I won't say what kind of chiili is the "best" chili, as it is such a personal creation. Some like a tomato baased sauce with lots of veggies and peppers. Some like cubed meat with ground chili peppers. Some like it soupy. Some like it thick. What you like is what you should make.
For me, I make it like this (at least for one of the chili cookoff's I participated in, hence the large amounts of everything):
Ingredients:
16 lbs. ripe-red Tomatoes (or 2 #20 cans diced tomatoes)
2 large onions, diced
3 stalks Celery, chopped
1 tbs. fresh Cilantro
4 Jalapeño Peppers, chopped
4 fresh Cayenne Peppers, chopped
2 Habenero Peppers, chopped
2 ½ lbs. Skirt Steak, grilled over charcoal
1 Green Bell Peppers, chopped
¼ cup Chili Powder
2 tbs. Cumin
2 tbs. Coriander
2 tbs. Paprika
#20 can black beans
#20 can dark-red Kidney Beans
2 squares Bakers unsweetend chocolate
Salt
1 tbs. Cayenne Pepper
Maple Syrup - 8 oz.
2 heads of good Garlic, minced
1/2 cup Masa harina
Grill the skirt steak and pork chops over a solid bed of charcoal in a covered barbecue. Slice the tomatoes into quarters and place into a large pot over medium heat. Cover. When the tomatoes have cooked down (about 20 minutes), add everything but the meat. Chop the meat into something resembling coarsely ground beef. Add to the chili. Simmer for an hour, stirring every ten minutes or so. Taste, and adjust the seasonings to what you like.
Makes 3 gallons of chili
Pirze winning recipe:
2009 United Way Chili Cook-off, 1rst-place Prize-Winning Recipe, White Chili Category – Bob Flowers’ White Chili
In past years, I made this same basic recipe, but with chicken or pork as the meat, and with more potent hot peppers. So this year, I tweaked the herbs and spices, changed to ground beef, and reduced the heat. Everyone who has tried this recipe has fallen in love with it. It’s not as pretty as red chili, but it sure does taste great. Try this recipe on a cool fall night. It’ll warm you to your toes.
Ingredients:
* 24 oz. (3 cups) Great Northern Beans, cooked
* 24 oz. Pinto Beans, cooked
* ½ cup Salsa Verde (available in most grocery stores)
* 1 large white onion, diced
* ½ cup chopped green onion
* 1 tbs. Sriracha brand Pepper Sauce
* 2 tbs. Coriander, ground
* 1 tbs. Cumin, ground
* 2 stalks Celery, sliced with leaves
* 1 ½ lb. Ground Beef (80/20 grind)
* 2 tsp. Kosher Salt, or 1 ½ tsp. table salt
* 3 tbs. fresh Cilantro, chopped
* 2, one-inch Serrano Chile Peppers, minced
* ½ tsp. white pepper, ground (or you can use black pepper)
* 2 cups heavy cream (1 pint)
* ½ cup Masa Harina (can be found next to the corn meal at
your grocers)
* 3 tbs. cooking oil
Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the diced onion. Sauté over medium heat while stirring until the onion begins to soften (about 2 minutes). Add the ground beef and flatten out. Let cook for about 5 minutes and then break it up. Stir and cook until the meat has lightly browned. Add the remaining ingredients, except for the Masa Harina, and reduce heat to a simmer. Cover and cook for two hours, stirring every twenty minutes or so to prevent the chili from sticking. Taste the chili and correct the seasoning to your taste (add more salt if needed).
Place the Masa Harina into an eight ounce cup along with just enough water to form a thick paste. Stir with a fork until all the lumps are removed. Slowly stir in two tbs. more water. This is called slurry. Stir the Masa Harina slurry into the chili, and again cover. Let it all cook over low heat for an additional ten minutes. Stir and test to see if the chili is thick enough for you. If so, then you are ready to serve up a bowl- full or two to your family. But remember, like all great chili, this is even better the next day. So if you can, cool it in an ice bath and place in the refrigerator for tomorrow’s dinner. Serve it with some good cornbread, or nachos.
Seeeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North