Real Chili: Beans or No Beans

[Mr._johngalt]

Hey....the beans are winning

In fact, it's a gas.

JG

 

[Martha]

Real Texas chili doesn't include either beans or tomatoes.

No tomatoes! You can't have chili without tomatoes. And beans.

 

[SteveR]

Where is DanTien? There should be a poll on this by now.

I have lived a lot of places and chilie is differnet from place to place. Sort of like BBQ. There are significant differences from place to place....North Carolina vs St. Louis, etc.

My preference for chilie is actually Texan myself. I lived there for a couple of years and became educated in Texas food. I had some really good chilie there including some rattlesnake chilie that had quite a bite to it.

 

[REWahoo]

Where is DanTien? There should be a poll on this by now.

Go to the top of the page on this topic and vote...early and often.

 

[SteveR]

Go to the top of the page on this topic and vote...early and often.

I saw that one....but since the scope has expanded to tomatoes and some other ingredients, it would seem appropriate to add to/create a new one to include these other vital crappy ingredients.

 

[Mr._johngalt]

Where is DanTien?  There should be a poll on this by now.   

I have lived a lot of places and chilie is differnet from place to place.  Sort of like BBQ.  There are significant differences from place to place....North Carolina vs St. Louis, etc.

My preference for chilie is actually Texan myself.  I lived there for a couple of years and became educated in Texas food.  I had some really good chilie there including some rattlesnake chilie that had quite a bite to it.

Fangs a lot.

JG

 

[BigMoneyJim]

Further clarification: I like starch with my chili. If I have just chili alone I like beans or pasta in it or--as a last resort--crackers. If I have chili on something like Fritos or a hot dog or burger or even plain bread then I don't want beans in it. But eating nothing but no-beans chili is a bit much for even this carnivore.

In New Mexico I think they spell their chile stew dish "chile".

Psst, Nords: there aren't a lot of chicken ranches or tofu ranches in Texas. They're a bit biased because of that I think.

 

[REWahoo]

....but since the scope has expanded to tomatoes and some other ingredients, it would seem appropriate to add to/create a new one [poll] to include these other vital crappy ingredients.

Oh, like this concoction?

JG-head stew? I don't think so.

And just how would that poll be structured?

Question: Does "JG-head stew" contain any ingredients?

No: It is an empty pot
Yes: But you can't find a cooking vessel large enough to hold it all

 

[JPatrick]

Further clarification: I like starch with my chili.

That sounds a bit kinky.   So whats next,  Fabric Softener? 

 

[BigMoneyJim]

So whats next, Fabric Softener?

No. Dryer sheets. Duh!

 

[nuisance]

I don't think beans are a necessary component of chili, so I voted no beans. Having said that, I do always chuck a bunch of (cooked) beans in my chili. Mainly to keep the cost down, but also because I like some starch in each meal.

More importantly, has anybody else experimented much with making your own chili powder? I've tried several times now, using some ancho and pasilla chiles with a single habanero. After blending it to dust it always smells heavenly, but that great smell never really translates into the actual stew. What am I doing wrong?

Tim

 

[riskadverse]

Chilli without beans is a sloppy joe minus the bun.

 

[sgeeeee]

. . .
Question: Does "JG-head stew" contain any ingredients?

No:  It is an empty pot  
Yes:  But you can't find a cooking vessel large enough to hold it all

John will laugh at this one too.  

 

[HFWR]

Chilli without beans is a sloppy joe minus the bun. 

Most folks don't use chili seasoning in their sloppy joe's, but hmmm...

Chili Joe's!! You want fries with that??

8)

 

[HFWR]

I don't think beans are a necessary component of chili, so I voted no beans. Having said that, I do always chuck a bunch of (cooked) beans in my chili. Mainly to keep the cost down, but also because I like some starch in each meal.

More importantly, has anybody else experimented much with making your own chili powder? I've tried several times now, using some ancho and pasilla chiles with a single habanero. After blending it to dust it always smells heavenly, but that great smell never really translates into the actual stew. What am I doing wrong?

Tim

One important ingredient of chili powder is cumin...

 

[SteveR]

Chilli without beans is a sloppy joe minus the bun. 

If that is what you think...you have never had REAL chilie.

My mother used to make this "stuff" she called chilie but is was more like tomato soup with ground beef....like Sloppy Joes. Yuck!

 

[Howard]

MJ, that is pretty well Chili North of the Border, although I add some Sherry to the mix as well as Sweet Basil, Cayenne pepper, plus usual suspects.

In our little community we have a Chili Cook Off, last year Road Kill won, no one is sure what went into it , but there were less dead Racoons at the side of the highway.

 

[Momtwo]

Real Texas chili doesn't include either beans or tomatoes.

Beef -preferably chuck, onions, garlic, chiles, oregano, cumin, and possibly a dash of coriander and a bay leaf. Anything else is an adulterant.

People put pinapple on pizza, but that doesn't mean that pinapple is an ingrediant of pizza. It just means someone doesn't know how to make the dish.

Same with chili.

Ha

I have to agree with you! My FIL lived in Texas and he taught me how to make chili back in the 60's. He never put beans in his chili. It was always all meat! To this day, we still make it that way!

Momtwo

 

[nuisance]

One important ingredient of chili powder is cumin...

I got the cumin, and also one or two other spices which I don't recall off the top of my head. I basically followed Joy of Cooking's recipe for making your own chili powder. Maybe I need to dry the chiles for longer.

Tim

 

[haha]

More importantly, has anybody else experimented much with making your own chili powder? I've tried several times now, using some ancho and pasilla chiles with a single habanero. After blending it to dust it always smells heavenly, but that great smell never really translates into the actual stew. What am I doing wrong?
Tim

Rural Norteños (and this gringo) usually use the chiles whole. Soak in water overnight. Change water (at this point I switch to beef stock) and simmer for a couple hours with salt. Then put through a sieve. This paste is your chili base. The rest is however you like to do it. If you do this, you will want to buy your chiles in a Mecican grocery, because they are quite expensive in supermarkets. You want enough mild to medium chiles (New Mexico, Ancho, California) to make a base, since you may not want to use an inauthentic ingrediant like tomato sauce. Then a little habnero, some fresh roasted serranos and jalapeños can give whatever flavor and hotness you want. A useful trick- if you get it hotter than you want, add a bit of extra ground cumin. Somehow it offsets the heat.

A shortcut is bags of ground mild chiles sold in many Mexican groceries. Not as good though, IMO.

Ha

 

[REWahoo]

Then a little habnero...

Vary darned little unless you particularly enjoy the sensation of a live charcoal briquette in your mouth.

 

[haha]

Vary darned little unless you particularly enjoy the sensation of a live charcoal briquette in your mouth.

I am surprised a this sentiment Señor REWahoo. My Thanksgiving relish featured habaneros. All the pleasure of thee M part of S&M, with no need to find a woman.

Ha

 

[MJ]

I had large Thai salad that was so hot (phet mak mak) that besides my mouth feeling the "warm glow" of the crushed peppers, I felt something was on my chin even though I kept wiping "it" with a napkin. So when I got back to my room and looked in the mirrow, I saw temporary mild inflamation around my chin where the juices had dripped down from my mouth. I got to watch how I eat that stuff.

Wow, that's what I call a "spiiiicy meatball".

No complaints though.

MJ