Chili: Discuss

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Chili: Beans or No Beans

  • Beans

  • No Beans

  • What?

Results are only viewable after voting.
I try. I just seem to take leftovers as a challenge. But then again I guess I am just still overly enthusiastic about the smoker. Just getting into it and all. Much like homebrewing.
 
N7KMS said:
Kinda OT but...A coworker of mine gave me a bucket of chiles from his greenhouse and I'm waffling on what to do with them. I've got some cayennes, Thais, jalapenos, and lemon drops. My first thought was to make a pot of chili con carne with fresh peppers, then I thought I could make a nice salsa, but now I'm thinking I might pulverize them and ferment them to make a hot sauce. I'm pretty sure I'm going to end up doing hot sauce because I've never done a fermented hot sauce, but if anyone has a way to talk me out of it I'm all ears.
Click to expand...
I would suggest splitting them. The thais should make an excellent hot sauce, but I don't personally like them in chili. Make some chili with some of the rest, and freeze anything you might have leftover. Double win! :rockin:
 
Making some chili as we speak! No beans in it though that's what I grew up with, trying to do something closer to the "original" tex-mex chili. I split the batch because my girlfriend doesn't like things that are too spicey, so her's is mostly bell pepper and sweet pepper with a little jalapeno and poblano.

Mine has all of that plus a little habanero and heavier on the jalapeno and poblano as well. Other than that it's cubed chuck and a little lamb shoulder in mine, a little beef broth and a bit of diced onion and roma tomato. Yeah yeah I know it's not supposed to have tomato, but it has a little. Will be served with black beans on the side, but not in it. Smelling great so far!
 
lowtones84 said:
Making some chili as we speak! No beans in it though that's what I grew up with, trying to do something closer to the "original" tex-mex chili. I split the batch because my girlfriend doesn't like things that are too spicey, so her's is mostly bell pepper and sweet pepper with a little jalapeno and poblano.

Mine has all of that plus a little habanero and heavier on the jalapeno and poblano as well. Other than that it's cubed chuck and a little lamb shoulder in mine, a little beef broth and a bit of diced onion and roma tomato. Yeah yeah I know it's not supposed to have tomato, but it has a little. Will be served with black beans on the side, but not in it. Smelling great so far!
Click to expand...

Not...supposed to have.....tomato.....

The BEANS I can take as a "OH WELL!! to each their own, but they are missing the boat..."

NO TOMATO?

Texas needs to secede.
 
Yeah, "real" chili shouldn't have tomatoes apparently. Whatever. The couple of roma tomatoes were great, and I bet nobody would know I put them in there if I didn't tell them. There was so much pepper and meat, and it was so slow cooked for three hours so any trace of tomato was pretty much gone. Mine was nicely spicy (enough to clear the sinuses, provide a warm sensation along its path and a little tingling on the lips), and the little bit of lamb shoulder in there was delicious.

Beans and rice on the side was an interesting way to do it. All in all it was different and if somebody would have served me that, I wouldn't have called it chili, but it was yummy :)
 
The other day on CNN's website a chili recipe was posted by a contributor. The recipe seemed ok, not special, but it was obvious said contributor put a lot of thought and practice into their recipe.

I want you to note that this is Creamy Goodness speaking... and I am annoyed by a good 75% of all the things...

A full on argument, including accusations and threats broke out. Over chili. The one reasonable guy (a Texan btw) said something along the lines of "I'm sure what you are making is delicious, but its just not chili" It got way worse from there.

I am so passionate about food, good food in particular and especially the history of food... but... geeeeeez.
 
Tradition be damned... it's all about what I like when I'm the one cooking it! Do I know how to follow a traditional recipe? YES. Do I also know how to modify it to make it more to my liking? YES.
My chili has a lot of non traditional additions and yet I still call it Chili and i love it. I read recipes (for a lot of things) and continue to improve my process (just like brewing).
 
cheezydemon3 said:
Not...supposed to have.....tomato.....

The BEANS I can take as a "OH WELL!! to each their own, but they are missing the boat..."

NO TOMATO?

Texas needs to secede.
Click to expand...

Whole or diced tomato is considered a "filler" just as beans are under ICS competition rules and are prohibited, specifically in the traditional red chili category. Tomato sauce is not prohibited, though the judges will mark down for excessive tomato flavor.
 
headbanger said:
Whole or diced tomato is considered a "filler" just as beans are under ICS competition rules and are prohibited, specifically in the traditional red chili category. Tomato sauce is not prohibited, though the judges will mark down for excessive tomato flavor.
Click to expand...

There are several winning recipes on the ICSI homepage that contain tomato. I have reproduced all of the recipes in their history section though, and found all of them to be delicious with the exception of Joe Cooper's chili which was somewhat lacking. Note that none of those recipes contain any tomatoes, nor beans. Nor much else besides meat and peppers. That, however, is the beauty of simplicity. Try to recreate their "original" cowboy chili, and you'll see what I mean.
 
headbanger said:
Whole or diced tomato is considered a "filler" just as beans are under ICS competition rules and are prohibited, specifically in the traditional red chili category. Tomato sauce is not prohibited, though the judges will mark down for excessive tomato flavor.
Click to expand...

Huh?! So what do tomatoes become when cooked for an hour? Are they not effectively sauce at that point? If tomatoes are filler then I guess I am not as traditional with my chili as I thought.
 
I was raised on 'chile beans,' and grew up thinking it was one word.... my mother made them with pinto beans and blocks of XLNT Chile con Carne, plus other stuff like tomatoes and onions.

Is it sacrilege to mention red chile pork stew in a chile thread?

Red Chile Pork Stew with Fry Bread

This is a good dinner for a campout, especially if it's washed down with beer. But it's a little spicy for some folks...

2-3 Tbs oil, lard or shortening
3 lbs pork, well-trimmed and cut into 1 inch cubes
2 onions, chopped
6 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tsp salt
1 Tbs flour
1 cup ground New Mexico chiles (mild to hot, depending on how used to the heat you are)
1 1/2 tsp cumin (if you're using store-bought chili powder instead, it'll have cumin already in it. You can also cut chili powder with mild paprika, if what you have is too hot for you)
4-6 cups of water or chicken broth

Heat oil in a large pot or dutch oven until it's sizzling hot. Brown pork on all sides in batches, one layer at a time. Set aside.

Add onions, garlic and salt to pot and stir until soft, about 3 minutes. Sprinkle in flour and pepper, and cook for 3 or 4 minutes more.

Stir in the chili powder, and add 4 cups liquid. Slap a lid on it; bake in a 350 degree oven for an hour.

Stir and add another cup of liquid; cook for another hour. Add another cup of liquid if needed, and cook until pork comes apart with a fork and sauce is thick.

If you're cooking over a burner or coals instead of in the oven, stir regularly and add liquid as needed.

Spoon into bowls over fry bread, or serve with a stack of warm corn tortillas.

Basic Fry Bread Recipe; can be doubled

1 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon powdered milk
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup water

Mix well, but don't knead. Divide into 4 balls, flatten out to about 6 inches by patting with floured hands. Fry in about an inch of hot oil or lard until well browned, about 3 or 4 minutes on each side. I was taught to put a hole in the middle of each piece, but some people don't.

In camp where you don't have a lot of oil or lard, cook on a hot cast iron skillet or the bottom of a dutch oven, or on a well-heated flat rock. Add a spoonful or two of oil, lard, butter or whatever shortening you have handy to the recipe, and flatten each piece out a little thinner.

You can also sprinkle fry bread with cinnamon and sugar right after it comes out of the skillet, and eat it as a dessert. And there are a lot of other recipes for it, including some yeast variations.
 
troy2000 said:
I was raised on 'chile beans,' and grew up thinking it was one word.... my mother made them with pinto beans and blocks of XLNT Chile con Carne, plus other stuff like tomatoes and onions.

Is it sacrilege to mention red chile pork stew in a chile thread?

Red Chile Pork Stew with Fry Bread

This is a good dinner for a campout, especially if it's washed down with beer. But it's a little spicy for some folks...

2-3 Tbs oil, lard or shortening
3 lbs pork, well-trimmed and cut into 1 inch cubes
2 onions, chopped
6 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tsp salt
1 Tbs flour
1 cup ground New Mexico chiles (mild to hot, depending on how used to the heat you are)
1 1/2 tsp cumin (if you're using store-bought chili powder instead, it'll have cumin already in it. You can also cut chili powder with mild paprika, if what you have is too hot for you)
4-6 cups of water or chicken broth

Heat oil in a large pot or dutch oven until it's sizzling hot. Brown pork on all sides in batches, one layer at a time. Set aside.

Add onions, garlic and salt to pot and stir until soft, about 3 minutes. Sprinkle in flour and pepper, and cook for 3 or 4 minutes more.

Stir in the chili powder, and add 4 cups liquid. Slap a lid on it; bake in a 350 degree oven for an hour.

Stir and add another cup of liquid; cook for another hour. Add another cup of liquid if needed, and cook until pork comes apart with a fork and sauce is thick.

If you're cooking over a burner or coals instead of in the oven, stir regularly and add liquid as needed.

Spoon into bowls over fry bread, or serve with a stack of warm corn tortillas.

Basic Fry Bread Recipe; can be doubled

1 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon powdered milk
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup water

Mix well, but don't knead. Divide into 4 balls, flatten out to about 6 inches by patting with floured hands. Fry in about an inch of hot oil or lard until well browned, about 3 or 4 minutes on each side. I was taught to put a hole in the middle of each piece, but some people don't.

In camp where you don't have a lot of oil or lard, cook on a hot cast iron skillet or the bottom of a dutch oven, or on a well-heated flat rock. Add a spoonful or two of oil, lard, butter or whatever shortening you have handy to the recipe, and flatten each piece out a little thinner.

You can also sprinkle fry bread with cinnamon and sugar right after it comes out of the skillet, and eat it as a dessert. And there are a lot of other recipes for it, including some yeast variations.
Click to expand...

That looks tasty!
 
kaconga said:
Huh?! So what do tomatoes become when cooked for an hour? Are they not effectively sauce at that point? If tomatoes are filler then I guess I am not as traditional with my chili as I thought.
Click to expand...

This is where most people get confused.. Competition chili and traditional chili are not necessarily the same. The reason ICS rules traditionally prohibit the inclusion of fillers is that those fillers can detract from or mask the taste of the chili itself.
 
kaconga said:
Huh?! So what do tomatoes become when cooked for an hour? Are they not effectively sauce at that point? If tomatoes are filler then I guess I am not as traditional with my chili as I thought.
Click to expand...

I think people kind of miss the point on this stuff - it's not that tomatoes or beans taste bad, it's that they're unnecessary for that kind of chili. "Unnecessary" not bad.

If you use proper ratios of stuff, you don't need to fill our your meat with beans because you're getting meat in every bite. If you've got a good chili and spice sauce going, you won't need tomatoes to add more flavor because you've brought the chilies to a place where they stand on their own.

It's not that something's right or wrong, it's just different.
 
Here's a pot of red I did with smoked chuck roast and pork butt in cast iron on the grill (no beans).

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null_zps8cd69a07.jpg
 
OK!!

Either Troy2000 and brewbama are holding chefrex hostage and making him cook and post for them...

OR

Chefrex cooked and ate Troy2000 and brewbama and is posting his **** on their computers...

OR

Troy2000 and brewbama are upping the ante BIGTIME!!!!

:mug:

Nice posts!
 
I'm still here, a free man and no heads in the freezer! Besides I probably would have added beans, I love beans!
Tasty looking posts just the same.
I'm due for another pot, starting to get cold and nothing better then spicy chilli to warm ya up. Maybe this weekend.
 
I hate to say it, but I am SOLD on crockpot chili.

Nothing else can cook for 48 hours with no stirring.

No other method can be untouched and form that DARK caramelized crust on the top that adds SO much flavor when stirred in.

Not sure I believe you about the heads chefrex.........troy2000 and bamabrew will be sorely missed :(

;)
 
cheezydemon3 said:
I hate to say it, but I am SOLD on crockpot chili.

Nothing else can cook for 48 hours with no stirring.

No other method can be untouched and form that DARK caramelized crust on the top that adds SO much flavor when stirred in.

Not sure I believe you about the heads chefrex.........troy2000 and bamabrew will be sorely missed :(

;)
Click to expand...

My crockpot can't handle the volume of chili that I churn out of my kitchen.
 
Melana said:
My crockpot can't handle the volume of chili that I churn out of my kitchen.
Click to expand...

:eek:



Lol, I have a pretty huge one, but how many mouths frequent your kitchen?? I have 2 constant and a wandering 3-4 more occasionally......hmmm.......chili dinner.....I have 2 gallons or so I need to freeze or consume.
 
If it's a red chili, I love a good dark beer. A stout or porter with an easy, dry finish. Occasionally I'll throw a saison in my glass instead, but I tend to keep lighter beers for pairing with green chili.
 
cheezydemon3 said:
:eek:

Lol, I have a pretty huge one, but how many mouths frequent your kitchen?? I have 2 constant and a wandering 3-4 more occasionally......hmmm.......chili dinner.....I have 2 gallons or so I need to freeze or consume.
Click to expand...

See... I freeze the leftovers in bags for quick on the fly chili dip for gatherings.

I've got to feed BigJohn, a teen, myself, and a four year old. My dad is always about when I'm cooking. Have also been known to make the leftover chili into empanadas.
 
Melana said:
See... I freeze the leftovers in bags for quick on the fly chili dip for gatherings.

I've got to feed BigJohn, a teen, myself, and a four year old. My dad is always about when I'm cooking. Have also been known to make the leftover chili into empanadas.
Click to expand...

Empenadas................wow......


:mug:
 
Back in the '70's when I was rough-necking on Oklahoma oil rigs, I found a recipe in a cookbook for spicy beef empanadas. So I made a batch to freeze and take for lunches. While I was at it I decided, 'what the heck; in for a penny, in for a pound. Might as well make some some turnovers for dessert...'

First problem: finding real butter in Oklahoma. I drove down to the local grocery store and dug around in the dairy section, and couldn't find any. So I walked up to the idiot manning the cash register, and the conversation went like this:

'Excuse me; where's your butter?'

-[disgusted stare] Right where it oughta be: next to the milk, in the dairy section.

'Umm... I looked all over, and didn't see any.'

-[indignant stamping to the back of the store, jabbing point] RIGHT THAR!

'That's not butter; it's margarine.'

-[exasperated eye-roll towards the heavens] SAME THANG....

So I made turnovers with margarine and cherry pie filling. Took the extras to work and passed them out to my tour (shift; pronounced 'tower'). The driller said, 'dang, these are good. Thought you was single, Troy. Where'd you find a woman to cook for you?'

-I made them myself.

[suddenly solemn stare, loss of eye contact, diplomatic withdrawal...] 'ummm.... right.'

The entire tour tip-toed around me for the next month like they were walking on eggshells; apparently the ability to make little Hostess-type cherry pies in my kitchen proved I'm a flaming swish. I finally got tired of it and took a job on another rig. And made damn sure none of my new Okie co-workers ever caught me cooking anything besides hamburgers on a grill...
 
Speaking of pasta...

My wife cooks two turkeys a year: one for Thanksgiving, and one for Christmas. I collect the carcasses, add herbs, spices and aromatics like onion, garlic, celery, carrots and pasilla chiles, simmer the meat off the bones, and make turkey rice soup - which I freeze in small batches and eat on for months.

I skim the seasoned turkey fat off the soup, and use it for everything from fried eggs to spaghetti that would normally get tossed with butter, garlic, salt and pepper for a light lunch.
 
troy2000 said:
The entire tour tip-toed around me for the next month like they were walking on eggshells; apparently the ability to make little Hostess-type cherry pies in my kitchen proved I'm a flaming swish. I finally got tired of it and took a job on another rig. And made damn sure none of my new Okie co-workers ever caught me cooking anything besides hamburgers on a grill...
Click to expand...

Reminds me of when I was in AF basic in San Antonio. If you accidentally responded to one of the instructors by saying "OK" they would invariably respond "OK? You're from Oklahoma? Nuthin' but steers and queers in Oklahoma, and you don't look much like a steer to me, if you get my drift".
 
Thunder_Chicken said:
Reminds me of when I was in AF basic in San Antonio. If you accidentally responded to one of the instructors by saying "OK" they would invariably respond "OK? You're from Oklahoma? Nuthin' but steers and queers in Oklahoma, and you don't look much like a steer to me, if you get my drift".
Click to expand...
I still remember the instructions for getting to Texas from California: "head due east until you smell cow s***; that's Oklahoma. Then hang a right and keep going until you step in it; that'll be Texas. :D
 

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