Second day in a row it's raining. Talk about blissful. High yesterday was 68 and today's shaping up to be a little warmer, but nothing like the triple digits we've had. It's great chili weather.
Moving to Tucson resulted in a gigantic learning curve. I mean, not only are the seasons all messed up, but I also learned that chili doesn't mean it's automatically made with ground beef. It also doesn't mean there are any beans in it and often there's no tomato either. It could be either red or green in color and I'm still trying to find out what the difference is between chili and chile. I've been reformed - I call the "other chili" cheater chili now.
This particular recipe is really a combination of a few recipes that I've put my mark on to suit our tastes. To the real Texan, it may be an abomination, but we like it and that's what counts. It's made from cubed chuck so in some respects it is a stew as the meat is braised low and slow. I often make it out of left over bbq'd brisket, but unfortunately there wasn't any left over from the party. It does NOT have beans in it either. If you want them, you can certainly add them on the side, along with chopped raw onion and grated cheese. Also some corn chips or tortillas go very well with your bowl of red.
As for following my own recipe Download Texas Chili I neglected to coat the meat cubes in a little flour before browning them. I should be SHOT - I got carried away and skipped this step which meant I had to thicken the chili just before serving - we don't like it runny. I could have used masa flour or even some broken up corn tortillas to do this, but I used a flour/water slurry. Also, believe it or not, this is NOT a 5 alarm chili - it is subtle in heat, so you may have to add more spice mixture. Don't be afraid to experiment. I often add more seasonings during the last half hour before I serve it. Just remember, you can add heat, but you can't take it away as easily. You can alter it a little though by adding some "sweet" like honey or maple syrup, or even barbecue sauce and some sour cream on the side should cut the mouth burn. Give it a try and let me know what you think!
Yum! our very favorite! Never a time when
chili does not taste good and I bet this is
delicous.
Posted by: Betty | 05/26/2009 at 06:46 PM