Spending tomorrow making chili. Hit me up with your best recipe!

[TheCthultist]

So this week I'm basically just making two meals: a single massive pot of chili and, once that's gone, a single massive pot of stew.

Thing is, I've been using the same boring ass recipe for beef-based chili con carne for years now. I'd like to branch out a bit and try some other variations that people enjoy. So what are some takes on chili that you like and how can I liven up what has always been a pretty basic comfort food for me?

Going to hit up local grocery stores and such for ingredients first thing in the morning, then just spend the rest of the day putting it all together.

 

[siteseer]

i've made this chili a few times, it's pretty good. i double the chipotle though and add a tbsp or two of chili flakes. oh yeah and a few dashes or so of worchestershire sauce and if i have beef stock i use that instead of the water.

 

[Godfather]

Try shredded beef or short rib instead of ground beef if you've never done those. I like to use a lot of red and green bell peppers as well, for variety. I never use beans. I JUST made a pot tonight for dinner tomorrow.

white chicken chili can be really good too, but I've never been able to make a really good batch myself. Always seems lacking.

 

[Tbro777]

I just make basic chili from a seasoning packet. Cook the ground beef add seasoning packet add diced tomatoes, beans. Let it simmer and done. Throw some shredded cheddar, sour cream maybe some Fritos. There's probably a lot of good recipes out there but I don't want to be cooking all day long lol

 

[Godfather]

Here's the one I made tonight.

Ingredients were:
3lb ground beef
2 cans diced tomatoes
Can of diced green chiles(sometimes rotel)
1 red bell pepper
1 green bell pepper
1/2 to 1 tbsp cumin
4tbspn chili powder(more if you want spicier)
Garlic
Salt and pepper
Tomato paste(use this to thicken it as needed)
Sliced hot jalapeños and maybe 1/4 cup of the juice from the jar as well.
Add some water for consistency.

this all goes in an insta-pot for about an hour.

I usually add more spice after I taste it the first time. This is mildly spicy so my white bread friends can eat it. I add more spice when it's just for me and the wife.

 

[Skel1ingt0n]

My sweet heat bbq chili recipe, which is just what I've done over time as I slowly make adjustments over probably 100 pots over 20 years or so:

Smoke some brisket, but pull it out at about 50% done. A 5lbs small brisket is about a 7.5hr cook at 200 degrees, typically (or thereabouts). I pull it out at about 4 hours. Use that as my meat. Drop it in the crock pot.

Spicy V8 juice
Fresh corn off the cob
Diced onions + Diced green peppers + red peppers (about 3 parts onion for 1 part peppers)
A sweet + spicy BBQ sauce - not a lot, but enough to give it that flavor

I usually put it in the pot before bed about 11pm, and I serve it for dinner the next day.

... once it's about 3 hours from serving, I drop in some pepper, salt, onion powder, chili powder, garlic, cayenne, and cumin to taste. Mix it around real good. Break up the brisket.

Serve with vinegar based slaw and a sharp cheddar, plus cornbread.

I've won a few very, very lame/unofficial neighborhood and community chili contests. Not gonna claim it's amazing, but my family likes it and I've had people over during winter and usually get some compliments. It's nothing fancy, but it's cheap and different from the typical "spicy beef" chili I think a lot of people are used to (and that I also make).

 

[TheCthultist]

i've made this chili a few times, it's pretty good. i double the chipotle though and add a tbsp or two of chili flakes.

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Looks fantastic, but yeah I think I'll definitely be adding some extra chipotle if I wind up going this route.

Try shredded beef or short rib instead of ground beef if you've never done those. I like to use a lot of red and green bell peppers as well, for variety. I never use beans. I JUST made a pot tonight for dinner tomorrow.

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Oh damn, short rib sounds amazing and I think I will definitely try incorporating that into whatever this winds up being. Thanks! Not one I would have thought of using.

 

[carlsojo]

One packet McCormick chili spice mix
Two cans kidney beans
Two cans Rotel
One can tomato sauce
Two lbs beef or turkey

Cook beef and or turkey in slow cooker

Put everything in crockpot

Make hot

Done

 

[echoshifting]

Buying a good chili powder makes a big difference. I use Morton and Bassett these days and it really upped my game.

I usually toss in some worcestershire, it's good in chili.

Someone mentioned bell peppers, those are good but be careful not to overcook them. They only need a flash in the pan before going into a chili that is going to be on the stove for hours. I recently diced and prepared bacon and stuck the onion and peppers in there before adding the whole mix to the chili. That was a good decision.

I also recommend beer. I added a bottle of Alaska Amber Ale to a chili I made last week and it made it just stupid good. It was a huge hit. I keep thinking about it haha

I think I enjoy making chili than anything else, it's fun to experiment with and hard to mess up too badly

edit: one other tip I picked up recently, if you end up with too much heat for your table, you can rein it in by adding a little sugar when you check on it until you get it where you want it

 

[meph]

This is heresy to people from Texas but I prefer making it with half beef, half pork instead of all beef. Using different grounds together improves the texture so much more than one homogeneous pot.

 

[Vashetti]

Grate up two carrots, and dice some spring onions, add both once you've actually got the sauce together.

 

[Cocolina]

The best sauces are baked, so put that stuff in the oven not just on the hob.

 

[Briar36]

Cin-Chili

TICC 1992 & 1993

Step 1
2 lbs - beef chuck tender cut into 3/8" cubes
1 tsp - cooking oil
1 tbsp - dark chili powder
2 tsp - granulated garlic

In a three quart heavy saucepan, add the above ingredients while browning the meat.

Step 2
1 - 8 oz can of tomato sauce
1 - 14-1/2 oz can of beef broth
1 tsp - chicken bouillon granules
1 tsp - jalapeno powder
1 tbsp - onion powder
2 tsp - garlic powder
1/2 tsp - red pepper
1 tsp - white pepper
16 oz - spring water
1 tbsp - dark chili powder
2 - serrano peppers
1/2 tsp - salt

Combine seasonings and add to beef mixture. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 1-1/2 hours. Float 2 serrano peppers.

Step 3
1 tbsp - paprika
1 pkg - Sazon seasoning (msg)
1 tsp - onion powder
1 tsp - garlic powder
1/2 tsp - white pepper
5 tbsp - medium and dark chili powders

Combine seasonings and add to beef mixture. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. You may add water or beef broth for consistency. Remove serrano peppers when they become soft.

Step 4
2 tsp - cumin
1/8 tsp - salt

Add above ingredients and simmer for 10 minutes.

Never personally made it, but have eaten it, and it's incredible.

Whatever you do, for the love of God, do not put beans in it.

 

[astro]

Forget the beef.

Use beans instead: kidney beans black beans, butter beans.

 

[rashbeep]

long cooking time, but it's the best I've ever had

 

[TheCthultist]

long cooking time, but it's the best I've ever had

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Venison is one i have never thought to use. Absolutely love deer meat in stews and stuff like that, so it makes perfect sense. Might have to look into getting some today…

 

[BLEEN]

Trick is to use dried peppers.

guajillo chiles, ancho chiles, New Mexico chile, etc.

You'll pretty much destroy anyone else on the block using those.

 

[Deleted member 6263]

i've made this chili a few times, it's pretty good. i double the chipotle though and add a tbsp or two of chili flakes.

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dang that was a good recipe, thanks for sharing.

 

[LordValhalla]

I add bacon and red wine to mine.
Fight me.

 

[nullref]

I've made some elaborate chilis with a lot of ingredients (beer, coffee, chocolate, etc.), but I've been simplifying somewhat over time. I like the style with stewed chunks of beef in a sauce based on a blend of whole dried chiles, personally. Basically this, which has good tips on how to treat the meat and chiles:

Original Texas Chili Con Carne Recipe

A blend of chilies and spices provide this classic Texas chili con carne with maximum depth of flavor.

www.seriouseats.com

I may simplify further by using water instead of chicken stock or leaving out a couple of the less essential seasonings, depending on what I have in the house—I'd say mostly only the cumin and oregano are essential. I may add a tbsp or so of tomato paste during the spice saute stage, but I don't want this preparation to be tomato-forward at all.

 

[siteseer]

dang that was a good recipe, thanks for sharing.

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yeah my favorite part is that it makes so much powder mix, there are some recipes out there that doesn't come close and i wonder if they're even chili at all*.

* i've been a pepin fan for years but that is the sorriest chili i've seen in a while, sorry jacques.

 

[thecouncil]

Mine has
ground beef, chorizo sausage, bacon;
black beans, kidney beans,
chopped green pepper & onion

Maybe that's it outside of crushed tomatoes and spices.

haven't had it in a long while but it's delicious.

 

[silentg]

Whack in some Worcester Sauce!

 

[Funky_Monkey]

3 lb Pork loin or London broil (diced in to 1cm (1/2 inch) chunks)

brown off meat slightly (don't over cook) in pan using olive oil and remove from pan
Cool onions, peppers and garlic (I cheat and use two packets of frozen onions and peppers) until soft
Add cumin, chili powder, paprika and brown sugar to cooked vegetables. Should make a nice paste like texture.
Re introduce meat to cooked onions and peppers and mix in.
Add 1 cup of bourbon, 1 cup of coffee and good helping of honey and mix in.
Add one large can of crushed tomatoes.
Add six cans of washed beans (I use 2 red kidney, 2 white kidney and 2 black bean)
Stir everything in and slowly simmer.

add further cumin, chili and paprika to get your particular flavour.

 

[8bit]

Half a bottle of chocolate stout for the pot, half for you.

 

[brotherbean]

Hot take and maybe somewhat controversial, but whatever your recipe I'd avoid using expensive cuts of meat. People love throwing expensive brisket and various steak cuts into chili, and in my opinion it's a total waste. Whatever meat you simmer in something as heavily spiced as most pots of chili is probably just going to taste like whatever you spiced it with. Keep it simple with some ground beef/pork/chicken (or all 3 if you want) and focus on the spices. Again, hot take and I don't mean to yuck anyone's yum, but as someone who's been disappointed with a complicated and expensive pot of chili versus a super simple and relatively cheap recipe, I'd lean simple.

Side note: I've never added chorizo as mentioned above but that sounds incredible and I think it'd stand up to the rest of the pot rather well.

 

[Deleted member 4346]

I use this recipe as my base:

Simple, Perfect Chili

Get Simple, Perfect Chili Recipe from Food Network

www.foodnetwork.com

But I double it, triple the chili powder, and I add to it- onions, diced tomatoes, bell peppers, Jalapenos, chipotle pepper. For meat I usually substitute turkey or ground pork or chorizo (or some mix of the three).

Hot take and maybe somewhat controversial, but whatever your recipe I'd avoid using expensive cuts of meat. People love throwing expensive brisket and various steak cuts into chili, and in my opinion it's a total waste. Whatever meat you simmer in something as heavily spiced as most pots of chili is probably just going to taste like whatever you spiced it with. Keep it simple with some ground beef/pork/chicken (or all 3 if you want) and focus on the spices. Again, hot take and I don't mean to yuck anyone's yum, but as someone who's been disappointed with a complicated and expensive pot of chili versus a super simple and relatively cheap recipe, I'd lean simple.

Side note: I've never added chorizo as mentioned above but that sounds incredible and I think it'd stand up to the rest of the pot rather well.

Click to shrink...

I agree about using expensive cuts. It's a waste. Chili for me is an inexpensive one-pot meal that leaves lots of leftovers. Putting nice cuts of meat into it, to get lost in the sauce, kills that.

 

[nullref]

Hot take and maybe somewhat controversial, but whatever your recipe I'd avoid using expensive cuts of meat. People love throwing expensive brisket and various steak cuts into chili, and in my opinion it's a total waste.

Click to shrink...

I'd agree that there's no reason to use steak cuts, but chunks of beef chuck (shoulder) are common if you like that style, which isn't exactly expensive. Has good fat and flavor, and gives you a texture you don't get with ground meat.

Brisket in chili is often about using leftovers or trimmings from smoking a brisket (though I'm sure some people like getting it solely to go in chili).

 

[Horp]

Dont use ground beef, use chuck - keep it cooking until it falls apart.
Dont use tomato (some paste for flavour depth is fine).
Liquid should be light beer (dark beer makes it too rich, the chili will be plenty dark as it is)
Dont overuse smokey flavour, stick to one (ancho is best imo)
Use several different chili peppers, it adds complexity and depth. Why not use some fermented ones along with fresh ones etc?
Jalapeno is a good goto chili to use as basis, and then add heat with some other peppers that pack a punch.
Coriander powder, ground cumin, some paprika powder. Dont forget to toast your spices.
Garlic, lots of it, but skip the onion.

4 hours at least. You will have to stir it a bit in the bottom and also add some liquid over time.