chili recipe

[vaznetti]

Like everything else I cook, this is a very forgiving recipe. Because really, it's chili. Put stuff in a pot and cook for a while.


vaznetti's brown chili

Since this is chili, none of the measurements are precise. You will need:

• 2 lbs lean ground beef (or beef stew meat, if you prefer).


• a large can (28 oz/800 ml) pureed tomatoes


• a large can black beans. The best brand I've found is La Preferida, but I have had to try many other brands because I live in places where La Preferida black beans aren't available. Alas.


• a large onion, chopped.


• chilies. I usually use whole dried chilies. The number and type depend on how hot you want the chili; I wanted tonight's mild, so I used two dried ancho chilies and about a teaspoon of red chili flakes.


• cumin


• cinnamon


• cocoa powder


• a bottle of beer, or some other liquor. Guinness or some other dark beer is best, but I have used red wine and even whiskey. The latter worked surprisingly well.

Cook the onion in a little oil until it's soft. Add the beef and brown it completely. At this point I add the spices -- about 3 tablespoons of cumin and four of cocoa, and a teaspoon or so of cinnamon. If you have other spices you want to add, like ground coriander or chili powder, now would be the time; cumin and chocolate are not optional, though. Also the chilies. Sometimes I've cooked the spices with the onion, instead. If you need to drain the fat off the beef, though, you'd want to do that before adding the spices.

Add the beans, tomatoes and beer. I don't drain the beans unless the liquid they're in looks icky, which sometimes is the case. You must use black beans. Red kidney beans are of the devil, and pinto beans don't have good flavor and texture. Pureed tomatoes make for better texture than chopped tomatoes, but either will do. Show some respect for your chili by using a good, dark beer. It will reward you.

Cook partially covered over a low heat for at least two hours so that it thickens and the flavors meld. Serve with some combination of rice, tortillas, yogurt or sour cream and grated cheese. Taste it while you cook, and if it's too spicy add some honey to cool it down.


This makes enough for... well, many. You'll need a big pot, and probably some space in the freezer.

Comments

[rhi]

Now I'm hungry!!

(Thanks for the recipe!)

[monanotlisa.livejournal.com]

Oh, sounds lovely -- but wouldn't fresh tomatoes be much better?

[loup_noir]

Huh. Interesting. I've never seen a chili recipe with beer before. Darker the better, right? Now I must envision getting my husband to let me use a bottle of his homebrew dark beer.

Have you ever tried this with turkey or lamb? Lamb...yum! Most of the stores here have ground lamb in their meat counters. Oh, damn, now I'm drooling and hungry.

[darcydodo]

Oh, awesome, especially for this weather. If I have any time at all to shop and cook this week, I'm totally going to try this.

[k2daisy.livejournal.com]

Ooooh, you know, I think Hubby would really like this one, and so would I.

And we always have Guinness in the house. And black beans. *g*