Current Chili Recipe
Here’s my current chili recipe. This one is going to be awesome when it’s all done. It’s good enough right now that I have a hard time sticking to my plan to make it awesome without the spiciness, then add the spicy in later. The last few times I’ve made it I’ve added in the peppers… Shame on me. It’s just too tasty to resist.
1 can bush kidney beans 1/2 can bush pinto beans 1 lb browned ground beef 1 can hunts diced tomatoes 1.5 tbsp chili powder - I’ve been using McCormick’s 1 tsp Mexican oregano 1 tsp garlic powder 1 red bell pepper, minced 1/2 red onion, minced 4 jalapeños, minced 8 serrano peppers, minced
Mix it all together and cook it for a while on medium heat with a lid on. After it has been going for a while, I drop it to low heat with the lid on. I try to keep things at a slow simmer while preparing other parts, like the browned beef, or all the minced stuff. The first time I made this I didn’t let it cook for even an hour, and everything came out very fresh tasting - the vegetables were very noticeable and colorful. I may go back to that…
I leave all the seeds in all my peppers. I like the seeds… The red bell pepper adds no heat, but color and flavor. The jalapeños don’t add much heat either, mostly a great flavor. The serranos don’t add much flavor, but they are the primary spicy-heat ingredient. Serranos have a great heat that has to develop and the final version of this chili will have more than 8. I’ve been experimenting with habaneros too, though I’m not sure that I got a really spicy variety. Habaneros have an instant, intense heat. I put them in guacamole as a dip, eat it on chips, lick my lips and they go numb.
Recently I haven’t been draining anything before pouring it in (I would drain the beef if I didn’t use the really lean stuff) and the chili has been coming out with a good consistency. When I did drain things it didn’t seem to come out as liquid as most chili, which was okay, but I like this a bit more.
Also, I’m a chili-mac fan, and I recently tried chili-shells. Amazing. This stuff is also good on hotdogs, as a dip or by itself. Chili is versatile.
Comments:
Karl - Apr 3, 2009
Try a yellow onion next time…
Karl - May 4, 2009
I made the chili recipe a few nights ago and had some thoughts. A. The yellow onion is good. Probably great. Is there some way I can add more onion flavor? B. I think simmering affects meat and bean texture. Perhaps I should simmer those all day, but to get the fresh vegetable taste I could add those in at the last second. I probably need a crock pot now.