Chili verde, or green chili, is not very common outside the Southwest which is really a shame because it embodies some of the finest flavors of Mexican cuisine. Traditionally it made with chunks of pork, carnitas, cooked separately from a green sauce of tomatillos and green chilies. Of course fresh tomatillos are best but canned ones make an acceptable substitute. However, fresh chilies (or thawed frozen ones) are essential. I add hominy to mine because I like its texture but can leave it out, especially if you serve it over rice or with beans. And it is very good with chicken too, either cooked for the purpose or left overs.
Season the pork cubes with sale (go easy on it if you are using canned tomatillos because they can be pretty salty) and put everything in a pressure cooker. Cook at high pressure for 30 minutes then allow pressure to drop naturally. Drain the meat, reserving the cooking liquid. Whatever you do not use for the chili will make very good Mexican rice.
Rinse the hominy well and put into a small sauce pan with about a cup of water. Bring to a boil and simmer until tender, about 30 minutes. Drain and set aside.
If using fresh tomatillos, husk and rinse them, then place on a sheet pan under a hot broiler, turning occasionally until they are charred on all sides. If using canned, simply drain them. Put the tomatillos into the jar of a food processor along with any liquid in the pan.
Char the chilies either under a hot broiler or, as I do, with a plumber’s torch. Wrap them in a towel to cool for about 10 minutes then rub off the skins. Cut off the stems and remove the seeds. Chop coarsely and add to the tomatillos in the food processor.
Place a Dutch oven or large, heavy skillet over medium high heat. Add 1 Tablespoon of the oil and, when hot, the onions. Cook until lightly browned, about 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and continue cooking for another minute or two. Add to the food processor along with the oregano.
Pulse the food processor to reduce the vegetables to a smooth but slightly chunky puree adding a bit of the pork cooking liquid as needed.
Pour enough oil into the Dutch oven or skillet to just lightly cover the bottom. Put over high heat until the oil begins to smoke. Dump in the contents of the food processor all at once and sear for a couple of minutes then turn the heat down to medium and continue to cook until the sauce darkens and thickens, about 10 minutes. Stir in the hominy. Taste and adjust salt as needed.
Gently fold the pork cubes into the sauce and simmer until heated through. Taste a last time then serve hot, alone or over rice, garnished with a dollop of sour cream and a few pickled jalapeño slices.
The secret to really good chili is the chili powder. And the only way to get really good chili powder is to make it yourself. Start with dry chilies that are readily available in Hispanic markets and Latin food sections of most supermarkets. Just which chilies you use is a matter of personal taste and will take some experimentation. I use ancho and pasilla for their rich flavors, guajillo for their beautiful red color, and arbol for heat. You can also add some chipotle or morida chilies for a smoky flavor and a bit more heat. Although individual peppers vary in heat and flavor intensity, you can achieve a rather consistent powder if you weigh each different type
Makes about ½ cup
2 ounces dried assorted dried chilies
Heat a heavy skillet over medium-high heat. By turns place each type of chili in the hot skillet and toast well on each side being careful that they do not burn. Be especially careful with guajillos and arbols because they burn easily. Anchos and pasillas, being thick, benefit from having a weight, another skillet for example, put on them.
Let the chilies cool a bit then remove the stems, and seeds if you wish (I leave the seeds in). Cut the large chilies into pieces and place in a food processor. Just crumble in the arbols. Process for a couple of minutes, stopping now and then to scrape down the sides of the processor jar, until the largest pieces are less than ½-inch wide.
You can use the chili mixture as is or you can empty the contents of the food processor into a coffee grinder (one that you reserve for spices otherwise your coffee may be a bit interesting for a couple of days) and reduce it to a fine powder. Store in a tightly closed jar.
The secret to really good chili is the chili powder. And the only way to get really good chili powder is to make it yourself. It is surprisingly easy to do and once you have tried it you will never again use that brown stuff from the supermarket. If you do chose to use ready-made chili powder, check the label. If it contains cumin, adjust the amount of cumin accordingly—which may take a bit of experimentation. If the chili powder contains salt, don’t buy it. Period!
Film the bottom of a large Dutch oven with oil and brown the meat well, about 6 minutes. Drain in a colander set over a bowl, pouring off all the fat in the pot.
Add a tablespoon of oil to the Dutch oven and cook the onions, stirring occasionally, untilion golden brown, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic, oregano, cumin, and the chili powder to the onions in the pot. Stir for about 1 minute then add the beef, beer, tomatoes, and stock. Add water as needed to just cover the meat. Season with 1 teaspoon of salt and a generous grind of black pepper, at least 2 teaspoons. Bring to a boil then lower the heat and simmer, uncovered, for about an hour adding a bit of water if needed. When the chili is done, stir in the vinegar and serve piping hot with the usual chili condiments: chopped onion, shredded cheddar, chopped jalapeños, sour cream, etc. Offer beans on the side if you wish.
Chili snobs insist that real chili, especially real Texas chili, is never made with beans. Well, someone forgot to tell the Texas Beef Council from whose website I adapted this recipe (you can find theirs here).
Brown the ground beef in a large (12-inch) non-stick frying pan over medium heat until beef is no longer pink, about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove to colander over a bowl and set aside.
Heat the oil in a Dutch over or other large, heavy pot over medium heat. Sauté onions and garlic, stirring often, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add bell peppers and jalapeño and continue to cook for another 4 to 5 minutes or until peppers are tender.
Add the meat to the pot along with the chili powder, cumin, oregano, and thyme. Stir for a couple of minutes to combine well then add the tomatoes along with the juice they are packed in and the beer. Defat the liquid in the bowl into which the meat drained and add it to the pot along with the cup of water. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, for 1 hour stirring occasionally. Add a bit of water if the chili seems to be drying out. Add the beans and stir in the vinegar. Taste and season with salt and good grind of black pepper. Cook for another 15 minutes to heat the beans through and to blend the flavors.
Serve immediately with skillet cornbread and the usual chili condiments.
The taxonomy of chili is always a matter of contention. While Chili con Carne, literally peppers with meat in Spanish, is the inclusive term for what is usually called chili, in my experience the longer name usually refers to a stew containing beef, peppers, beans, and tomatoes. Texas chili, on the other hand, contains no beans and often no tomatoes while Cincinnati chili contains tomatoes but no beans. Some claim that authentic Texas chili uses cubed meat; Cincinnati chili, ground meat. This recipe based on ground beef with kidney beans is pretty much what I remember my mother making when I was a boy so I supposed you could call it New England chili. Whatever you call it this is a tasty warming dish perfect for a cold winter night.
Rinse dry beans and pick over for any discolored ones or small stones. Place in the pressure cooker with the 8 quarts of water. Cook at high pressure for 20 minutes, timing from when the cooker reaches full pressure. Allow to cool for 10 minutes then open according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Drain the beans reserving the cooking liquid. (If you do not have a pressure cooker simply double the cooking time.)
Film a large non-stick skillet with oil, set over medium heat and, working in batches, brown the meat. Set aside.
Heat a large, cast iron Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When hot add about 1 Tbsp. of oil and cook the onion, pepper, and jalapeños until softened. Add the garlic and tomatoes. Cook for about 1 minute then stir in the chili powder, cumin, and vinegar. Put the meat and beans in the pot along with enough of the reserved cooking liquid to just cover. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat to maintain a gentle simmer, uncovered. Cook for about 1 hour, stirring occasionally, and adding a bit more bean cooking liquid or water as needed. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve with chopped onions, chopped pickled jalapeños, shredded cheddar or Monterey jack cheese, sour cream, and perhaps a piece of corn bread.
Not surprisingly Texas chili is made with beef. Traditionalists will insist that the beef must be chuck and must be diced not ground. I prefer a leaner cut such as round and am too lazy to dice the meat so I grind it (I don’t own a gun or wear cowboy boots either). The secret to really good chili is not in the meat anyway; it is in the chili powder. And the only way to get really good chili powder is to make it yourself. It is surprisingly easy to do and once you have tried it you will never again use that brown stuff from the supermarket. I do hold to one tradition, however: I cook the beans separately and add them to each serving along with the usual chili condiments of shredded cheese, chopped onion, chopped jalapeño, and sour cream.
Heat about 1 Tbsp. fat in a large Dutch oven and, working in batches brown the meat well, about 6 minutes per batch. Remove to a colander set over a bowl. Pour off the accumulated fat.
Preheat the broiler. Finely chop the onions in a food processor. Add another tablespoon of fat to the pot and cook the onions, stirring occasionally, union golden brown, about 8 minutes.
While the onions are cooking heat a dry cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. When hot add the dried chiles and put under the broiler for 3 or 4 minutes or until the chiles are fragrant and smoking a bit. Set the skillet aside on top of the stove to cool for a few minutes. When cool enough to handle, remove the stems from the chiles and break them up into the food processor. Chop for a minute or so then finish in a coffee grinder set aside for spices. You should have about ½ cup of chili powder.
In the same skillet you toasted the chiles, toast the cumin seeds for a couple of minute, shaking often to avoid burning. Grind in the spice grinder along with the oregano.
Add the garlic, oregano, cumin, and 5 Tbsp. of the chili powder to the onion in the pot. Stir for about 1 minute then add the beef, beer, tomatoes, and stock. Season with 1 tsp. salt and a generous grind of black pepper, about 1 tsp. Bring to a boil then lower the heat and simmer, uncovered, for about an hour adding a bit of water if needed.
When the chili is done, stir in the vinegar. Combine the masa with the water and stir in. Boil the chili for a minute or two to thicken.
Like most creation myths, the origin of Cincinnati chili is subject to interpretation. Several sources agree that it was invented in the early 1920s by Macedonian immigrant Tom Kiradjieff as a topping for the hot dogs he sold from a cart. The stand-alone version seems to have been first offered in 1922 by a restaurant operated by Kiradjieff and his brother John. Called “spaghetti chili” it was what is now known as Two-Way Chili (See below for other serving options). It is served with oyster crackers for crumbling into the chili. And, of course, you can still get the chili on a hot dog.
About the only thing shared by Cincinnati and Texas chili, besides the name, is that they both contain beef. But while Texans prefer cubed chuck, in Cincinnati finely ground lean beef is the rule (I used eye round). Furthermore, Cincinnati chili does not usually contain chilies (or chili powder even though some claim that it originated in the city). Also, in Cincinnati the meat is not browned before cooking as it is elsewhere. But the biggest difference is in the spices: cinnamon, cocoa, allspice, cloves, and Worcestershire. Note, too, that torch-out contests to see who can eat the hottest chili are considered rather vulgar in Cincinnati which is, after all, in the genteel Midwest.
This recipe uses a pressure cooker. If you do not have one, just put everything in a Dutch oven and simmer until done, about 1½ hours.
Serves: 6 to 8
Put all of the ingredients into the pressure cooker and cook on high pressure (15 psi) for 20 minutes counting after the unit comes to pressure. Let sit for 5 to 10 minutes then release the pressure according to manufacturer’s instructions. Simmer at atmospheric pressure for a further 15 minutes to thicken somewhat but remember that Cincinnati chili is thinner than Texas chili.
Prepare spaghetti according to package directions and transfer onto individual serving plates (small oval plates are traditional).
Two-Way Chili: ladle chili over spaghetti
Three-Way Chili: top Two-Way chili with shredded yellow cheddar
Four-Way Chili: add chopped onion to Three-Way chili
Five-Way Chili: Put a layer of warmed kidney beans in the plates then add the spaghetti and the rest of the toppings.
Serve oyster crackers in a separate container on the side.
Since I had just bought an electric pressure cookers I just had to make beans today. Black beans are one of my favorites. They have a unique flavor and creamy texture that work really well in soups and chili. This one-dish meal is somewhere between the two. I made a big pot because it is great for lunch.
One thing that may be a surprise is that I used three different hot sauces: Tabasco, Sriracha, and Frank’s. While that might at first seem redundant it works because each of those sauces has a different heat. Together they give a nice balanced spiciness. If you want to make a milder chili use less hot sauce but maintain the proportion of each.
Note that I have tagged this as vegetarian despite the slice of bacon. Just leave it out and you have a great vegetarian dish.
Rinse and pick over the beans removing any discolored ones or small stones. Place into a pressure cooker along with 8 cups of water, the crushed garlic, bay leaf, celery, and cilantro sprigs. Cook at 15 psi for 25 minutes. When done cool and open the cooker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Drain the beans reserving the cooking liquid. Set aside.
Heat a Dutch oven or other large pot over medium-high heat and render the bacon until there is enough fat in the pan to sauté the onion, or simply heat the oil. Add the onion, turn the heat down to medium, and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the pepper and continue to sauté for another 3 or 4 minutes. Stir in the tomato and garlic. Cook for another minute or two.
Put the beans and corn into the pot; add the beer and enough of the bean cooking liquid to cover. Stir in the chili powder, the hot sauces, and black pepper. Simmer until corn and beans are done. Season to taste with salt and serve with a dollop of sour cream and a bit of cilantro.
As a rule I prefer to buy chicken whole and break it down into pieces saving the bones for stock. But sometimes boneless, skinless breasts are a too good a price to pass up. The down side to prepackaged chicken breasts, besides the lack of stock bones, is that they come with an unsightly flap of rib meat attached. So, I trim off these strips of meat and save them in the freezer for when I need cubes of chicken. Here I use those tender strips of meat, known in ad-speak as “tenders,” to make a tasty one-dish meal reminiscent of pozole. A note on the peppers: you can make this recipe with bell peppers or with other peppers of you choice. I thought I was using a green and a red Anaheim but discovered that the red one was something else with a significant kick to it. If you are using only bell peppers add jalapeños or other hot chiles to your taste. Serve over Mexican red rice.
Serves 2
Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium high heat and brown the chicken well on all sides. Remove to a plate.
Adjust the amount of oil in the pot and sauté the onions and peppers until softened and just starting to color. Add the garlic and cook for a minute or two until fragrant. Return the chicken to the pot, pour on the beer and 1 cup of water, the sprinkle in the spices. Stir in the hominy (if you are using canned hominy put it in at the end of cooking). Simmer until the chicken and hominy are tender, about 45 minutes.
Mix the masa with cold water for make smooth paste. Stir into the chili and bring to a boil to thicken. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
This homey dish is quite unlike what we usually think of as chili but the cookbook I adapted it from, Williams-Sonoma Chicken (Simon & Schuster Source, NY 2001), calls it chili so I will too. The original calls for canned hominy but I use dried which is much more economical and readily available in the Latino food section of your supermarket. You can red, green, yellow bell peppers and red or green chile peppers in this dish. I like to use contrasting colors to brighten the dish. Served over Mexican-style rice this makes a nice warming meal.
4 ounces dried hominy, I use yellow for its rich color but white is fine, or 1 can hominy
12 ounce boneless chicken thighs or 1 pound bone-in
1 yellow onion, chopped (set aside ¼ of the chopped onion for the rice)
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 jalapeño or cayenne pepper, minced
2 cloves garlic, mashed then minced
1 tsp. dried oregano
½ tsp. ground cumin
1 cup chicken stock (reduce by ½ cup if using canned hominy)
1 cup beer
2 Tbsp. masa harina or yellow cornmeal
Salt to taste
1 cup medium grain white rice
2 Tbsp. chopped onion
1 ½ cups chicken stock
½ cup tomato sauce
Salt to taste
If using dried hominy, rinse it well and put into a pressure cooker or pot and cover with water by 1 inch. Cook at 15 psi for 20 minutes in pressure cooker or for about 45 minutes at atmospheric pressure. Cool the pressure cooker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Drain the hominy and set aside.
Skin and bone the chicken if needed and cut into bite-sized cubes. Heat the oil in a small enameled Dutch over or equivalent and brown the chicken, working in batches if need be. Set aside.
Adjust the fat in the pot then add the onion, peppers, and chiles. Sweat over medium-low heat until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and stir until fragrant. Stir in the oregano and cumin. Pour in the beer and stock then return the chicken to the pan and add the hominy. Stir, bring to a boil then reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes.
Mix the masa or cornmeal with a bit of water to make a paste and stir into the chili. Boil for a couple of minutes to thicken.
Heat a scant tablespoon of oil in a saucepan. Fry the onion and rice for about 2 minutes then add the stock and sauce. Bring to a boil, turn the heat to low, and cook for about 20 minutes. Fluff with a fork and salt to taste.
