Texas Christmas Chili Food

CHRISTMAS CHILI

Steps:

• Place beef, onions and bell peppers in large Dutch oven.
• Sprinkle with 1 ½ tablespoons chili powder, 1 tablespoon garlic powder, and basil.
• Using a wooden spoon, blend together and brown very slowly.
• You may drain if desired, but mine didn’t have a lot of grease, so I didn’t bother.
• Place tomatoes in food processor and process just long enough to cup up large pieces.
• Put tomatoes, beans and beer in with meat and bring to a low simmer.
• Add remaining chili and garlic powder.
• Add pepper.
• Cook slowly for at least 2 hours.
• Serve with cheese and onion.

SEVEN-CHILE TEXAS CHILI

Steps:

• Heat the dried chiles (anchos, pasillas, costenos, guajillos, and chiles de arbol) in a dry, cast-iron skillet on medium for a couple of minutes on each side. Turn off the heat and then add enough water to the skillet to cover the chiles, and let them soak for half an hour.
• Meanwhile, in a large heavy pot, such as a Dutch oven, fry up your bacon. When done, remove from pan and crumble (Don't worry if you opt to eat a slice-you deserve it!) and leave the bacon grease in the pot (it should be about 3 tablespoons). In the pot, cook your beef in the bacon grease on medium heat, a few minutes on each side until lightly browned. You will probably have to cook these in 2 batches.
• Remove the browned beef from the pot, and add your onions. Cook on medium until clear. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Put the beef back in the pot, and mix in the coffee, the beer, water, bacon crumbles, cumin, cinnamon, clove, allspice, coriander, and cayenne. Add salt to taste and turn the heat up to high.
• Your soaking chiles should be soft by now. Drain and rinse, discarding the soaking water (it will be bitter) and place them in a blender along with the canned chipotle chiles and one cup of fresh water. Puree until nice and smooth and then add the chile puree to the chili pot.
• When chili begins to boil, turn heat down to low and let simmer for five hours, stirring occasionally. Taste it once an hour, and if the flavors are too muted, feel free to add more of any of the spices. Also, it starts to get too dry, add more liquid (your choice!).
• After 5 hours, take a Mexican hot chocolate disc, and finely grate 1/3 of it into the pot. Scoop out 1 cup of broth and add the masa harina. Mix it well and then reincorporate it back into the pot. Stir until chili is thickened.
• Let the chili simmer for another half hour or so. Taste and adjust seasonings. When done, serve with cheddar, onions and tortillas.

TEXAS CHILI

Steps:

• Mix the spices all together in a small bowl. Set aside.
• Season the beef with salt and pepper.
• In a large pot over medium-high heat, heat 1 tablespoon of oil. Add the beef and brown on all sides, about 5 minutes. Transfer the beef from the pot onto a paper towel lined plate.
• Pour in the second tablespoon of oil, and add the chopped onion and jalapeño, and cook until tender, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic, and cook for 30 seconds or until fragrant.
• Add the spice mix, and stir. Return the beef to the pot, along with the diced tomatoes and juice, chipotle, tomato paste, beef broth, and bay leaves. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer. Simmer for 30 minutes.
• Remove the bay leaves, and serve while hot. Top with cheddar cheese, sliced jalapeños, or sour cream.

TEXAS CHRISTMAS CHILI

Steps:

• You will start with two pots; one for the meat mixture and one for the beans. Later, they will be cooked together, so I use a pot for the beans that will be large enough to accomodate all of it. I think you will need a 4-5 quart pot.
• Fry ground beef and bacon. Drain 1/2-3/4 grease. Add one tablespoon chili powder, jalepeno sauce (or fresh jalepenos) one small diced onion and fry on medium high. Once plenty of grease is showing, add Louisiana chiles and tomato sauce (or diced tomatoes and red pepper). Simmer for one hour.
• I usually use a quick cook method to cook the dry beans! :-) Wash beans thoroughly and toss out any stung beans. Put in pot with plenty of water to cover. Hard boil for 5 minutes. Turn off the burner and let sit for at least one hour. Add garlic and one tablespoon of chili powder. Cook until beans can be cut clean. Then add finely chopped small onion, one tablespoon paprika, red kidney beans, and meat sauce. Once beans are cooked thoroughly, simmer over low heat until sauce is thick and rich.
• Serve hot (with saltines if desired.).
• *I have successfully frozen this in single serving containers.

TEXAS CHILI

Steps:

• Tear the guajillo and ancho chiles into about 1-inch pieces. In a medium saucepan, toast the chiles over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until fragrant and darkened in spots, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the onion, garlic and enough water to cover by 1-inch. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the chiles are softened, about 10 minutes. Drain well and discard the liquid.
• Transfer the chili mixture to a blender with the beef broth, cornmeal, oregano and cumin. Puree until smooth, about 1 minute. Set aside.
• Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. In a large bowl, toss the beef with the salt and pepper. Working in batches, cook the meat until browned on all sides, 8-10 minutes per batch.
• Return all the beef to the pot and stir in the chili mixture. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cover and reduce the heat to low. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the meat is very tender, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
• Stir in the cider vinegar. Season the chili to taste with salt. Serve topped with queso fresco, pickled jalapeños, cilantro and corn chips, if you like.

EASY TEXAS CHILI

Steps:

• Cook and stir the beef, onion, and bell pepper in a large pot over medium heat until the beef is brown and onion and pepper are tender, about 10 minutes. Drain grease from beef.
• Stir in beans, tomatoes, tomato sauce, jalapenos (if using), chili powder, red pepper flakes, black pepper, salt, and garlic powder. Bring mixture to a slow boil; cover and reduce heat. Simmer chili at least 30 minutes, stirring occasionally so that it does not stick. This chili can be simmered for several hours; the longer you simmer, the more flavor you will get.

TEXAS CHILI

Steps:

• In a small saucepan, bring 1 cup stock to a boil. Add chilies. Remove from heat; cover and let stand 20 minutes. Remove and discard stems from seeds from chiles. Put chiles and soaking liquid into a food processor or blender. Cover and process until smooth., In a large bowl, combine 4 tablespoons flour , salt and pepper. Add beef, a few pieces at a time, and toss to coat. , In a Dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat. Brown beef in batches, adding additional oil as necessary. Remove with a slotted spoon. Add onion to same pan; cook and stir until tender, 5-7 minutes. Add garlic; cook 1-2 minutes. Add remaining 2 cups broth, stirring to loosen browed bits from pan. Stir in chile mixture. Return beef to pan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered until beef is tender, 1-1/2 to 2 hours. Skim fat. Stir vinegar, cilantro, brown sugar and cumin; simmer another 10 minutes. If desired, serve with tortillas, sour cream, lime wedges and additional cilantro.