Authentic Chili Recipes

THE BEST CLASSIC CHILI RECIPE

Steps:

• Add the olive oil to a large soup pot and place it over medium-high heat for two minutes. Add the onion. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Add the ground beef to the pot. Break it apart with a wooden spoon. Cook for 6-7 minutes, until the beef is browned, stirring occasionally.
• Add the chili powder, cumin, sugar, tomato paste, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and optional cayenne. Stir until well combined.
• Add the broth, diced tomatoes (with their juice), drained beans, and tomato sauce. Stir well.
• Bring the liquid to a low boil. Then, reduce the heat (low to medium-low) to gently simmer the chili, uncovered, for 20-25 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Remove the pot from the heat. Let the chili rest for 5-10 minutes before serving.

CLASSIC CHILI

Steps:

• In a Dutch oven or large soup kettle, saute green pepper, onions and celery in oil until tender, about 5 minutes. Add ground beef and cook until browned; drain. Stir in tomatoes, tomato sauce, water, Worcestershire sauce and seasonings. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 1-1/2 hours, stirring occasionally. Add kidney beans. Simmer, uncovered, 10 minutes longer. If desired, serve with tortilla chips.

AUTHENTIC CHILI RECIPE, A.K.A. BOWL OF RED

Steps:

• Cook four slices of bacon in a large stockpot. Remove bacon and mince.
• Add beef to the pot and cook in the bacon drippings until very well browned.
• Add in 3 cloves of garlic, minced, 1 onion, diced, 1 cup of finely ground chile pods (I used guajillo and ancho). Grind pods in a blender or spice grinder until fine. Add 1 tablespoon cumin, 1 tablespoon salt and enough water to cover the beef.
• Return bacon to the pot.
• Simmer for 3 to 4 hours, stirring frequently, until cooked down and thickened.

REAL TEXAS CHILI

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Saute the beef cubes in the oil for 2 minutes. Reduce heat to medium and stir in the garlic.
• In a small bowl, combine the chili powder, cumin and flour. Sprinkle over the meat and stir until evenly coated. Crumble the oregano over the meat and pour in 1 1/2 cans of the broth.
• Add the salt and ground black pepper, stir together well, bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and let simmer, partially covered for about 90 minutes. Pour in remaining broth and simmer 30 minutes more, until meat begins to fall apart. Cool, cover and refrigerate to allow the flavors to blend.

CLASSIC CHILI CON CARNE

Steps:

• For the chile powder: Place the chiles flat in a cast-iron skillet over medium heat and cook, turning as needed, until lightly toasted. Transfer to a plate to cool. Put the cumin seeds in the hot pan and stir until fragrant. Transfer to a bowl to cool.
• Using scissors, cut the chiles into small strips. Using a spice grinder or a clean coffee grinder, grind in batches into a powder. Pour into a bowl. Grind the cumin seeds into a powder and add to the bowl. Add the oregano and garlic powder. If the mixture is still coarse, grind again until fine. Reserve 3 1/2 tablespoons for the chili; save the rest in a jar.
• For the chili: In a Dutch oven over medium heat, stir the cumin seeds until fragrant, about 1 minute. Pour onto a work surface and using a small, heavy skillet, crush them coarsely. Set aside.
• Return the pot to medium-high heat, add the bacon and fry until crisp, 5 to 8 minutes. Transfer to paper towels to drain.
• Increase the heat to high. Working in small batches, add the beef cubes to the pot and cook, stirring, until well browned on all sides. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the beef to a bowl.
• Reduce the heat to medium, add the onions to the remaining bacon drippings and sauté until lightly browned, about 8 minutes.
• Add the crushed cumin, reserved chili powder, paprika, oregano, black pepper, thyme, salt and garlic and cook, stirring often, for 1 minute. Crumble in the bacon and add the broth, tomatoes, 1 cup water, anchos and the browned beef. Increase the heat to high and bring to a boil, then decrease the heat to low, cover partly and simmer for 2 hours, until the meat is very tender. Add water as needed to maintain a good chili consistency.
• Remove the anchos, purée them in a food processor or blender and return the purée to the pot. Stir well, simmer for a few minutes to blend the flavors and serve.

TRUE TEXAS CHILI

Steps:

• 1. Place the chiles in a straight-sided large skillet over medium-low heat and gently toast the chiles until fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Don't let them burn or they'll turn bitter. Place the chiles in a bowl and cover them with very hot water and soak until soft, 15 to 45 minutes, turning once or twice.
• 2. Drain the chiles; split them and remove stems and seeds (a brief rinse helps remove seeds, but don't wash away the flesh). Place the chiles in the bowl of a blender and add the cumin, black pepper, 1 tablespoon salt and 1/4 cup water. Purée the mixture, adding more water as needed (and occasionally scraping down the sides of the blender jar), until a smooth, slightly fluid paste forms (you want to eliminate all but the tiniest bits of skin.) Set the chile paste aside.
• 3. Return skillet to medium-high heat and melt 2 tablespoons of the lard. When it begins to smoke, swirl skillet to coat and add half of the beef. Lightly brown on at least two sides, about 3 minutes per side, reducing the heat if the meat threatens to burn. Transfer to a bowl and repeat with 2 more tablespoons of lard and the remaining beef. Reserve.
• 4. Let the skillet cool slightly, and place it over medium-low heat. Melt the remaining 1 tablespoon of lard in the skillet; add the onion and garlic and cook gently for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the stock, the remaining 2 cups water and gradually whisk in the masa harina to avoid lumps. Stir in the reserved chile paste, scraping the bottom of the skillet with a spatula to loosen any browned bits. Add the reserved beef (and any juices in the bowl) and bring to a simmer over high heat. Reduce heat to maintain the barest possible simmer (just a few bubbles breaking the surface) and cook, stirring occasionally, until the meat is tender but still somewhat firm and 1 1/2 to 2 cups of thickened but still liquid sauce surrounds the cubes of meat, about 2 hours.
• 5. Stir in the brown sugar and vinegar thoroughly and add more salt to taste; gently simmer 10 minutes more. At this point, it may look like there is excess sauce. Turn off the heat and let the chili stand for at least 30 minutes, during which time the meat will absorb about half of the remaining sauce in the skillet, leaving the meat bathed in a thick, somewhat fluid sauce. Stir in additional broth or water if the mixture seems too dry. If the mixture seems a bit loose and wet, allow it to simmer a bit more (sometimes we like to partially crush the cubes of beef with the back of a spoon to let them absorb more sauce). Adjust the balance of flavors with a bit of additional salt, sugar, or vinegar, if you like.
• 6. Reheat gently and serve in individual bowls with a dollop of sour cream on top and a lime wedge on the side.

CLASSIC CHILI

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion and bell pepper and cook, stirring, until softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the tomato paste, chili powder, cumin, coriander and oregano. Cook, stirring, until brick red, 2 minutes.
• Add the beef, 1 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper and continue to cook, stirring, until no longer pink, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the beans, tomatoes, 1 cup water and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bring to a simmer and cook, adjusting the heat as needed and stirring occasionally, until thickened, 35 to 45 minutes. Season with salt.

AUTHENTIC 1840 TEXAS CHILI

Steps:

• Render the fat to liquid.
• Add the beef, and brown lightly, then add onions and garlic.
• (IMPORTANT Do NOT drain the fat or drippings).
• Cook over medium heat, until onions are translucent, then add spices, stirring gently until blended.
• Continue over low heat for at least two hours, stirring every 30 minutes.
• Add salt to taste, though it doesn't need much.
• If it gets too thick, you can add water, but remember that chili is reputed to be able to stand a spoon up straight!
• Its edible after two hours, but improves vastly with time, so don't be afraid to cook 6 or 8 or ten hours --
• After you've tried the "original" recipe as above, you could add one or two jalapeno's, a single tomato and/or green pepper, just to fully appreciate how far this dish has evolved -- .

MEXICAN CHILI

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly golden, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the beef, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, and cook for about 5 minutes. Add the chili powder, cumin, oregano, salt, cayenne and chile paste and stir until the beef is coated with the seasonings. Add the tomatoes with their juices, beans, enchilada sauce and chocolate and stir. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer until thickened, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes.
• Garnish the chili with your desired toppings and serve.

AUTHENTIC CINCINNATI CHILI

Steps:

• Crumble raw meat into cold water in medium stock pot. DO NOT brown meat.
• Add all remaining ingredients and bring to a boil over medium high heat.
• Lower heat and simmer for 3-4 hours.
• Serve over spaghetti with cheddar cheese and onions, on hotdogs with mustard, cheddar cheese and onions, or in a bowl with cheddar cheese, onions and oyster crackers. I put a little hotsauce on mine!