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cam's "adopted from Texas" chili

feeds 2 with some leftovers

ingredients

  • 1lb 80/20 ground beef
  • 1 white onion
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 red bell pepper
  • 1 green bell pepper
  • 1 poblano pepper
  • 1 box of beef stock
  • 1 28oz can crushed tomato
  • 1 14oz can of corn (drained)
  • tomato paste (the kind in a squeeze tube is good because you don't need much)
  • ground corriander
  • smoked paprika ('regular' parprika is not even close)
  • cumin
  • oregano
  • cinnamon
  • chili powder
  • dry bay leaf
  • worcestershire sauce
  • crystal hot sauce
  • oil (veg, canola, olive, whatever)
  • salt & pepper
  • baking soda

prep

chop all veg before you start cooking

  1. grab your favorite chili pot and place on low heat
  2. coat beef with 2 tsp baking soda and put aside
  3. slather poblano with oil. place on a metal tray and broil on top rack of oven. keep an eye on it and turn until skin is bubbled and black on all sides
  4. place poblano in a sealed container and put aside
  5. fine dice half of the onion
  6. mince garlic
  7. remove seeds from red & green peppers and 1/4" dice
  8. remove poblano from container and pull out the stem. slice in half and remove seeds
  9. using your fingers or the blade of a knife, peel the skin from the poblano and 1/4" dice
  10. set out your spices. go ahead and open any cans you'll be using

cook

i use a big wooden spoon for stirring. feels right.

  1. your pot should be nice and warm by now. add 2tbps oil and turn it up to medium heat
  2. add garlic and onions. stir as needed until onions are translucent
  3. add all peppers
  4. turn heat up a bit. add beef. break it up and brown it. it'll release a lot of fat. this is ok. we'll skim some off the top later
  5. add 2tsp salt and a few cranks of black pepper
  6. once the meat is browned, clear a spot in the center of the pot. add a dash of oil here and add 2tbsp tomato paste on top of the oil. simmer the paste until it has browned a bit
  7. add corn, crushed tomatos, beef stock, and bay leaf. bring to boil
  8. if you're drinking a beer, pour some in. if not, choose something fun
  9. once brought to boil, reduce to low heat
  10. add spices. generally i start by putting in .25tsp of each and add more as i go. you probably won't need to add more cinnamon
  11. add a few big dashes of worcestershire
  12. add hot sauce to taste
  13. when you're happy with where it's at, cover pot for ~15 minutes
  14. remove lid and skim fat off the top (as much or little as you want)
  15. enjoy with your favorite chili toppings