First: I don’t claim this recipe as my own. I rarely make chili from a recipe, but I did this time because there were some steps I was unfamiliar with, and I wanted to take my time and learn some things without screwing up. I usually take a lot of photos while working a recipe, but I didn’t want to be distracted, and anyhow there’s nothing here that is particularly unusual. I’ll post the recipe, then add my notes. The original author is Courtney Bond [edit: who credits Terry Thompson-Anderson], and the recipe is from Texas Monthly, 12/2015 issue.
Ingredients:
12 ancho chiles, stems and seeds removed
7 pasilla chiles, stems and seeds removed
2½ tablespoons cumin seeds, toasted, then ground
1 tablespoon whole coriander seeds, toasted, then ground
1½ tablespoons dried Mexican oregano
2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa
1½ tablespoons sweet Hungarian paprika
½ teaspoon cayenne
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
6 pounds beef chuck roast
⅓ cup fresh leaf lard (preferable) or shortening
2 large onions, chopped
15 garlic cloves, minced
⅔ cup tomato paste
1 can (15 ounces) tomato sauce
3 quarts chicken stock (set aside ⅔ cup for the masa harina)
½ cup masa harina whisked into ⅔ cup hot chicken stock
kosher salt
Directions:
Heat a heavy-bottomed 12- to 14-inch skillet over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, add a layer of the chiles. Cook, turning often, until a strong chile aroma—one that is not bitter or charred—emanates from the pan. Do not allow the chiles to burn. Spread the chiles on a wire rack to cool and become moderately crisp. Repeat until all the chiles have been toasted.
Grind the chiles to a fine powder in an electric spice or coffee grinder. Shake the chile powder through a fine strainer to remove any large pieces.
Combine the ground chiles with the cumin, coriander, oregano, cocoa, paprika, cayenne, and black pepper. Set the mixture aside.
Trim the chuck roast, removing all fat, gristle, and tendons. Chop the meat by hand into ½-inch dice; set aside.
Melt the lard in a heavy-bottomed 8-quart (or larger) Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When the fat is hot, add the meat and sear, stirring often.
Add the onions and garlic. Cook, stirring often, until the onions are wilted and transparent, about 7 minutes.
Add the tomato paste and stir to blend well. Cook, stirring, until the tomato paste is thick and dark in color, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato sauce and chile-spice mixture. Stir to blend well, then add the chicken stock.
Bring the mixture to a full boil, then lower heat to a simmer and cover. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 1½ hours.
Stir in the masa mixture and salt to taste.
Cook, uncovered, an additional 30 to 45 minutes on low-medium heat, or until the chili is thickened and the meat is fork-tender. Stir often to prevent sticking. Taste and adjust seasonings as desired. Serve hot and add your favorite toppings (diced onion, avocado, sour cream, shredded cheese, corn chips, et cetera).
NOTES:
I thought that would be a lot of chiles; it isn’t. Instead of drying and grinding them, I toasted and soaked them, and puréed them in a blender. I then pushed the purée through a strainer to separate any larger pieces of skin left.
I’ve never toasted my cumin and cardamom before. It’s easy, but if you’ve never done it before it can be a little puzzling, because things happen REALLY QUICKLY. Here’s a couple tips. 1) Keep the untoasted seeds next to the pan, to use as a reference for color. Then it’s really easy to see when they’re toasted. 2) If the spices start smoking a little, lift the pan off the heat. 3) Keep it shaking/stirring/moving the whole time. 4) The whole thing takes about a minute at 400°. It’s quick. I don’t have a molcajete or a spice grinder, but I do have a cheap coffee grinder. It worked perfectly.
I checked my Mexican oregano: expired Sept 2018. It tasted okay, but I bought a new one anyhow. The comparison was interesting; the new one was brighter, but the old one was still about 60-70%. I bought new paprika and cayenne, too. My experience with those is that they go flat in about a year, much faster than the leafy herbs.
Chuck roast is easier to 1/2” cube if you lightly freeze it first. Then cube it, and discard the fat from the cubes. That’s easier than trimming those seams etc first. Try it, you’ll see. At the end, after everything was assembled, I felt it was too much broth and not enough substance; I added another couple pounds of cubed chuck roast, total of 8 lbs after trim.
I used Wagyu tallow instead of leaf lard. I felt pretty comfortable with that one.
4 medium-small onions should be about the same as 2 large onions, right? Idk. Probably. That’s what I had.
15 garlic cloves… hehe. That is actually exactly one head of garlic! I had a nice big one, too.
Chicken stock —> Better than Bullion. I was going to use the low sodium one, but there’s almost no difference lol.
I did some stuff like cooking the tomato paste and blooming the spice mixture, but assembly is really straightforward: brown the beef (in batches as to not crowd and steam it), return it all to the pot, add the onions, after 5 minutes add the garlic, add the spices, then add the tomato paste and let everything cook a couple minutes. Then add the tomato sauce and pepper purée, and the chicken broth. Simmer it covered for a while, like 90 minutes, then simmer it uncovered for a while, like another 90 minutes. Then mix the masa with some water and stir it in, and simmer another 15 minutes.
OPTIONAL: While the chili is simmering, make a pot of beans. Because eating beans with chili is fine. And putting beans in your own chili is fine. What you can’t do is put beans in EVERYONE’S chili.
Ingredients:
12 ancho chiles, stems and seeds removed
7 pasilla chiles, stems and seeds removed
2½ tablespoons cumin seeds, toasted, then ground
1 tablespoon whole coriander seeds, toasted, then ground
1½ tablespoons dried Mexican oregano
2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa
1½ tablespoons sweet Hungarian paprika
½ teaspoon cayenne
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
6 pounds beef chuck roast
⅓ cup fresh leaf lard (preferable) or shortening
2 large onions, chopped
15 garlic cloves, minced
⅔ cup tomato paste
1 can (15 ounces) tomato sauce
3 quarts chicken stock (set aside ⅔ cup for the masa harina)
½ cup masa harina whisked into ⅔ cup hot chicken stock
kosher salt
Directions:
Heat a heavy-bottomed 12- to 14-inch skillet over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, add a layer of the chiles. Cook, turning often, until a strong chile aroma—one that is not bitter or charred—emanates from the pan. Do not allow the chiles to burn. Spread the chiles on a wire rack to cool and become moderately crisp. Repeat until all the chiles have been toasted.
Grind the chiles to a fine powder in an electric spice or coffee grinder. Shake the chile powder through a fine strainer to remove any large pieces.
Combine the ground chiles with the cumin, coriander, oregano, cocoa, paprika, cayenne, and black pepper. Set the mixture aside.
Trim the chuck roast, removing all fat, gristle, and tendons. Chop the meat by hand into ½-inch dice; set aside.
Melt the lard in a heavy-bottomed 8-quart (or larger) Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When the fat is hot, add the meat and sear, stirring often.
Add the onions and garlic. Cook, stirring often, until the onions are wilted and transparent, about 7 minutes.
Add the tomato paste and stir to blend well. Cook, stirring, until the tomato paste is thick and dark in color, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato sauce and chile-spice mixture. Stir to blend well, then add the chicken stock.
Bring the mixture to a full boil, then lower heat to a simmer and cover. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 1½ hours.
Stir in the masa mixture and salt to taste.
Cook, uncovered, an additional 30 to 45 minutes on low-medium heat, or until the chili is thickened and the meat is fork-tender. Stir often to prevent sticking. Taste and adjust seasonings as desired. Serve hot and add your favorite toppings (diced onion, avocado, sour cream, shredded cheese, corn chips, et cetera).
NOTES:
I thought that would be a lot of chiles; it isn’t. Instead of drying and grinding them, I toasted and soaked them, and puréed them in a blender. I then pushed the purée through a strainer to separate any larger pieces of skin left.
I’ve never toasted my cumin and cardamom before. It’s easy, but if you’ve never done it before it can be a little puzzling, because things happen REALLY QUICKLY. Here’s a couple tips. 1) Keep the untoasted seeds next to the pan, to use as a reference for color. Then it’s really easy to see when they’re toasted. 2) If the spices start smoking a little, lift the pan off the heat. 3) Keep it shaking/stirring/moving the whole time. 4) The whole thing takes about a minute at 400°. It’s quick. I don’t have a molcajete or a spice grinder, but I do have a cheap coffee grinder. It worked perfectly.
I checked my Mexican oregano: expired Sept 2018. It tasted okay, but I bought a new one anyhow. The comparison was interesting; the new one was brighter, but the old one was still about 60-70%. I bought new paprika and cayenne, too. My experience with those is that they go flat in about a year, much faster than the leafy herbs.
Chuck roast is easier to 1/2” cube if you lightly freeze it first. Then cube it, and discard the fat from the cubes. That’s easier than trimming those seams etc first. Try it, you’ll see. At the end, after everything was assembled, I felt it was too much broth and not enough substance; I added another couple pounds of cubed chuck roast, total of 8 lbs after trim.
I used Wagyu tallow instead of leaf lard. I felt pretty comfortable with that one.
4 medium-small onions should be about the same as 2 large onions, right? Idk. Probably. That’s what I had.
15 garlic cloves… hehe. That is actually exactly one head of garlic! I had a nice big one, too.
Chicken stock —> Better than Bullion. I was going to use the low sodium one, but there’s almost no difference lol.
I did some stuff like cooking the tomato paste and blooming the spice mixture, but assembly is really straightforward: brown the beef (in batches as to not crowd and steam it), return it all to the pot, add the onions, after 5 minutes add the garlic, add the spices, then add the tomato paste and let everything cook a couple minutes. Then add the tomato sauce and pepper purée, and the chicken broth. Simmer it covered for a while, like 90 minutes, then simmer it uncovered for a while, like another 90 minutes. Then mix the masa with some water and stir it in, and simmer another 15 minutes.
OPTIONAL: While the chili is simmering, make a pot of beans. Because eating beans with chili is fine. And putting beans in your own chili is fine. What you can’t do is put beans in EVERYONE’S chili.
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