouldn't even like real chili if real chili doesn't have beans or tomato in it. What's the point of a chili contest if everyone is going to make it exactly the same way though?

It's the type of chiles and the blend of spices that makes it different.

Shmoe, I put kidney beans, and white beans, in mine too. And corn. And tomatoes, and green pepper. A bit of celery, onions, garlic.

That's beef stew.

 

[tribdog]

the chili cook offs around here are mostly composed of lava on a spoon. painful hotness is a requirement, good flavor is optional.
It's definitely not something you get a big bowl full of for dinner

 

[Evo]

I'm mortified by the lack of knowledge of what chili is.

REAL chili doesn't have beans in it. You non-Texans are destroying chili.

"Beans or No Beans

Beans are the biggest controversy in chili cookery--so big, in fact, that Joe Cooper named his book With or Without Beans. <snip> Nowadays, as we all know, beans are eschewed rather than chewed in competition chilis. In the rules of the Iowa Chili Appreciation Society, a member of CASI, "Anybody who knows beans about chili knows there ain't no beans in chili. The addition of beans, macaroni or other fillers will cause disqualification."

http://www.fiery-foods.com/dave/chiliconcarne5.asp

 

[tribdog]

real chili doesn't have meat either.
chili con carne (chili with meat) implies there is also chili without meat. I know you can buy chili con carne with beans and chili con carne without beans and chili without carne and without beans, but I don't know if you can buy chili without carne but with beans.

 

[turbo]

... but I don't know if you can buy chili without carne but with beans.

Yes, you can. I wouldn't recommend it though. Chili is easy to make. Make a big batch, because it's good by itself, it's good topping or side dish for tacos, and it's a great impromptu dip for tortilla chips or for the baked garlic-flavored flour tortilla wedges.

http://www.hormel.com/brands/brandview3.asp?id=37&catitemid=3

 

[larkspur]

My recipe *does* include a bottle of beer and a "secret ingredient"

I don't think I have ever had real chili by definition. I think beef cooked in beer has excellent flavor. I have also heard of putting chocolate into chili...

 

[Echo 6 Sierra]

Chili cookoff news for y'all.
"http://www.statesman.com/search/content/news/stories/local/09/05/5kelso.html"]

Well, I guess it's OK for Evo to cook some chili. Specially since she's from Texas and all. Aaaaaand she has to be extremely pompous when she presents her dish, as if to show complete disdain for all other entries. Dallas big hair and make up wouldn't hurt either.

 

[Astronuc]

Chili cookoff news for y'all.
http://www.statesman.com/search/content/news/stories/local/09/05/5kelso.html

Well, I guess it's OK for Evo to cook some chili. Specially since she's from Texas and all. Aaaaaand she has to be extremely pompous when she presents her dish, as if to show complete disdain for all other entries. Dallas big hair and make up wouldn't hurt either.

Of course it's OK for Evo to cook Chili. It's in her blood! She's a native born Texan.

I fixed the link too. That's pretty funny.

 

[Moonbear]

That's beef stew.

I'd hate to find out what your beef stew includes. Mine is beef cubes (browned), broth, very little tomato, potato, carrots, celery, bay leaves, garlic, onion, and seasoning. Nothing at all like chili. My chili is pretty similar to what turbo described, except I like a little celery flavor (though, it's okay without when I don't have the celery).

 

[turbo]

My chili is pretty similar to what turbo described, except I like a little celery flavor (though, it's okay without when I don't have the celery).

My chili gets really thick after it sits overnight, and though it tastes great re-warmed, it's also a wonderful cold dip - especially with the aforementioned garlic-flavored baked flour tortilla wedges. It's also a great appetizer when spooned into hollowed out baked potato skins, topped with cheeses and broiled. If I make these for a get-together, they disappear as fast as people can wolf them down. My neices look forward to visiting because they know there'll be great food. Of course, I hope when they say "I love you!" and give me hugs, they're not just trying to get a couple of extra marinaded BBQ-d shrimp.

 

[Echo 6 Sierra]

Of course it's OK for Evo to cook Chili. It's in her blood! She's a native born Texan.

I fixed the link too. That's pretty funny.

Thanks for fixing it. Now if we could only get Evo to change her name to Lerlene, Nadine, or something in the *.ene family.

 

[turbo]

Now here's a guy who at least knows how to start chili (recipe at bottom of the page), but he hasn't yet figured out that if you use small amounts of lots of different types peppers, you get a more complex flavor and a better burn. This is the type of chili that Moonbear and I favor, though. We don' need no steenkin' beanless chili full of broths, boullions and packaged seasonings.

http://www.chilicookoff.com/History/History_Started.asp