Chilli Recipe Strut
fishmongerfunk
4,154 Posts
i make a decent chilli but i feel like i'm stuck in a bit of a rut and i'd like to take it to a new level. perhaps, the strut can offer some culinary advice.
my baisc recipe includes:
-lean ground beef
-onions
-celery
-kidney beans
-jalapeno peppers
-diced tomatoes
-tomato paste
-beef stock
-paprika, cayenne, chilli powder, salt, pepper, sugar
questions:
-mirepoix: carrots in there, yay or nay?
-black beans?
-crushed or diced tomato or both?
-do some hot peppers work better than others?
-mexican chocolate?
-any secret spices/ingredients i should be considering?
-at whar point in the process do you add your spices for greatest effect?
garnishes:
-cheese, sourcream, and fresh cilantro or parsley is a given but what else
my baisc recipe includes:
-lean ground beef
-onions
-celery
-kidney beans
-jalapeno peppers
-diced tomatoes
-tomato paste
-beef stock
-paprika, cayenne, chilli powder, salt, pepper, sugar
questions:
-mirepoix: carrots in there, yay or nay?
-black beans?
-crushed or diced tomato or both?
-do some hot peppers work better than others?
-mexican chocolate?
-any secret spices/ingredients i should be considering?
-at whar point in the process do you add your spices for greatest effect?
garnishes:
-cheese, sourcream, and fresh cilantro or parsley is a given but what else
Comments
coffee - I prefer it to chocolate
Did a batch of chilli yesterday & I changed up where I add the spice. Usually I add my spice mix after I add the tomatoes. I wondered if adding it in before the mince to leave the spices cook through for a minute or so might add something, unfortunately not, very bland, I'll be going back to adding the spice after the tomatoes.
I like to add in a little garlic also, not too much though. I know some folks like to add a cinnamon stick aswell, I'm not a fan of that though
Cook ground beef. I like to drain out the liquid grease.
Add onions, garlic, beans, diced tomatoes, tomato paste, salt, pepper, LOTS of Cumin. That's my secret ingredient, which is actually quite basic for a lot of Mexican dishes.
Cumin is a must imo
Try varying this a bit--maybe split between beef and pork. If you have the ability to grind meat yourself, you can really get creative with it. The last batch of chili I made used brisket, chuck, and pork shoulder. It came out quite delicious
Yay!
This topic of chili in general is going to be pretty contentious (I can't wait to see the nerdfury), but this might be the most contentious part. Some people will say you can only use kidney beans; some people will say real chili doesn't have any beans at all. I sometimes use black beans, and they work out just fine.
Depends on what sort of texture you're going for, I'd say. I generally use crushed, but that's mostly because that's what we tend to have on-hand in the pantry as our general-purpose canned tomatoes.
http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/2000/02/spicy_lamb_and_chorizo_chili
Jalenenos are boring. Try some smoked ones and add one habenero for heat.
Swap the ground beef for Stew cubes.
Black and kidney beans mix.
Bay leaf in your chicken or beef stock.
Toasted Cumin seeds and then crushed or grinded.
No celery and carrots. None. Fuck vegetables.
yes as a thickener.
Lime, shreddded cheese, bacon, yogurt, crema, whatevs.
i use both black and kidney
not down for celery but ''sofrito'' (garlic+red bell peper+carrots) is a my mirepoix-ish base
then i deglaze with dark stout beer with a chocolate/coffee taste (london porter, trois-pistole)
also, do people have suggestions for alternatives to sour cream/crema? The only thing close I can find is creme fraiche, and there are recipes saying you can mix cream with lime juice and salt, but that doesn't seem like it would make something close to sour cream to me.