I am getting through this feed for a second time and I have come to a conclusion. The best chili in the world is the one we make at home. The second best chili in the world is the chili made by any of my pit friends! Well, except that tuna and snail slop
Damn fine chili's, and some awfully good looking stews as well ( )
All of my home-made chili had been based on what I learned from a couple I knew way back just after high school. They invited me over for supper and beer one evening. The wife was making "chili" with tortillas as her family made it back in Mexico. What she brought to the table was a pot containing a lot of ground beef, onions, sliced jalapenos, another pepper chopped and I think it was cayenne but not certain. There were spices she used and it had a small-medium amount of juice similar to verde sauce (which she made fresh). It was very good, and probably hotter than the average person would want to eat.
The only sides were the tortillas.
Ice cream was served directly after we finished eating.
Here it comes, day late and a dollar short…
I’ll give the full run down in a couple hours after it’s done simmering and the Mrs gives her stamp of approval so stay tuned to what may very well be a turning point in the evolution of chili!
Ingredients:
1 lb ground venison
3lbs venison cut into fajita strips
4 jalapenos diced
3 sweet noonday onions diced
1 poblano pepper diced
1/4 cup homemade chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
3 cups roasted venison bone stock
1 cup of last night's cowboy coffee
1 limes worth of juice
1 teaspoon kosher salt
6 cloves garlic minced
2 tablespoons bacon grease or lard
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon smoked ghost chili powder
cornbread for serving
toss your venison strips into the smoker to smoke at low temp. While venison is smoking, heat the bacon grease in a black iron Dutch oven and add the ground venison to brown. Next add your onions, then your peppers and salt. Cook down until soft. Add in your chili powders, cumin, and black pepper. Cook until very fragrent. Deglaze with the coffee and venison broth. Add in your lime juice and garlic. Bring up to a boil. While heating to a boil, remove your venison strips from the smoker and dice. Add the venison and stir to combine. Into the oven or pit at 275° uncovered until most of the liquid has reduced down and your chili is thick. Remove cool for 45 minutes while you make your cornbread from scratch and serve.
Attached Files
Last edited by texastweeter; November 14, 2022, 06:30 PM.
Lonestar Grillz 24x36 offset smoker, grill, w/ main chamber charcoal grate and 3 tel-tru thermometers - left, right and center
Yoke Up custom charcoal basket and a Grill Wraps cover.
22.5 copper kettle w/ SnS, DnG, BBQ vortex, gasket and stainless steel hinge kit.
Napoleon gas grill (soon to go bye bye) rotting out.
1 maverick et-733 digital thermometer - black
1 maverick et-733 - gray
1 new standard grilling remote digital thermometer
1 thermoworks thermopen mk4 - red
1 thermoworks thermopop - red
Pre Miala flavor injector
taylor digital scale
TSM meat grinder
chefs choice food slicer
cuisinhart food processor
food saver vacuum sealer
TSM harvest food dehydrator
Now what to do with all this leftover chili.
Aaahhhh.
Chili dog of course. Except I used a couple of brats. Way better than regular dogs.
Oh and that is a foot long hero or hogie roll.
Nebraska no see um cooked on a kettle while it snows chili
This is not exactly from my recipe but based on it as I found my pantry missing some of my ingredients when I came home for lunch and decided to stay. As I was winging it i didn’t bother using a cutting board or knife and other the my freezer brisket this all came from a can or jar. I also didn’t use any measuring devices except a table spoon to get the diced jalapeños out of the jar.
Started with a 1 lb package of pulled fatty brisket that was mixed point and flat and damn fine if I do say so myself. Tossed it into cast and put it on the Weber.
I then added :
A can of chili ready diced tomatoes
A can of diced tomatoes and chilis
Minced dehydrated onion
Granulated Garlic
Cumin
Diced pickled jalapeños
Chili powder
Paprika
Black pepper
Dry mustard
beef broth
couple beef bullion cubes
A1 sauce
BBQ sauce
Jack Daniels
etc…
I put it on the fire and poured the last of the Jack into my favorite cup and set to cooking.
Did I mention the part where it was 29 degrees and snowing at this point?
Simmered it down for a couple hours and gave it a taste…hey Im on to something here!
But it needs…
Yep that fixed it right up!
By this time my bride was home which means it time to eat!
Now here’s a couple of things you all might not know…
In central / southern Illinois where I grew up chili is served in school and always accompanied by peanut butter sandwiches !!!!( I have no Idea where this came from but guess a lunch lady with extra peanut butter that needed used up) They must always be sliced on the diagonal and dipped into the chili.
In Nebraska chili is always served with cinnamon rolls!!! Again no idea where or how but its the deal! You don’t have to dip these but you sure can!
Also served with shredded cheddar in a big bowl!
Oops sorry for the messy table pic but my Mrs got home sooner then I planned and hungrier then expected so it was move the mail and stuff and stuff out of the way, toss the food on the table snap a pic and dig in! ( probably should have edited the photo….)
Well there you have a bowl of chili even you Texans should want to eat!!! Minus the sammich and roll Im guessing but the sweet really goes great with the spicy chili!
Sorry it was late guys and gals, don’t you just hate when life gets in the way of living!!!
Last edited by CHNeal; November 15, 2022, 11:33 AM.
Reason: Edited picture.
Well I was going to wait a day or so to do this to see what the responses were but…
My chili brings up a question about the use of beans in chili.
I know the Texas coalition is expressly against the addition of supplemental fiber and protein to this great American dish.
I also know that a bunch of the rest of our great nation understands that the only reason to withhold the beans is so the final product can be used to cover a hotdog!
Why must we be so divided? Why must we exclude others based an an idea or taste that may not even be their fault but the fault of the mistaken society they were raised in? Why is it important to put the bean in the harsh spot light instead of it coexisting equally with the onion and jalapeños. Can’t we just all get along??????
My Chili is, as I stated, what I believe to be the next evolution to chili. A fundamental change that I believe can bring us all together as one great hot meaty spicy dish eaters!
The question is..If you cant see them are they really there?
I am overwhelmed by the great chilies and photography presented here. I’d dive be into any of these any time, with a couple of possible exceptions. Talking to you Panhead John and (Captain)Mike. (But you redeemed yourselves.)
Correction duly noted and appreciated @panhead John😁.
Last edited by Texas Larry; November 15, 2022, 04:48 PM.
Hahahaha, believe me Larry, the Brussels sprouts were purely for effect and were promptly and appropriately disposed of immediately after the pic was snapped!
Large Big Green Egg, Weber Performer Deluxe, Weber Smokey Joe Silver, Fireboard Drive, 3 DigiQs, lots of Thermapens, and too much other stuff to mention.
As much as she would like to, Mrs Mosca can’t eat chili. I have had chili for dinner Friday, and breakfast and dinner Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. I think I have to give it a rest, what’s left is getting tagged and frozen.
Tagging onto CHNeal 's comment, Chili is a dish predominately seasoned with chilis, as the name implies. Texas style chili is generally made without beans and uses beef as the protein. Even with Texas chili there are subvariants, as we've seen in this thread, that use different proteins (venison or pork), tomatoes or tomato products, varying kinds of peppers and/or spices and various braising liquids (beer, bourbon and (gasp) wine). I was quite pleasantly surprised at how well the White Bean Chicken Chili turned out. Even the most prejudiced chili-head would have to agree it tasted like chili, because it was made with CHILIS. And most would have seconds of it or any other of the concoctions concocted for our little chili party. The point is, if it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, and is cut up and tossed into a pot and simmered in a sauce made from chilis, well then I would say it's duck chili. And if you used a Texas duck and no beans then it's Texas Duck Chili. So take a chill pill chili-heads and chill. Oh, and hold the Brussels sprouts, please, that's just disgusting.
Formerly upstate NY, Now residing in Southern NH, Live Free or Die!
My current cookers include a Shirley Fabrication 24x36 patio model; Weber Performer with the Slow-n-Sear 2.0 & Drip & Griddle; Pit Boss Series 2 propane smoker & SnS Travel Kettle.
Straight Whiskey: I'm a bourbon guy. All time favorite Pappy Van Winkle 12 year. Standard go to Blantons
Blended Whiskey: James Oliver American Whiskey
I also enjoy an occasional cigar
Hey all, I have been away for a bit and got excited when I saw this thread. Did the window close this past weekend, or are entries acceptable through this coming weekend (11/19-11/20)? I'm inspired to make chili in either case, I was just wondering.
After a grueling, and often contentious, 4 hour meeting of The Chili Cook Off Executive Committee, a decision was made to extend the deadline! Fisticuffs were narrowly avoided between several committee members! Police were called to help calm the crowd. No arrests were made, but CaptainMike was issued a desk appearance summons. It was voted on and decided that the cook off will be extended through this Sunday!
CAPTAIN MIKE NARROWLY AVERTS ARREST!
Last edited by Panhead John; November 15, 2022, 09:14 PM.
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