My second attempt at Texas Chili
The link below has my initial attempt at making a great Texas Chili. Based on some of the comments people made, I revised my recipe slightly and had better results. I'm still not perfectly happy with it.
This time after I browned the chuck steak cubes, I sauteed a small minced red onion and then added the meat back. Then I added in the following:
- pulp of about 6 reconstituted Ancho chiles
- pulp of 2 reconsistuted habaneros
- 1 TBS Chipotle chile powder
- 1 TBS Cayenne powder
- 1 TBS Guajillo chile powder.
I cooked this for a minute or two, then added some of the water the chiles were reconstituted in, 1 beer and some water. I brought this up to a boil and let it simmer partially covered for about an hour. Then I added 1 TBS fresh ground cumin seeds, 1tsp oregano, 1 TBS paprika and a touch more of the chile powders and some garlic powder (i forget to get fresh garlic). Then simmered for maybe another 1 1/2 hours. Then I added 2 TBS of masa harina mixed with a little water and cooked. The masa harina really thickened up the sauce and gave it nice body. I tried a few pieces of the steak which was tender. The upfront flavor was kind of subtle and then had a nice back of the throat chile kick, which I think was from the ground guajillo. I still was hoping for a more upfront flavor that wasn't there. A little disappointed I let it cool and refridgerated overnight. The next day the flavor was fuller, but I felt it was still missing something. It didn't have a bright, upfront flavor.
Remaining questions
- Can anyone think what i'm missing? Should I use more onion or would the addition of fresh garlic make that much difference?
- Also, the reconstituting and deskinning the dried anchos were a real pain. Even though I just got a wire strainer and I'm not sure its worth the effort. If I ground up the dried chiles whole, what would the differences in taste be. Should I buy ground ancho chiles instead or deal with the hassle?
Also, if anyone considers making the Chili, I highly recommend using the masa harina. It really was amazing how much it changed the sauce and tightened it up. it went from soupy to a nice tomato paste consistency. Fortunately, I have enough masa harina left over for my next 400 batches of Chili. Hope the girlfriend doesn't mind eating a lot of beef this year.
Evan
Feb 06, 2006 02:55PM
Actually, Tyler Florance's recipe for Texas chili (which I'm sure you can find on the web site) uses dried anchos that he just removes the stem and seeds then heats in a dry skillet with a couple of other herbs/spices and then grinds all up into a "chili powder." I've made it and it works just fine.
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I am just not convinced you need to saute an onion. You can basically sear your meat with no spices.
Just add them all when you hit simmer mode.
Down here, we just add diced onion as a garnish.
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I like to chop a BIG onion and fresh garlic and saute them with the meat. I also put a diced poblano (mild) and chop up a few other fresh chilis. And a couple of chopped up chipotles in abado sauce will add a destinctive flavor just like the masa harina flour does. You might look into the possibility of adding some sausage like chorizo to your mix.
"I'm still not perfectly happy with it." You maybe never will be. Enjoy the attempts.
I've been thinking about trying seasoned massa harina to coat fried chicken. Might be you could use up your surplus that way. Maybe some chowhounders have tried this and can tell us how it turned out?
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I've watched various Chili competitions on TV. Each winner has his/hers own tricks. Some add their spices, including the chile powder at several stages during the cooking, including last minute additions.
Indian stews (curries) also use this multistep spicing. In fact, garam masala, that mild mix of coriander, cumin cinnamon, etc is often used for this purpose. My can says 'should be added towards the end of cooking so as not to lose the valuable aromatics and subtle flavors.'
So the early additions build depth, the late ones add brightness.
Another thing to check near the end is salt. Under salted food often tastes flat or dull.
Another example of last minute spicing is the set of condiments that are served with Mexican soups like menudo - diced onion, chopped coriander, lime, and Mexican oregano.
paulj
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Yes adding the spices at various stages, including with the meat produces chili with real depth of flavour
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Use half ancho chile powder and half New Mexico red chile powder. Use 1/3-1/2 teaspoon coriander per pound of meat. The New Mexico chiles and coriander will brighten it up.
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Beer dulls chili, IMHO.
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I disagree...beer makes the chili. I use it all the time.
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Me too as I mentioned below. Certainly adds more flavor than plain ol' water.
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I like to use dark rich beer. adds alot more flavour. use a good porter or ipa
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I think the malty, chocolaty character of some dark beers would add to a chili (a bit like the use of chocolate in mole), however, I am worried that the hops would add an undesirable bitterness.
Admittedly, the dark chiles have a hint of bitterness themselves, especially in the skin. Some cooks recommend tasting the dried chile soaking water for excessive bitterness, before including it in the puree.
paulj
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Beer in chili is something that sounds like a good idea but generally isn't. Recipes with it have occasionally won at the world championship chili cooking contests, but by far the lion's share of wins have come from recipes using liquids other than beer. Cooks Illustrated(Best Recipe) experimented with beer and discarded it in their chili recipes. I use it from time to time for variety's sake(as I do with other liquids, as well.) Always end up thinking it's a chili mistake.
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I agree. I have made a hell of a lot of chili and have experimented with lots of variables. Beer got eliminated a long time ago. The water used to rehydrate the chiles should be about all the liquid needed. If I do need more I use plain water or some good beef broth.
Jim
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In which issue of Cook's Illustrated is that recipe?
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I was actually talking about Cooks Illustrated's "New Best Recipe Cookbook"(similar opinion as the previous "Best Recipe Cookbook".) The April 2003 magazine issue has a chili with beans recipe(included in their cookbooks)that they preferred without beer but doesn't have their recipe for chili con carne(which they also preferred without beer.) I'm not a subscriber, so I don't know what issue their beanless recipe is from.
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Thanks...Maybe I'll go to the CI website to find it in the archives. I am a subscriber since '93, and I've saved all the issues but I have not cataloged the articles.
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If you find it and can summarize the ingredients and recipe, i'd appreciate it. I'm like a sponge right now trying to absorb as much info as possible. Even though my next chili will have to wait a while as I think my girlfriend is getting pissed of our apt smelling of beef and chile peppers.
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Found a link to the Cook's Illustrated recipe. It's just a no frills chili con carne recipe.
Link: http://www.pepperfool.com/recipes/chi...
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What makes a chili con carne recipe no-frills anyway? No wacky voodoo ingredients, like beer or coffee grounds?
Actually Cook's Illustrated's recipe uses tomatoes, which is not traditional. Far from no-frills some would consider it heathenish. But it's actually a very good recipe.
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I probably should have said "typical" rather than "no frills". Nothing particularly unusual in that recipe except maybe the lime juice. The peanut butter and chocolate were actually left out of the final recipe as being unessential. Guess maybe there's a difference between "no frills chili" and "no frills Texas chili". No frills Texas chili would be pretty much just beef, chile, cumin, & salt. Even onion is heathenish.
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There's a Five Alarm Chili mix that makes a pretty good introduction to the Texas style. All the seasonings are provided in separate little bags - the largest of course is the ground mild chile. It even includes a packet of masa for thickening (that's where I learned to use masa in this way). I haven't used the mix myself in a long time, since I keep most of the ingredients on hand, but it's a good place to start.
paulj
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Don't know if you've seen this website, but it's excellent for chili info. Author appears to be of the beer in chili school of thought.
Link: http://www.fiery-foods.com/dave/ndx_c...
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My M.O. for dried chiles: remove seeds and stems, cut up one side so they will lay flat, and toast briefly in a hot, dry cast iron skillet. Then cover in water just below the boil for 15-20 minutes, keeping them submerged with a plate. Then they go into the blender with sufficient soaking water to keep the blades from seizing up, and it is the resulting puree that I put through the strainer.
Personally I would never use dried chile powders beyond cayenne and paprika.
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Maybe it's your pot. I have a Le Crueset that makes the best of everything. What a difference it makes. I've been cooking for over 40 years and just got this pot in the last couple of months. Everything comes out so much better.
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...and I use a cast iron Dutch oven. Works for me. It's a Wagner 1891, but I doubt that they are still on the market. A Lodge Dutch oven will work just as well.
www.lodgemfg.com
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Mexican oregano (Lippia graveolens) was mentioned in one of the previous replies. It differs from Mediterranean oregano (Origanum vulgare) in that the Mexican herb is in the verbena family, not the mint family. (My apologies for being pedantic, I was a scientist in my former life before retirement.)
Also, the ancho chile is the dried ripe pod of the fresh poblano chile. I know this is repetitious, but let's get it into the vernacular of chili brewin'.
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