I've been 'refining' my chili recipie for years. Its pretty simple and a big hit with all the family and friends Here it is:

2 lbs ground venison or lean ground beef
2 can dark red kidney beans
2 green peppers (I usually make one a yellow or orange one to add some more color)
1 large onion
2 large cans of tomato sauce (use the good stuff)
1 large tomato

Spices:
6 tbsp chili powder
1 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tbsp cumin
1 tsp garlic salt
2 tsp oregano
1 tbsp liquid smoke
2 tbsp texas pete

Brown the ground, I usually hit it with some sea salt and fresh ground black pepper while browning

Cut up onion and peppers, I generally chop fairly fine.

Add ingredients together and cook 'low and slow' covered, stirring occasionally, until beans are tender but not mushy. Oh yeah, cut the tomato in half and set on top of the mixture at the beginning of the cook.

I make my chili fairly thick but you can adjust with a little water.

Serve with cornbread, I keep it fairly mild for general consumption but keep hot sauce out for those (like me) who want a little additional kick.

Hello,

I just made some of my chili which always draws a crowd:

3 or 4 pieces of bacon, chopped small
4 lbs of chuck meat, cut into very small pieces, large pieces of fat removed
3 lbs. of lean ground chuck
vegetable oil
3 large onions, chopped
8 cloves of garlic minced
5 jalapenos, seeded, stemmed and minced
1 small can of tomato paste
1 16 oz. can of whole tomatoes
two thirds of a small can of chipotle peppers, chopped, including the sauce
Some BBQ sauce (something homemade with a bit of sweetness and heat, preferably with smoke flavor)

Spices:
cumin
ground coriander
Kosher salt
fresh ground black pepper
dried oregano
dark chili powder
light chili powder (I like New Mexico chili powder)
cayenne pepper

1 dark beer (but not Guinness for this recipe!)
1 quart of low sodium chicken broth
1 quart of water
4 8 oz cans of kidney beans (optional) w/liquid

Cooking:

Heat a Dutch oven over medicum flame and brown the bacon slowly, allowing as much fat to render as possible. Transfer cooked bacon to a bowl.

Brown the chuck meat in batches in the bacon fat, adding a bit of vegetable oil as needed. Salt and pepper a bit. Cutting the meat into very small bits is important for texture. Removed browned chuck to bowl.

Brown the ground beef well, brown and pepper it a bit as it cooks, and remove to a bowl with a slotted spoon. Drain off any fat or water that comes out.

Add some more oil to the pot and add the onions, garlic and jalapeno on medium high heat. Salt and pepper a bit. Take the time to carmelize these ingredients very well. This is an important step for the sweetness and will work nicely with the heat and tomato.

Once the onions, garlic and jalapenos are very golden brown, add in the tomato paste and mix well and turn heat on high. Keep stirring. This will allow the tomato to carmelize as well. Add the whole tomatoes with liquid, crushing them up with your hand.

Add the chipotle peppers and its sauce (this is HOT and smoky. I like it hot. You'll have to test it and consider the total heat you'll have at the end of the dish.) Add some BBQ sauce to taste. Be careful, you can always go back and add more.

Add the browned meat and browned ground beef and stir well. Season everything with one third of the total amount of spices you want. You will come back one or two times later to check and adjust seasoning. Don't try to season everything at once!

Add the chicken broth, beer and some of the water until liquid comes to about one or two inches above the meat. Bring to a boil, then to a low simmer, covered for about 1 hour. Stir and check frequently. Add more broth and/or water as needed. If too wet, simmer uncovered to allow evaporation. About 30 minutes into the simmer check the spices and adjust seasoning as needed. Check seasoning again in the last 15 minutes and adjust as needed. Let is simmer until the chuck meat is very tender.

In the last 10 minutes of cooking time, add the beans if using. You may want to add a bit more cumin at this time, since they compliment the beans so well.

I think I will open up a can of beans, uh I mean worms here, but...."if you know beans about chili then you know chili ain't got no beans."

Well at least Texas chili (and most all competition) does not. But then this debate is older than most of us can remember. Just use whatever you like and enjoy.

The recipe of the 2nd poster looks like it could be very good, and as I am always on the lookout for good chili recipes, I will definitely have to try it someday, except I will have to cut that one down to size.

Rob

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Robert Brown,