Ultimate Chili Recipes

THE BEST CHILI

Steps:

• Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a Dutch oven or large pot over medium-high heat. Add the beef and cook, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, until just browned, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a plate with a slotted spoon.
• Reduce the heat to medium and add the remaining 2 tablespoons oil. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and lightly golden, about 10 minutes.
• Add the jalapeno and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
• Add the chili powder, cumin, paprika, cayenne, 1/2 teaspoon salt and the tomato paste. Cook, stirring frequently, until coated and fragrant, about 1 minute.
• Stir in the beef broth and crushed tomatoes and bring to a boil over high heat. Stir in the cooked ground beef and any accumulated liquid, then reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer the chili, partially covered, until the beef is tender and the sauce is slightly thickened, about 30 minutes.
• Stir in the beans and their liquid and simmer uncovered until the beans are softened and the chili is thickened, about 30 minutes more. Season with salt and pepper.
• Top with sour cream, Cheddar and scallions. Serve with tortilla chips.

THE ULTIMATE CHILI

Steps:

• In a large skillet over medium-high heat, cook ground beef until evenly browned. Drain off grease, and season to taste with salt and pepper.
• In a slow cooker, combine the cooked beef, kidney beans, tomatoes, celery, red bell pepper, and red wine vinegar. Season with chili powder, cumin, parsley, basil and Worcestershire sauce. Stir to distribute ingredients evenly.
• Cook on High for 6 hours, or on Low for 8 hours. Pour in the wine during the last 2 hours.

ULTIMATE CHILI

Steps:

• Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat; add onions and garlic, cook 5 minutes, stirring often.
• Add ground beef and cook until no longer pink.
• Add the next 7 ingredients (the seasonings) and cook 4 minutes.
• Add undrained plum tomatoes (crushing with the back of a wooden spoon), and the undrained Rotel tomatoes.
• Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer uncovered for about 1 hour or until thickened, stirring occasionally.
• Add kidney beans and cook an additional 10 minutes.

COOK'S ILLUSTRATED "ULTIMATE CHILI"

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Place Ancho chilies in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat; toast, stirring frequently, until flesh is dry and fragrant, 4-6 minutes, reducing heat if chilies begin to smoke. Transfer to bowl of food processor and cool. Do not wash out skillet. Add arbol chilies, cornmeal, oregano, cumin, cocoa, and1 teaspoon salt to food processor with toasted ancho chilies; process until finely ground, about 2 minutes. With processor running, very slowly add ½ cup broth until smooth, thick paste forms, about 45 seconds, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary. Transfer to small bowl. Place onions in now-empty processor bowl and pulse until roughly chopped, about four 1-second pulses. Add jalapenos and pulse until consistency of chunky salsa, about four 1-second pulses, scraping down bowl as necessary. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion mixture and cook, stirring occasionally, until any exuded moisture has evaporated and vegetables are softened, 7 to 9 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add chili paste, tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar and molasses; stir until chili paste is thoroughly combined. Add remaining 2 cups broth and beans; bring to boil then reduce heat to simmer. Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Pat beef dry with paper towels and sprinkle with 1 tsp salt. Add half of beef and cook until browned on all sides, about 8 minutes. Transfer meat to Dutch oven. Add ½ bottle lager to skillet, scraping bottom of pan to loosen any browned bits, and bring to simmer. Transfer lager to Dutch oven. Repeat with remaining oil, beef, and lager. Once last addition of lager has been added to Dutch oven, stir to combine and return mixture to simmer. Cover pot and transfer to oven. Cook until meat is fully tender, 1 ½ to 2 hours. Let chili stand, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Stir well and season to taste with salt. Serve with desired condiments.

ULTIMATE CHILLI CON CARNE

Steps:

• The day before, cut all the meat into small chunks - this will take at least 30 mins. In a spacious, heavy-based pan, fry the pancetta in the oil over a medium heat until it is crisp and the fat has melted.
• Stir the onions and garlic into the crisping pancetta and cook, stirring often, for 10-15 mins until soft.
• Cut the lemon into quarters lengthways, then remove the pithy core and seeds. Chop into small pieces (each with a bit of peel). Remove the pan from the heat and scoop the contents into a sieve, letting any fat drain back into the pan - and give some encouragement with a wooden spoon.
• Return the pan to the heat and brown the pork in the hot fat, then stir in the beef and brown that too. Add the chilli powder and cumin, and cook over a low heat for 2 mins, stirring constantly. Add the flour and cook for a further 2 mins. Add the bay leaves, 1/2 tsp salt, the lemon, oregano, tomato purée, red wine and stock. Return the onions to the pan. Bring to a simmer, stirring often, then reduce the heat and cook, uncovered, and stirring occasionally to avoid sticking, for 2 hrs until the sauce is thick and the liquid has reduced. Add salt to taste. Cool, cover and chill overnight. Can be frozen at this stage for up to 1 month - defrost overnight in the fridge before continuing with the recipe.
• Add the beans to the chilli and reheat. Serve with rice or couscous, a dollop of soured cream, slices of avocado tossed in lime juice, a splash of chilli sauce, sprinkling of coriander, and lime wedges, if you like.

CHILI (TYLER FLORENCE'S ULTIMATE CHILI)

Steps:

• In a large soup pot, heat the olive oil. Season the beef shoulder all over with salt and pepper, add it to the pot and brown it. As it's browning stir in the chili powder, coriander, cumin, paprika, oregano and cinnamon. Lower the temperature under the meat to "toast" the spices. In a food processor puree the onions, garlic, chipotle peppers, jalapeno, tomato paste and sugar and add it to the pot. Increase the heat to medium to steam vegetables a little and sweeten the peppers. Add enough water to cover by 1 inch, about 1 quart, and add tomatoes with their liquid. Bring to a boil and skim off any foam that rises to the surface. Reduce the heat and simmer until the meat is fork-tender and comes apart with no resistance, about 2 hours. As it cooks down, add more water, if necessary. When done, stir in the masa harina. Take a potato masher and mash the chili so the meat comes apart in shreds. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Garnish each serving with the shredded Cheddar, chives, and sour cream.

AWARD WINNING CHILI

Steps:

• In a medium Dutch oven over medium-high heat add the olive oil. Add the ground meat and cook, breaking up into pieces, until browned. Add the onions, bell pepper and jalapeno and cook until softened. Drain excess grease.
• Add the tomatoes, tomato sauce, cumin, chili powder, salt, cayenne, paprika and 1 cup water. Mix to combine.
• Add the kidney beans and black beans, mix and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook for 1-2 hours.
• Serve with desired toppings.