Re: [CH] Typical "Chili" recipe needed

Dan Hirschi (danhirschi@earthlink.net)
Mon, 08 Oct 2001 22:06:45 -0400 

At 06:59 PM 10/5/01 +0100, you wrote:

>I need a typical recipe for "texas" chili to serve about 25 people.
>
>I will modify it to be moderately hot, and present a great number of
>commercial hot sauces from my fridge to accompany that.

This started with a recipe I learned while working at Carnation food 
research (I was a 'gopher' in their kitchen 20 years ago).  It was their 
Chef-mate chili sold to restaurants everywhere--a generic American chili.
I altered it as I saw other recipes, and make it slightly different each 
time (in fact. I usually do it from memory).  Now it hardly resembles the 
original recipe (the MSG and caramel color came from the original).


CHILI

1 to 1.5 lbs meat (hamburger and sausage) or 1 lb stew beef and 1 lb pork 
butt or shoulder, cubed
1 onion, diced
2-6 cloves garlic, crushed
Diced peppers (red bell, and any fresh hot chiles you can find)
6 oz tomato paste
16 oz tomato sauce
14 oz crushed canned tomatoes
24 oz beer
1/2 cup Bourbon
4 to 6+ Tbsp chili powder(s)
1-2 tsp oregano
1 to 2 Tbsp ground cumin
1 to 2 Tbsp paprika
1/4 tsp ground red pepper
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
1/4 ground mustard
[1 to 2 tsp monosodium glutamate (Accent)] optional
[2 to 4 Tbsp caramel color (gravy browning liquid)] optional
1 to 2 cups pinto beans, cooked or 2 cans (56 oz) chili beans
2 Tbsp flour
3 Tbsp cornstarch
1/2 cup oatmeal
salt to taste

Brown meat. Leave some grease in pan. Add onion, then peppers, then garlic. 
Add tomato, beer and spices. Boil and simmer (check spices--should be a 
little spicier than desired). mix flour and cornstarch with water. let 
chili cool slightly, add starch and heat to thicken. Add oatmeal and beans. 
Simmer.  Add Bourbon.  Add salt, if needed

Serve with grated cheese, chopped onions and saltine crackers.  (If you 
can't find saltines in Sweden, bake some corn bread)

Note: all amounts are very approximate. Try to balance dry chilies with 
fresh (reduce dry if using many hot fresh peppers).  Try substituting 
chipotle, dried habanero, etc. for the red peppers.  Can also substitute 
ground beef heart for some of the meat.


Dan
still recovering from open fields