Chili
2001-10-22 @ 8:54 a.m.
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Badsnake here again with another guest Comfort Food. Sara has been doing some of the family meals lately, and even though Deb has done some fabulous meals, she hasn't felt like doing a CF lately. She did a tomato based tortellini soup last week that totally rocked. I hope she puts that in here (and she did). And last Wednesday she went to the farmer's market in the afternoon and served a roast with a yummy, thick au jou that she whipped up, corn on the cob, turnip greens, and an artichoke with butter and lemon dipping sauce. Oh, man, do I love it when Deb goes to the farmer's market.
But, for now, I'm here to treat you to my mom's special chili recipe. This was another one of my childhood favorites, and I made a vat of it last night.
You all remember how big this yellow pot is, right? It's bigger than my head. This recipe filled it to the brim. That's 7.5 quarts. I guess you could half this recipe if you don't have an enormous stock pot.
Chili
1.5 lbs ground beef (lean)
3 medium to large onions (yellow or white)
5 stalks celery
1 qt. tomato juice
1 qt. canned chopped or crushed tomatoes
16 oz. can tomato sauce
chili powder
cumin
salt
3 regular or 2 large cans pinto beans
Dice the onions and chop the celery and sautee it with the ground beef until the vegetables are just barely translucent and the beef is browned. Drain it if you don't want the fat content, and return it to your huge stock pot. Add a bit of salt (1 tsp will probably do it).
Add the tomato products, rinsing the cans out with water and adding that, too. Add chili powder to taste. My mom's original recipe calls for 2 tablespoons, but that would be incredibly wussy chili. I add 5 to 8 heaping tablespoons, and it's still mild enough for Sara. Remember that chili powder can vary in heat. The lighter the color, the hotter it is. I also add just a dash of cumin for the aroma. Mmmmmm. Cumin smell.
Bring your pot to a gentle boil (watch it carefully if you've filled yours as high as I do mine), stirring occasionally, and then lower the heat and simmer for an hour or more.
You don't actually have to simmer it for a whole hour, but the longer you do, the more the flavors will meld.
Add the pinto beans (juice partially drained) last and give them time to warm up in the soup before serving. My mom's recipe calls for using a cup of dried pintos, soaking them overnight, and cooking them separately. But the canned version tastes just as good, is a lot easier, and you're guaranteed not to wind up with al dente pintos, which I hate.
Serves an army. Garnish with cheddar cheese, sour cream, or whatever; crumbled crackers go great in this. We had cornbread sticks on the side.
Freezes well and tastes even better as leftovers. It's probably good for you because it's got so much onion and celery in it. Caution: This is one of those dishes that smells so good you'll be tempted to shove a branding iron (formerly known as a spoon) full of chili that is roughly the temperature of molten lava into your mouth. Burning the living fuck out of your tongue ruins the whole rest of the bowl. Be patient. Blow on it or let it cool a little.
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