Chili is one of those dishes that a lot of people make. There are so many different approaches to making chili, from vegetables, types of protein, ground or cubed meats, spices, heat, extra smoke, etc. but I wanted to include a recipe that I make fairly often. This chili is still made the same way as most chilies, but there are a couple of things make it stand out. I wanted to make a southwest style chili, so I opted for red peppers and black beans (some people do not use beans in their con carne, as always there are tons of variables). The mole style that I do is a heavy hand of cocoa powder, extra chilies and differing chili powders & spices, then a splash of orange juice at the end to round out the sweetness and acid balance. The heat level on this is variable as to what your tastes are, but I make this a mild chili as some of the people I cook for do not like too much heat.
Though I use canned black beans in this recipe, you can always use dried beans. Just make sure you soak them overnight, then degas them prior to cooking.
Another useful trick I picked up, through Cook's Illustrated, is to lightly coat your beef with some water and baking soda. This helps seal in the juices when you sear it, and you get an amazing texture and flavor at the end.
Ingredients
Ground Beef, 80/20% 3 lbs
Baking Soda 3 tsp
Water 1/4 cup
Red Pepper, diced 3 ea
Onion, diced 3 ea
Green Chili, diced 4 oz
Black Beans, drained 32 oz
Tomatoes, diced, drained 32 oz
Cocoa Powder 1/4 cup
Roasted Garlic 1 cup
Coriander, ground 1 T
Garlic Powder 2 T
Onion Powder 2 T
Bay Leaves 2 ea
Ancho Chili Powder 1 T
Chili Powder 2 T
Cinnamon 1 tsp
Chili Sauce 1/2 cup
Red Wine Vinegar 3 T
Water 1 Qt
Stock (Chicken, beef, veg, your choice) 3 Qt
Orange Juice 1/4 cup
Tapatio (Or other hot sauce) to taste
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
Garnish
Shredded Cheese, Diced Red Onion, Pickled Jalapenos, Fritos, Sour Cream, Avocado, Scallions.... it's chili load it up
Method of Procedure
Mix water and baking soda together with the ground beef and let sit for 15 minutes.
Get your pan hot and sear your beef to get some color.
Add your onions, diced green peppers, and roasted garlic then continue to cook on medium high heat while stirring.
Place your red peppers, diced tomatoes, cocoa powder, coriander, garlic powder, onion powder, chili powders (both), and cinnamon then continue to cook while stirring for another 15 minutes.
Add your red wine vinegar, Tapatio, and chili sauce and continue to cook while stirring for an additional 15 minutes.
Add your black beans, bay leaves, stock, and water then bring to a simmer.
Season to taste and continue to cook. Then continue to simmer. As soon as your done with that, continue to simmer*.
Skim any of the pooled fat off and add your orange juice. Stir well and simmer for another 10 minutes.
Season to taste and spoon into a bowl, garnish with anything you like to finish your meal.
*When making chili, you can almost not cook it too long. The longer you cook the more the flavors will blend and intensify. The only caveat to this is when you are looking for texture in an item. If you want a crunch, add that ingredient towards the end of the cooking process.