From what I have read, the historical antecedent of modern chili began as early settlers and and cattle drivers headed west. There would often be a "chuck wagon" following along with the group, manned by a cook who would prepare meals each night on the trail (and often play the role of barber, dentist and banker as well). Beans, salted meats, dried peppers, corn flour and coffee tended to keep for a long time without refrigeration, so it's easy to see how these ingredients eventually led to our modern notions of chili.
The basic inspiration for this chili came from a slow cooker recipe book published by America's Test Kitchen. However, I have added and subtracted so much over the last several years that I can confidently call this my recipe. There are a couple TOP SECRET ingredients
Since my goal in this blog is food on a budget, I am going to include the "obligato" portions, while suggesting additional ingredients for those looking to splurge a little. Here's the list:
Meat
Remember, get whatever is on sale
1/2 lb. lean ground beef (90% or higher)
1/2 lb. ground pork
Optional 1/2 lb. pulled pork (without bbq sauce)
Canned Goods
My philosophy is store brand when possible
1 large can crushed tomatoes (generic for budget, San Marzano variety if you can afford it)
2 cans kidney beans (I like the dark red variety)
1 can black beans
1 can tomato paste
1-2 canned chipotle peppers packaged in adobo sauce, diced (add more for spicier chili)
2 tbsp of adobo sauce from can of chipotle peppers
1 12oz bottle or can of beer. I have used anything from Miller Lite to Guinness. Generally, the darker the beer, the richer the flavor. Try to avoid anything overly-hoppy (stay away from IPA)
TOP SECRET INGREDIENT: 1 can pumpkin pie filling
Spices -
Buy the cheapest you can find. I will teach you a trick to improve the potency.
3 tbsp ground cumin
2 tbsp chili powder
(optional) 1 tbsp Ancho chili powder
1 tbsp ground coriander
1 tbsp black pepper
1 tbsp salt, kosher if possible
Optional 1 tbsp ground sage
Optional 1 tsp allspice
Optional 1 tsp ground thyme
Produce
Again, get whatever's on sale.
1 large onion, chopped (I prefer red or white, but yellow is usually a little cheaper)
1 bell pepper, chopped (get green, they are always cheaper & the end result is the same)
6-8 cloves of garlic, crushed and minced
1 shredded carrot, finely chopped
Optional 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
Misc Ingredients
1 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1-2 tbsp olive oil (substitute vegetable or canola oil if needed)
1/4 cup corn meal
TOP SECRET INGREDIENT: 1/2 cup grated dark chocolate or unsweetened cocoa powder
1 decent knife & cutting board
1 high-walled soup pot or dutch oven
1 small or medium frying pan
There are a couple tricks to getting the biggest flavor out of these ingredients. Begin by browning the raw meat in the main soup pot over medium heat with a small hit of oil (1 tsp or less). Break it up into small chunks and cook until you don't see any pink meat. Remove all the meat you can from the pot and place on a plate with a paper towel to cut as much grease as possible. Add the remaining oil to the pan, then stir in the onions, bell pepper, carrot and [optional] jalapeno. Saute until just soft, about 5-7 minutes, then add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute.
At the same time that the vegetables are cooking, blend the spices together in a bowl and add them to the small frying pan on low-medium heat, stirring occasionally. Continue for around 5 minutes until the spices are fragrant and just starting to give off a little smoke.
This will begin to toast the spices and bring their dormant flavors more fully out. This is a great technique for any store-bought spices, as well as all the old containers that you inherited from your mom when you moved away.
Add the spices, the cooked meat (along with optional pulled pork), and the tomato paste to the big pot, stirring to blend. Cook the paste mixture over low-medium heat for 3-5 minutes.
Now, begin to add the remaining ingredients. Start with the beer. This will deglaze the pan and help free up the browned bits sticking to the bottom of the pan, which are a key to great flavor. Stir the beer in, and be sure to scrape up any parts stuck to the pan in the process.
Add the remaining ingredients and heat uncovered over medium heat, stirring in incorporate. Once the chili begins to pop a little bit, reduce heat to low, stir and cover. Let the chili simmer on the stove for at least half an hour, but as much as 2. The longer the chili simmers, the better. Remember, the idea here is "low and slow."
The finished chili will be thick. If you like your chili with more of a broth, you can either add additional beer or use some chicken stock. I not recommend add plain water, as this will also water down the flavor.
I served the chili with some simple cornbread I whipped up using a 2/1 ratio of flour and leftover cornmeal, an egg, 1/2 cup milk and some leftover adobo sauce from the canned chipotle peppers. The sweetness of the cornbread made a great contrast with the spiciness of the chili.
This pot of chili is enough to last a single man for several meals. To keep things interesting, I served the leftover chili over spaghetti, brown rice, and even a baked potato on subsequent nights.
Total cost for the entire recipe:$17.67 (including fresh meat and new spice containers with plenty of extra to spare)
Total cost per bowl: $2.21 (8 bowls)
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