You know how it is when you read a recipe saying it’s “the BEST” around? There are too many of them, so how do you decide?
Fall has “arriven” here in SoCal. So happy to have cooler days. Lighting my fireplace in the evenings, even wearing a sweater part of the time. I was craving chili, and couldn’t decide whether I should just defrost a package of some I made last spring, or to try something new. When I looked through the America’s Test Kitchen’s recipe for chili, claiming it’s the “best,” I thought why not try it. But then, I didn’t have all the ingredients (chuck roast for one). I didn’t have fresh jalapeno peppers, either. Nor did I have beer on hand (I don’t drink it). I had a handyman working here in my house so decided I’d make do with what I did have (ground beef and ground pork) and canned chiles, and I used beef broth instead of beer. So the bottom line to this recipe is that I changed it a lot, but I also liked it a lot.
Ancho chiles are my new favorite thing in chili – they add so much complex flavor. The chiles I had weren’t hard-crisp-dried, but still somewhat soft, so it took a bit of doing to get them chopped up. The food processor didn’t do a very good job of it, so I plopped them out on my cutting board and used a big chef’s knife to chop them up into much smaller pieces. Back into the food processor, and whizzed them for a long time – eventually I got tiny pieces and a lot of coarse chile dust. Perfect.
First I sauteed some chopped onion, then added celery (not in the original recipe) just because it adds some more flavor and fiber, then garlic. I removed all that to a bowl while I browned the ground beef (as it happened I’d purchased some wagyu ground beef at Costco) and ground pork. Then I added the ancho chiles, some chili powder, cornmeal (gives it a little texture and thickening), dried oregano, ground cumin AND some cocoa powder. Say what? Maybe this is a take on Mexican mole, which uses chocolate. It’s not like you can taste the chocolate (there were only two teaspoons). Also an unusual item, molasses. Canned black beans (and you can add more – I used just one can) and canned tomatoes were added too, then canned green chiles and beef broth. Here’s where you could add the lager if you had it (instead of broth).
The onions went back in and I set it to simmer for about an hour. Done. It needed salt and toppings to finish. Usually I prefer to let chili sit overnight in the frig (helps it develop better flavor, as in a lot of dishes like soups and stews), but I had some for my lunch yesterday, with shredded cheese (Mexican cheese blend) and some cilantro. You could add lots of other toppings: freshly grated raw onion, green onions, crushed Fritos, tortilla chips, fresh chopped tomatoes and even some minced Jalapeno peppers. So even though it hadn’t melded overnight, I thought the flavor was wonderful!
What’s GOOD: you can make this in an hour or so. It probably could be made in the Instant Pot in a lot less time too, though you’d need to scale down the recipe as I think it would make it too full. I liked it a LOT. Very nice, deep, complex flavors. Notice how dark the color is – a lot from the ancho chiles, but also the cocoa. This recipe is a keeper. Certainly I didn’t stick to the America’s Test Kitchen recipe very well, but I liked my riff.
What’s NOT: only that it does take at least 90 minutes to make, maybe a bit longer. It makes a big batch, and even more if you added another can of beans. I try to limit carbs, so used just one can. Great for freezing.
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Chili, the BEST?
Recipe: Adapted significantly from America’s Test Kitchen
Servings: 7
1 tablespoon light olive oil — or neutral oil
2 medium onions — chopped finely
2 1/2 cup celery — chopped finely
4 medium garlic cloves — minced or pressed through garlic press (about 4 teaspoons)
2 pounds lean ground beef
1 pound ground pork
6 ancho chiles — (dried) stems and seeds removed, and flesh torn into small pieces
2 tablespoons chili powder
3 tablespoons cornmeal
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons cocoa powder
4 ounces canned green chiles — chopped
16 ounces canned black beans — undrained
15 ounces diced tomatoes
5 cups low sodium beef broth — or use a light lager if you have it available
2 teaspoons molasses
table salt to taste
TOPPINGS: grated cheese, chopped cilantro, grated onion, chopped green onions, crushed Fritos, crushed tortilla chips, chopped tomatoes, minced Jalapeno chiles
1. In a large Dutch oven heat light olive oil over medium heat. Add the chopped onions and saute until softened, about 10-15 minutes. Add celery and continue cooking for about 5 minutes, then add garlic. Cook for about one minute.
2. Remove the onion mixture from the pan and set aside.
3. Meanwhile, chop up the ancho chiles with scissors or a sharp knife, then whiz in a food processor until the chiles are in very small pieces or coarse dust.
4. Add the ground beef and ground pork to the pot and saute, chopping up the meat to separate it as it cooks. Once the pink has disappeared, add the chopped ancho chiles, chile powder (a jarred variety or make your own), ground cumin, cocoa powder cornmeal and oregano. Stir well, then add add canned tomatoes, canned green chiles, black beans (including the juice), molasses, then the beef broth and stir well.
5. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook over very low heat for about an hour, stirring a few times to make sure the mixture isn’t sticking on the bottom. Taste for salt.
6. Allow mixture to cool fully and refrigerate (if possible) overnight. The flavors will meld.
7. Serve bowls of reheated chili with grated cheese and cilantro on top. Or put out small bowls of the various toppings and let people have a choice.
Per Serving: 389 Calories; 10g Fat (23.7% calories from fat); 49g Protein; 25g Carbohydrate; 8g Dietary Fiber; 119mg Cholesterol; 673mg Sodium; 6g Total Sugars; trace Vitamin D; 102mg Calcium; 7mg Iron; 1280mg Potassium; 519mg Phosphorus.
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