ArcaMax

Editor's Note: We think you'll enjoy this previously published Zola classic.

Let’s Get Warm with Chili

Chile is the pepper. Chili is the concoction.

And now that we’ve got that straight, let’s talk chili. It’s getting chilly outside these days so it’s a perfect time.

The history of chili is long and varied. Even the International Chili Society debates the origins of chili. (Yes, there IS an International Chili Society). Chili has been around in one form or another since cooking began.

The origins of Texas chili seems to have come from a range cook who was working along the cattle trail, feeding the hungry men at the end of a long day of rustling steer. Here’s his original recipe:

CHILI CON CARNE

Cut up as much meat as you think you will need (any kind will do, but beef is probably best) in pieces about the size of a pecan. Put it in a pot, along with some suet (enough so as the meat won't stick to the sides of the pot), and cook it with about the same amount of wild onions, garlic, oregano, and chiles as you have got meat. Put in some salt. Stir it from time to time and cook it until the meat is as tender as you think it's going to get.

I love that last part about cooking it as long as it takes to get it tender. My theory is chili was developed as a full-flavored dish to mask the flavor of what was probably pretty bad meat.

I have another Texas chili story.

Years ago, we invited a couple over to our house for a Sunday meal. The gentleman decided he’d like to make his favorite chili. He was from Texas and said Texans make the best chili. He would bring the ingredients and make it in our kitchen. Oh, and by the way, he needed to start by 11 a.m. or the chili would not be done in time for dinner.

Yep. They just sort of invited themselves over for the entire day!

We had just met this couple a couple of months prior so we didn’t know them very well. We weren’t sure what we were going to do with them for an entire day. Turns out we didn’t really need to think too hard. They had plans.

In addition to all the ingredients they needed to make the chili, they brought fixins for bloody mary’s and for martinis. Their plan was to play board games and drink all day.

They put the meat on the stove and started to tenderize it. Their methodology involved continuing to add things to the meat as the day progressed and continually cook it over low heat so it would become melt-in-your-mouth tender.

My husband and I are not adept at drinking all afternoon but they were. Many a martini went down easy. We did enjoy playing the board games. Trivial Pursuit was in vogue then. We laughed and played a few rounds of that. In-between we watched football. The chili-man kept at his chili and around 7 p.m. we actually ate dinner. The chili was excellent but I never asked for the recipe. I’m not good at eight-hour recipes. I don’t have many of them in my recipe file.

The chili my Texan friend made was meat chili. I mean just meat and spices. No beans. No macaroni. No discernable vegetables. Nothing but meat. We made cornbread to round out the meal.

At chili contests you’ll see all manner of chili recipes now. White chili made with chicken and white beans. Chili made with hamburger or chili made with stewing meat. Veggie chili too. Chili is all over the place now.

I recommend chili as a tailgate item now. Instead of firing up the grill behind your vehicle I suggest you bring along a crock pot full of chili. It’s easy to eat; conveniently held in one hand. The chili will even keep your hand warm as you eat it. The chilies in the chili will keep your tummy warm during the game too. You can serve it in those cardboard bowls and clean up in a jiffy.

Chili is a traveler for sure. I’ve heard of truckers who brown up their meat at home, toss everything else for the chili along with the browned meat in a crock pot, plug it into the lighter socket and head off down the road. Chili’s done a few hours later, the cab of the truck smells fantastic and a crock pot full of chili makes several meals.

Chili travels to the office too and makes a fine and dandy meal heated in the microwave. A bowl of chili can even make a quick after school snack.

I opened my cupboard the other day and found a jar of those roasted red pepper strips. That inspired me to make a new chili. Plan Z, the diet by Zola has 7 chili recipes now. Everything from simple Chili Con Carne to firey Caribbean Chicken Chili. Comfort food that’s diet food. That’s a BIG YUM.

Roasted Red Pepper and Beef Chili
Serving Size: Serves 5 to 7, 1.5-cup servings.

Ingredients:

2 lbs of ground sirloin
1 bell pepper, diced (you can use your choice of yellow, orange, red or green)
1 large onion, diced, approx. 2 cups
2 Tbl of chili powder, your choice. There are hot chili powders and mild ones.
1 tsp of garlic powder
2 tsp of ground cumin
2 – 15 oz cans of diced tomatoes (undrained).  You choose if you want them with chilies, oregano and garlic, or even fire roasted.
1 – 16 oz jar of roasted red pepper strips packed in water (in jar).  Rinse them in a colander and drain. If you buy whole roasted peppers just cut them into strips or chunks.
¼ – ½ tsp of cracked red pepper flakes (The kind people use on pizza.  If you want your chili really mild, leave these out)
3 cups of water
½ tsp of grated sea salt (or to taste)
1 lime (optional garnish)

Instructions:

Spray a soup pot with olive oil spray.  Put in the ground sirloin and begin to break it up. Cook on medium-high, stirring often and breaking it up, until it’s half done.  Then add the onions and bell pepper.  Cook until the beef is completely done and the veggies are moistened.  (The beef won’t be pink in the middle anymore).

Add everything else except the lime.

Turn to a simmer and let bubble for a minimum of 15 minutes.  The longer it simmers (up to an hour) the more melded the flavors will become but it will also cook off some of the liquid.  That’s why the servings number is a variable.

Garnish with a lime wedge- optional. Some like to squeeze the lime over their chili.

Cheers,
Zola