27 January, 2008

Stockpot Chili

Basic Ingredients. Serves 4 hungry beasts or a good family meal with leftovers.
This is a smaller batch than this recipe is for.
The recipe's quantities will fill this pot FULL!
  • 2 lb fairly lean hamburger
  • 2 lb sage sausage
  • 2 large white onion, chopped
  • 4-10 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped
  • 1-2 large bell pepper, chopped (1/4” or so)
  • 1-2 can beef broth, 15 oz (or water and concentrate)
  • 2-3 can beans, 15 oz, drained, black, or pinto. Spiced is nice.
  • 2 can diced tomatoes, 15 oz, undrained. Spiced is nice.
  • 1 can tomato sauce, 8 oz
  • 1-2 TBSP chili powder (or more)
  • 1 can of chilies
  • 2 tsp dried basil
  • 1 tsp to 1 TBSP cumin
  • 1 – 4 TBSP chili powder
  • Olive Oil if needed for frying

Maybe add some of these options. You do not want to add all of these in the same batch. Pick a couple.

  • Corn, frozen or canned: a can or a small bag
  • Some crumbled bacon: 3 slices to a pound
  • Fried mushrooms: whatever you like. More is better.
  • Coarsely chopped olives: some.
  • Dark beer instead of beef broth
  • 1 tsp oregano
  • 2-4 tablespoons paprika
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/4-1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried leaf oregano
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
  • Some Tabasco sauce: chipotle flavored is good. Less than a cup! Maybe a few teaspoons. How adventurous are you?
Serve with:

  • Shredded cheddar and/or Monterrey Jack cheese
  • Sour Cream
  • Homemade sourdough bread

Dutch oven or stockpot. Big is good.


Directions:

Cook the hamburger and sausage and brown on all sides, about 5 minutes. Add the onions, peppers, garlic, spices and cook, stirring often, until onions are soft, about 4 minutes. Deglaze the pan with the broth (or beer) and cook until the foam subsides, about 1 minute. 


Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, broth, and kidney beans to the pot. Stir well and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent the chili from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Add crumbled bacon, corn, olives if you like. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and adjust spices as necessary (roughly translated: add more of some of the spices if you like: boldness is good, but don’t get stupid). 

Simmer until vegetables are hot (and if using frozen corn, until it’s cooked).

Serve family style with bowls of shredded cheese, sour cream and maybe some more chopped onions. You might save the olives, fried mushrooms, and/or crumbled bacon for condiments, especially if you have finicky eaters.

Works best with a good amber ale or strong ale. Maybe an oatmeal stout.

Review: This is not so much a recipe as a launch point. Gather round your ingredients, and while the meat is simmering, make some executive decisions. Involve the family. There are a thousand excellent variations of this. 

This does really well if it's cooked all day, but it begins to all look the same. Recommended: save the corn, some beans, some of the peppers, olives if you use them, and add them half an hour before serving, to keep their shape and color, to make it look interesting. 

It's far better than anything I've ever had from a can or even from a restaurant!