Better Than The Chili Cook Off Chili: Tuesday, October 25 2011

Texas Chili

Last night Anderson celebrated its Thirteenth Annual Chili Cook Off.  This is a fun event that features a lot of good recipes and quality entertainment provided by Sons of Seuss. However, for the first time in years Chris and I skipped it and took the party to our own kitchen. 

First of all, Tuesdays are school nights.  I feel really old admitting that but yes, 6:30 AM comes really early and we have to make sure everyone gets a good night’s sleep. Plus, for significantly less money than we would have spent on the event, we purchased everything we needed for chili plus a good six-pack of beer to enjoy in the privacy of our own home. Chris already has one Chili Cook Off victory under her belt (in Texas, no less) so I knew the quality would be championship grade.  Even better, I did not have to pay admission or wear a silly wristband.

Prep

½ Onion, diced

Four cloves of garlic, finely chopped

One pablano pepper, diced



Fresh Ground Coriander

Coriander powder:  Chris discovered that she was out of the powder but she had seeds. Instead of running back to the store, she toasted up the seeds and ground them up in a coffee grinder to make her own powder.  This was cheap, easy, and smelled delicious.

One chipotle pepper: the pepper was dried so Chris soaked it in water and microwaved it briefly to “reconstitute” it.  Then she chopped it up for the chili.

Cook It Up

First, Chris “put a nice seer on this here meat”. Apparently that is Texas talk for browning about a pound of ground chuck in the pot before adding the rest of the ingredients.
                2-3 tsp Mexican chili powder

                2 tsp ground cumin 

                2-4 tsp ground coriander 

                2 tsp chipotle chili powder

                1 ½ tsp oregano

                13 drops of Big Daddy’s Amplified Heat hot sauce

                13 drops of Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce

After browning the meat, she added the stuff listed above plus the following spices and tasty goodness:

                Small handful of fresh cilantro

                A little salt & pepper

                2 tsp flour

                2-3 bay leaves



The Start of a Great Chili



After the flour she stirred it all up and let it cook for a few minutes before tasting it. Then she added some more stuff...

¼ cup of Sweetwater Motor Boat ESB

2 tbsp of water that the chipotle pepper soaked in

One can of Marzano whole tomatoes

Less than 1 tsp of salt

From here there was nothing left to do but let it simmer and yell at me for stealing too many tastes along the way.

Oh yeah, we also carved pumpkins... with power tools.







The Result



Our entire grocery store trip cost $20.42. This included all of the ingredients we needed plus a six-pack of Sweetwater Motor Boat ESB which turned out to complement the chili perfectly. Basically, we spent $5.42 more than we would have paid just to gain entry to Anderson’s Chili Cook Off. With all due respect to the participating restaurants at the event, Chris’s chili was better.



Chris swears by her Texas-style chili which excludes the beans you usually find in chili around here and that is just fine by me.  It is simple, it is hearty, and the flavors hit every taste bud I own.  The initial taste when it hits your lips is decorated with the flavors of the spices on its way to the back part of your mouth before the peppers kick in.  There is definitely heat but it is not overpowering and you really get to taste the chili before it kicks in.  Ivan is six years old and naturally a bit sensitive to spicy foods but even he enjoyed the balance of the flavors and the zing of the peppers and hot sauce.  In spite of the fact that he chugged two glasses of milk along the way, he said he would not have minded if it was even a little hotter.

Speaking of the heat, Chris likes her chili hotter than us normal folks can handle.  She addressed this craving by adding a few freshly cut jalapeno peppers to hers and by the red shade of her cheeks, I think I am happy I left out this one finishing touch.



All in all, this was a delicious meal with an award winning history and great fun without the hassle of going out on a Tuesday night.  As far as I am concerned, Chris can have a one-team Chili Cook Off in our kitchen any time she wants.