Chili/Soup/Stew thread

[MaryB]

With fall coming and a cool day I thought a bowl of chili would be tasty.

1 medium onion chopped
2 small cloves of garlic
bacon fat(maybe a tablespoon)
Pound of hamburger(doing quick chili, slow chili I use hand chopped chuck roast)
1 beer
Pint tomato sauce
tablespoon beef base
pint of cooked pinto beans
Chili powder to taste(I used maybe 1/3 cup mild and a teaspoon of my super hot)
Salt to taste(watch this beef base adds a lot of salt)
Water to cover

Melt bacon fat and add onion and cook until half done, add hamburger and break it up and brown it. When the hamburger is almost browned add the garlic and mild chili powder and cook until the chili powder is fragrant. Then add the beer, tomato sauce, beef base, cooked beans, water to cover and simmer until it thickens up a bit.

https://i.imgur.com/FZCyj6V.jpg

[buckwheatpaul]

Makes my mouth water....probably have 20+ recipes for chili....one more will be added!

[dale2242]

Got cornbread baking to serve with that????...dale

[GhostHawk]

Right on Mary!

Soup season is starting.
I like a good vegetable beef myself.

I prefer to start with something with a bone in it. But other than that I am pretty unfussy. One of my best actually had half a ribeye and nothing else beef wise.

Pot half full of water, beef of whatever you have, good sprinkling of Adolph's meat tenderizer, dash of garlic. Add a large can of whole, diced, crushed tomatoes and a bay leaf. After an hour add up to a cup of barley.

And hour after that you can cut up 3-4 stalks of celery and drop in there. 3-5 carrots, half an hour later a couple of potatoes peeled, cubed. Turnip or rutebega if you got em.

About the time the meat starts falling off the bone I scoop out all the bones and beef.
Remove anything you don't like. My wife does not like gristle, me I love it so I eat it off the cutting board. With the bones out and gone dice the meat up small and add it back in.

At this point you should have 3-5 hours of simmering and it is starting to get good.
You can add any vegitable you like. But I like to finish with a half a head of cabbage cut into 1/4" strips and spoon length. Salt and pepper to taste. Cornbread of course on the side.

Going to have to go looking in the freezer for beef bones soon.

[6bg6ga]

I'm sure we have some threads on this already.

[6bg6ga]

There are a number of chili recipes. Why not simply bring back an old thread?

[6bg6ga]

didn't come out right but a simple search will yeald a number of different chili recipes so why not just add to them or make one big comprehensive chili thread?

[fivefang]

Dale, my cornbread has Black beans & Serrano peppers & whole kernel Corn, baked @400 in a 12 Cast iron Skillet lubed with Coconut Oil, spicy but delightful, it does not matter if you have Miller or Tecate to go with it, one or the other does fine, Fivefang

[DerekP Houston]

There are a number of chili recipes. Why not simply bring back an old thread?

Why use 3 posts to repeat yourself? It's a recipe share, get over it.

Sounds delicious MaryB!

[MT Gianni]

Every soup/stew/chile recipe i have starts with sauteing onions and garlic. This looks great.

[Hickory]

1/3 cup of chili powder?

[MaryB]

Yes 1/3 cup! This is chili, not tomato soup! One I am using is pretty mild so it is not strong at all.

No cornbread, trying to cut back a bit on breads...

[MaryB]

Why dig back? This was a new made on the spot recipe using what I had on hand... We are sharing recipes here and if people have new ones let them fly! I rarely make anything the exact same way!


I'm sure we have some threads on this already.

[DerekP Houston]

Yes 1/3 cup! This is chili, not tomato soup! One I am using is pretty mild so it is not strong at all.

No cornbread, trying to cut back a bit on breads...

What brand chili powder do you prefer to use? I've found they vary quite a bit on flavor. Smoked paprika is my secret ingredient since chipotle is too spicy for the wife and kid.

[MaryB]

I am using Penzey's which is salt free(why I can get away with 1/3 cup!). The mild is very bland on its own so plan to boost it if you like heat. Friend ate a bite of my chili and she was on fire... I thought this batch was rather mild... my homemade chili powder has 13 chili's in it, 6 of them very hot! I used a teaspoon of my homemade to add the heat.

https://www.penzeys.com/online-catalog/regular-chili-powder/c-24/p-55/pd-s

Many grocery store chili powders are heavy on the salt so adjust accordingly!

[Mtnfolk75]

We had about 1/2 lb of Lean Hamburger left from another recipe on Saturday, tried this basic recipe tonite basically cut in half except we used a 29 oz can of Sun Vista Pinto Beans. We like beany Chili .... :roll: We served it topped with Shredded Mexican Style Cheese and made up a box of Krusteaz Cornbread. Thanx for the recipe, MaryB [smilie=s:

[DerekP Houston]

We had about 1/2 lb of Lean Hamburger left from another recipe on Saturday, tried this basic recipe tonite basically cut in half except we used a 29 oz can of Sun Vista Pinto Beans. We like beany Chili .... :roll: We served it topped with Shredded Mexican Style Cheese and made up a box of Krusteaz Cornbread. Thanx for the recipe, MaryB [smilie=s:

I know it's not supposed to be a "Texan" thing...but I enjoy beans in my chili too ;) don't tell Charlie! Cheap and filling, I prefer a course ground meat or chunks instead of the normal ground beef though.

[MaryB]

If I am making chili dog chili I skip the beans, but for eating? Any better way to stretch a pound of hamburger to 3 meals than add a bunch of beans? LOL If I make classic Texas Red with hand chopped chuck I will skip the beans and serve them on the side.

[Mtnfolk75]

Agreed, MaryB. Chili Dawgs should be Beanless, BTW the batch we made yesterday was just enough for SWMBO & I. The Dawg just barely got a taste :drinks:

[Moonie]

Below is my chili recipe, making the chili powder is complicated and involved and makes the process more drawn out but it really makes a huge difference, using store bought chili powder makes a great chili, the home made makes it incredible:

1TB Vinegar
1TB Ground Cumin
1/3-1/2 C Home made Chili powder (recipe below)
½ TB Salt
1 Medium onion, finely chopped
28 oz fine diced tomatos
1 tsp Pepper
10oz Chicken Stock (I usually replace this with a 16oz dark beer)
2 beef bullion cubes
2lbs coarse ground or diced beef, venison or your meat of choice
1TB minced Garlic
1tsp Oregano
1TB Mesa flour
1/2 cup water

2tsp Chipotle Chili Powder *
1/2tsp Hot sauce*
1/2tsp Cayenne Pepper*

In a large bowl combine beef, onions and garlic. in a Dutch oven or stockpot brown beef. Add all remaining ingredients except mesa and 1/2 cup water. Stir until well blended. Simmer covered for 2 hours stiring occasionally.

1/2 hour before time to eat combine mesa and 1/2 cup water and mix well, add to chili and stir. This is where you want to add beans if you want to use them.

Ingredients with a * after them should be left out for mild chili, all 3 of them will increase the spiciness, if you want it even spicier then increase the Cayenne pepper and hot sauce or change its type to a hotter one.

------------------------------
Home made chili powder.

Ingredients

3 ancho chiles, stemmed, seeded and sliced
3 guajillo chiles, stemmed, seeded and sliced
3 dried arbol chiles, stemmed, seeded and sliced
2 tablespoons whole cumin seeds
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon smoked paprika

Directions
Place all of the chiles and the cumin into a medium nonstick saute pan or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Cook, moving the pan around constantly, until you begin to smell the cumin toasting, approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Set aside and cool completely.

Once cool, place the chiles and cumin into the carafe of a blender along with the garlic powder, oregano, and paprika. Process until a fine powder is formed. Allow the powder to settle for at least a minute before removing the lid of the carafe. Store in an airtight container for up to 6 months.

[MaryB]

You aren't kidding about letting the powder settle! My homemade chili powder has habenero in it, thai bird chili's, serrano... I popped the lid on the coffee grinder to soon when doing the habenero... eyes watering, nose running, coughing... load that stuff in a paintball and it would be effective crowd control if fine ground so it floats in the air.

[Ole Joe Clarke]

We had left over household soup last night with cornbread. There is no recipe, just start with some tomatoes and add left overs from the fridge, some potatoes and anything else you like.

Ya'll are making me hungry just reading about this good food.

Have a blessed day,

Leon

[Moonie]

You aren't kidding about letting the powder settle! My homemade chili powder has habenero in it, thai bird chili's, serrano... I popped the lid on the coffee grinder to soon when doing the habenero... eyes watering, nose running, coughing... load that stuff in a paintball and it would be effective crowd control if fine ground so it floats in the air.

I can relate, I had a friend that found out I had a juicer and brought me some jalepeno's, wanted them juiced... Do NOT do something like that, it was very painful, pepper sprayed the whole room...

[Landy88]

Beef & Beer Stew

3 slices of bacon - diced
4 onions - in 1/2" wedges
1 T oil
2 lbs beef - 1" cubes - elk venison is better yet, deer doesn't work as well for some reason.
3 T flour

Brown all of these, and then add:

2 t brown sugar - I use only one
1 T cider vinegar
3/4 t salt
1/4 t fresh ground BP - I use 1/2 t
12 oz dark beer - Modelo Negra works well, is easy to find, and another bottle or three washes it down nicely.
1/2 t dried thyme leaves

Bake all for 2 hours at 350

I know that it's missing some traditional stew ingredients, but try it as is before you add anything.

[Rick N Bama]

We had left over household soup last night with cornbread. There is no recipe, just start with some tomatoes and add left overs from the fridge, some potatoes and anything else you like.

Ya'll are making me hungry just reading about this good food.

Have a blessed day,

Leon

That's what we call "Clean-Out Stew".

[MaryB]

Fridge clean out soup... whatever has been in there a couple days... although these days I try to not make things that make to many leftovers....

[texasnative46]

MaryB,

As the late Paul Crume of THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS famously said: If it has beans in it, it ain't chili.

Btw, chili was invented by San Antonio's CHILI QUEENS about 1830 to feed the flood of single men, who came to The Alamo City seeking free land, a Latina wife & in many cases, a NEW start.
(A bowl of chili with tortillas, onions & coffee cost "one small Spanish silver coin" in SEP 1935, according to the BEJAR EXPRESS.)

TEXAS RED is believed to have been originally based on a COMANCHE recipe that used horsemeat, masa, water & dried chilies as the main ingredients.

yours, tex

[MaryB]

Yup my traditional chili with hand chopped chuck is bean free, as is my chili dog chili made with ground beef. But I like to stretch the meat supply sometimes and beans are cheap! Plus I like pintos when they soak up that chili liquid.

[Rick N Bama]

Yup my traditional chili with hand chopped chuck is bean free, as is my chili dog chili made with ground beef. But I like to stretch the meat supply sometimes and beans are cheap! Plus I like pintos when they soak up that chili liquid.

The good people of Kentucky put Spaghetti in their Chili to make it stretch. I just can't bring myself to eat it that way.

[texasnative46]

Rick N Bama; MaryB,

I cannot imagine that those good folks in KY know much about chili.
(I was once stationed there with the MPs at Ft Knox & found NO decent Tex-Mex anyplace.)

NO self-respecting Texican would even consider putting beans/pasta into chili. = We often serve pinto/black beans WITH chili. = That's where the "chili sets" that have a tray with TWO bowls & a pair of spoons came from.

yours, tex

[DerekP Houston]

Rick N Bama; MaryB,

I cannot imagine that those good folks in KY know much about chili.
(I was once stationed there with the MPs at Ft Knox & found NO decent Tex-Mex anyplace.)

NO self-respecting Texican would even consider putting beans/pasta into chili. = We often serve pinto/black beans WITH chili. = That's where the "chili sets" that have a tray with TWO bowls & a pair of spoons came from.

yours, tex

lol guess I ain't self-respecting :D, no arguements here. Beans are just cheaper than beef, I find it hard to believe this wasn't true back in 'the day' as well.

[texasnative46]

DerekP Houston,

IF pasta/beans being dumped into chili isn't bad enough, some places "way up yonder" put shaved pieces of CHOCOLATE in what they call chili. = YETCH.

yours, tex

[DerekP Houston]

DerekP Houston,

IF pasta/bean being dumped into chili isn't bad enough, some places "way up yonder" put shaved pieces of CHOCOLATE in what they call chili. = YETCH.

yours, tex

That sounds disgusting.....at least to me. I bet they make tofu chili in California though (looking at you OS OK!)

[texasnative46]

DerekP Houston,

I know for a fact that the folks in "Duh Pepul's Republick of Kalifornication" add guacamole dip, mayonnaise, crumbled bacon, shredded cheese, chopped scallions & a bunch of other stuff to what they CLAIM is "chili". = I was once stationed with HQUSAMTMC in LA County.
(I must admit that the BEST Cambodian food that I've ever eaten was in San Pedro, in a "hole in the wall joint" that only had 4 stools & 3 tables for 4. = My then GF & I had lunch with Paul Newman & Joanne Woodward one day. = He asked me very politely if they could join us at table, as there were NO empty tables. = Rachel said, "Oh indeed you may." - Nice guy & lady, too.)

yours, tex

[texasnative46]

To All,

BTW, REAL Mexican food in the USA is "where you find it". = When I was stationed in Baltimore, MD during Desert Shield, of all places, I was told that there was a GREAT Mexican café out near John's Hopkins hospital.

YEP, GREAT/authentic Mexican there. = Turns out that a young female MD from JHHC went to Acapulco on vacation for a month, met a YM on the beach, fell in love, married him there & insisted that he return to B'more with her.
Turns out that he was the Head Chef at a hotel in Mexico City & a few months after he came to the USA they opened a café in Charm City.
(I'd bet money that that place is the ONLY decent place in MD to have Mexican food.)

yours, tex

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I bought one of those mini crock pots...I think it's 1.5qt ?
It is perfect for Bachelor chili.

Bachelor chili
There isn't much to it, I use whatever leftover meat is in the frig, roast pork or roast beef prefered.
One 15oz can of chili beans...that is beans (pintos or navy or ???) with chili powder in the liquid.
Some chunk tomatos, fresh or canned.
a tablespoon of tomato paste
chili powder
garlic, since I grow garlic I use fresh, but garlic powder is fine.
fresh course ground black pepper
Cayenne powder to taste
salt to taste (optional)

Put it all in the mini crockpot, including the canned bean liquid...but NOT including any liquid from the canned tomatoes, if you aren't using fresh.

I start this early in the morning before breakfast and then I have lunch and supper ready when needed.

PS, this could be done with a small pot on the woodstove as well, double-boiler style if your stove is a HOT one.

[Reverend Al]

I love to add dumplings in my stews ...


Easy Dumplings for Soups or Stews

1-1/2 cup All-purpose Flour
1/2 cup Yellow Cornmeal
1 Tablespoon (heaping) Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
1-1/2 cup Half-and-half
2 Tablespoons Minced Fresh Parsley or 1 Teaspoon of Sage (optional) or both
Salt as needed

Mix all of the dry ingredients and then add the 1/2 and 1/2 and mix until you have a slightly dry dough. Add to soups or stews by heaping tablespoons and put the lid back on and let them simmer for another 15 minutes or more.

(The cornmeal helps them to hold their shape so that they don't fall apart.)

[MaryB]

Beef heart stew

1/2 a beef heart cleaned and cubed
Chopped onion
Chopped garlic
Rendered fat from fat trimmed form the heart, do this first and render it while cleaning sinew/veins from the heart. I sliced the fat 1/4" thick and put it in the dutch oven on low heat.

Brown the meat in the rendered fat with the onion, add the garlic towards the end so it doesn't burn
Add water to cover
Add Beef Base(Better Than Bullion) to taste
Pepper to taste

Simmer until the meat starts to get semi tender then add

Peeled and cut up carrot
Peeled and cubed potato

Simmer until veg is tender
Thicken with method of choice(I use cornstarch)