My general recommendations -- light on tomato anything, heavy on a chile powder (note spelling -- a powder that is just the powdered dried peppers, no salt, no cumin, no anything else), plus onion, garlic, cumin, and a bit of oregano. (Cumin separate from the chile powder so you can adjust the flavor yourself. Cumin is one of the major flavors in chili.)
Chili is definitely a "play around with what's in it, use what you like" sort of dish.
Here's a recipe of mine that's on the web in a few places. I won a chili cookoff at work with it one year. (Yeah, it has beans in it, which many purists consider an abomination.)
----------------------------- Ingredients: ------------ 3 cups dried beans, 1/2 pinto, 1/2 black beans 1 can S&W salsa 1 bulb garlic (6-8 cloves for the garlic-tolerance-impaired) 1/3 cup chile powder (I used 1/2 cup, it was maybe a bit much.) 1 tblsp cumin 1.5 lb ground beef ("chili grind", or braising tips cut into 1/4" cubes.) 1/4 tsp oregano 3 Chipotle peppers (or 4 or 5...) 1 large onion.
Instructions: ------------- Soak the beans overnight. Brown the ground beef, and drain off the fat. If the chipotles are dried, soak them for 5 minutes in hot water, then pulverize them with the onion and garlic in a blender. Add onion, oregano, chili powder, cumin, beef, garlic, and beans to crock pot, with "enough" water. Let simmer for about 12 hours. About an hour before it's done, add the can of salsa.
Report Employers, Landlords, Illegals to ICEGraphic Queen Teddy was a newb. Let's go back to Ben Franklin, who said: "Why should the Palatine Boors be suffered to swarm into our Settlements, and by herding together, establish their Language and Manners...
The "chile powder" is bulk powdered "chile powder" chiles, New Mexico chiles, I think. NOT the mixture with all kinds of other spices in it that is more common in grocery stores. I like my chili heavier on the chili powder, lighter on the tomatoes. -----------------------------
Hm, did I really write "12 hours"? I think I was just letting it go in the crock pot overnight.
Now, I order powdered chipotle peppers in bulk from a place in New Mexico, and adjust the "other chile powders" and chipotle to fine-tune the heat. (I *love* chipotle powder.) I haven't seen the S&W salsa lately, I'd probably just add some chopped fresh jalapenos and/or serranos, and maybe some canned crused tomatoes if I wanted them.
-- Tagon: "Where's your sense of adventure?" Mike Van Pelt Kevyn: "It died under mysterious circumstances. mvp at calweb.com My sense of self-preservation found the body, KE6BVH but buttures me it has an airtight alibi." (schlockmercenary.com)
