Beef Chili with Ancho, Mole, and Cumin

Beef Chili with Ancho, Mole, and Cumin
Makes 6-8 servings

Chili:
1 tablespoon cumin
4 bacon slices, chopped
4 lbs beef chuck stew, cubed
1 large onion, chopped
4 large garlic cloves, chopped
1 poblano + 2 serranos, blackened and peeled
1 habanero pepper
4 cups beef broth, divided
1/4 cup pure ancho chile powder
1/4 cup Texas-style chili powder blend
1 tablespoon mole paste
2 teaspoons (or more) salt
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano, crumbled
1 to 2 tablespoons masa
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
1 can black beans, drained

Garnishes:
Chopped white, red, or green onions
Grated cheddar cheese, Monterey Jack cheese, or queso fresco
Sliced fresh or pickled jalapeño chiles
Tortilla chips or oyster crackers

Sauté bacon in large pot over medium-high heat until brown and crisp. Using slotted spoon, transfer bacon to large bowl. Sprinkle beef with salt and pepper. Working in 4 batches, sauté beef in drippings in pot until browned, about 5 minutes per batch. Transfer beef and most drippings to bowl with bacon. Add onion and garlic to pot. Sauté until onion begins to brown, about 5 minutes. Add 1/2 cup broth to pot. Bring to boil, scraping up browned bits.

Put beef, bacon, and any accumulated juices into a slow cooker. Mix in ancho chile powder, Texas-style chili powder, mole paste, 2 teaspoons salt, vinegar, oregano, and cumin seeds. Add 3 cups broth, along with 1 cup stock blended with chilies. Cook on low 10-12 hours, stirring occasionally and adding more broth by 1/2 cupfuls if chili is dry. Mix in beans and masa by teaspoonfuls to thicken chili or add more broth by 1/4 cupfuls to thin. Season chili with salt, pepper, and cayenne, if desired.
If possible, make 1 day ahead, and rewarm over low heat.

Korean Kimchi Chili

Korean Kimchi Chili
Serves: 6

2 lb beef stew beef, cubed
½ lb thick cut bacon, in lardons
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup kimchi, chopped
2-4 Korean chilis, minced
2 tablespoon sesame oil
2 cans kidney beans, drained
2 tablespoon gochu garu (Korean chili paste)
2 tablespoon gochu jang (Korean chili flakes)
4 cups chicken stock
2 cup shredded cheese

Place large pot on stove at medium high heat, add the bacon and beef cubes and brown, transfer meat and bacon to another bowl and set aside.
Use the same pot and add sesame oil, garlic, onion, and chilis. Cook 5 minutes. Add kimchee and sautee for anothing minute.
Add beef and bacon back into the pot with chicken stock, kidney beans and cook for at least one hours.
Garnish with cheese and enjoy!

Buffalo Chicken Chili

Buffalo Chicken Chili
4 servings

    2 pound ground chicken
    1 tablespoon oil
    1 onion, diced
    1/2 cup celery, sliced
    1/2 cup carrots, diced
    2 cloves garlic, chopped
    1 teaspoon cumin, toasted and ground
    1 beer
    .5c cream or milk
    1 (15 ounce) can diced tomatoes
    1 (15 ounce) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
    1 teaspoon paprika
    1/2 teaspoon oregano
    1/4 teaspoon cayenne
    1 small bottle Frank's Red Hot
    salt and pepper to taste
    crumbled blue cheese to taste

Cook the chicken in a large pan over medium heat and set aside.
Heat the oil in the pan, add the onions, celery and carrots and cook until tender, about 10-15 minutes.
Add the garlic and cumin and cook until fragrant, about a minute.
Add the beer or broth and deglaze the pan.
Add chicken, tomatoes, beans, paprika, oregano, cayenne and hot sauce and simmer for 15 minutes.
Serve topped with crumbled blue cheese to taste.

Chile Verde

Chile Verde
Serves 8

1 1/2 pounds tomatillos
5 garlic cloves, not peeled
5 serrano peppers, whole
1/2 bunch cilantro leaves, cleaned and chopped

2 lbs chicken or pork, cubed
Salt and pepper
Olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
2 Tbsp of chopped fresh oregano or 1 Tbsp of dried oregano
2 1/2 cups chicken stock
2 med potatoes, cubed
1 can hominy, drained
Pinch of ground cloves

Method

1 Remove papery husks from tomatillos and rinse well. Cut in half and place cut side down, along with 5 unpeeled garlic cloves, and peppers on a foil-lined baking sheet. Place under a broiler for about 5-7 minutes to lightly blacken the skin. Remove from oven, let cool enough to handle.

2 Place tomatillos, skins included, into blender. Remove the now roasted garlic cloves from their skins, add them to the blender. Add Jalapeño peppers, other chilies (if you are using them), and cilantro to the blender. Pulse until all ingredients are finely chopped and mixed.

3 Season the pork cubes generously with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed skillet over medium high heat and brown pork chunks well on all sides. Reserve.

4 Pour off excess fat, anything beyond a tablespoon, and place the onions and garlic in the same pot and cook, stirring occasionally until limp, about 5 minutes. Add the oregano to the pan. Add the tomatillo chile verde sauce to the pork and onions. Add the chicken stock (enough to cover the meat). Add a pinch of ground cloves. Add a little salt and pepper.

5 Bring to a boil and reduce to a slight simmer. Cook for 2-3 hours uncovered or until the pork is fork tender. Add potatoes and hominy and cook another 15 minutes or until potatoes are done.

Black Bean and Beef Chili with Lime and Avocado

Black Bean and Beef Chili with Lime and Avocado
Serves 6

3 cans black beans, drained
8oz tomatillos, boiled
1 Chipotle chili pepper + 1tsp adobo
2 habanero peppers, if desired
olive oil
1 lb. lean ground beef
8oz can tomato sauce
1 large red onion, finely diced
2 roasted poblano peppers, diced
1.5 T regular chile powder
1.5 T Ancho chile pepper
1 T ground cumin or more
1 can beef broth
1-2 T tomato paste
Juice of 3 limes
1 bunch cilantro, chopped
2 avocados, diced

Drain 2 cans black beans into colander and rinse well. Puree the remaining can
beans, tomatillos, and the chile peppers. Process the beans and tomatoes about
2 minutes, until they are fairly smooth.

In bottom of heavy soup pot, heat 1-2 tsp. olive oil and brown beef, using the
back of the turner to break it into small pieces. Remove beef to bowl, then add
a bit more olive oil and 2/3rd the onions. Lower heat a little and cook onions
until they are softened but not starting to brown. Add all the chile powders
and cumin and saute about 30 seconds.

Add beef stock, browned ground beef, pureed bean mixture, drained beans and
tomato paste and simmer, uncovered, 30 minutes or a few hours.

Just before serving Chili, stir in the cilantro, lime juice, raw onion, and
avocado. Bring to heat and serve.

Pork and Plantain Chili

Pork & Plantain Chili
Serves 4

1+ pound pork cut into 1-inch cubes
1 large onion, finely diced
1 very ripe plantain, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon oregano
2 chiles, minced
1/2 cup orange juice
2 cups chicken broth
1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed
2 4-ounce cans diced green chilies
1 15-ounce can refried black beans
Juice of 1 lime
Cilantro
Brown the pork and then set aside.

Add everything down to the OJ and cook for about five minutes. Add the
orange juice, increase the heat to high, and cook for a minute to reduce
the amount of liquid.

Stir in broth and black beans and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and
simmer for about 10 minutes and stir it a bit occasionally. Add the chili
and refried beans as well as the pork and its juices back to the pot.
Increase the heat a bit from here and cook for about two minutes, or
until refried beans have blended in. Finish with lime and cilantro.

Squash Chili Mole

Squash Chili Mole
Serves 6-8

1 tablespoon oil
1.5 pound ground beef
1 tablespoon oil
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon corander
2 teaspoons thyme
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon oregano
salt and pepper
2 chipotle peppers, minced, plus 6 or more fresh chilies to taste
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 beer or malta goya
2 cans kidney beans, undrained
1 can pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons tehina
1/2 bar Mexican chocolate
4 cups squash in bite-sized pieces
Cilantro


Brown the beef in a stock pot, drain and set aside.
Saute onions until softened, 5-7 mins. Add garlic, spices, and peppers. Cook a few minutes.
Add everything else except the squash and cilantro, bring to a simmer, and simmer covered 1-2 hours.
Add the squash, uncover and/or add water if necessary, and simmer 20 minutes or until done.

Chili with Pork and Blackeyed Peas

Pork Black-Eyed Pea Chili
Serves 6

1 tablespoon ground coriander
1/2 tablespoon sweet smoked paprika
2 teaspoon ground cumin
3 pounds trimmed pork shoulder, 1.5 inch chunks
Salt and pepper
extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 pound slab bacon, cut into 1/2-inch dice
1 onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 jalapeños, seeded and very finely chopped
1 red bell pepper, finely diced
1 bottle dark beer
1.5 cups chicken stock or low-sodium broth
16oz rotel tomatoes
2 canned chipotles, minced
1 pound dried black-eyed peas, picked over and rinsed
1 tsp cinnamon

In a large bowl, combine the coriander, paprika and cumin and toss with the pork. Season with salt and pepper.
In a large pot, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil. Add half of the pork and cook over moderately high heat, turning once, until browned, about 8 minutes. Transfer the pork to a plate. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil and brown the remaining pork over moderate heat. Transfer the pork to the plate.
Add the bacon to the casserole and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until browned and slightly crisp, about 7 minutes. Add the onion, garlic, jalapeños and bell peppers and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes.
Return the pork to the casserole along with any accumulated juices. Add the ale, chicken stock, tomatoes, chipotles, black-eyed peas and cinnamon stick and bring to a boil.
Cover and cook over very low heat until the meat and beans are tender, about 1.75 hours. Season the chili with salt and pepper. Spoon off the fat from the surface.
Serve the chili in bowls. Top with cilantro, cheese, etc.

Do You Feel Lucky, Punk?

Well do ya? Well go ahead, make my chili.

Kinda Hot 5-Chile Chili
Serves 4-6

2lbs Ground beef (or Tofurkey or whatever)
1 diced onion
6 cloves minced garlic
4 Habanero peppers, minced
1 can Black beans
1 can Kidney beans
2 cans “Chili Beans” In spicy sauce (I used Kuners brand), undrained
3 cans “Chili Tomatoes” or even better “Tomatoes and Chiles” (Kuners brand), undrained
3 Tbs Cumin
2 Tbs Chili flakes
2 Tbs Chili powder
2 ts Cayenne
1 Tbs Oregano


Give the onion, garlic, and habanero a quick fry to get them going.
Add everything else except the meat. Bring to a boil, and simmer for 30 mins.
While the chili simmers, brown and drain the beef (like in a colander).

Add the beef to the rest, and simmer 1 hour.

Done.