It's Chili Time

[Joel Merrill]

Wow! It's great to have the recipe forum where all of us can read it. :fav18
I will probably read it more than I will post but since the weather is cooling down I thought I would post my chili recipe. I've been perfecting it for 30 years. This is the latest version. I view recipes as a starting point. I never make this exactly the same way. I start with the amount of herbs and spices mentioned and I usually add some toward the end after I've tasted it. I sometimes add 3 cans of beans if there is room. I like to add more chopped peppers too. I need a bigger crock pot. I have done it on top the stove but it is better in a slow cooker.

Joel :)

[Joel Merrill]

I made some for work last Thursday. I never make it the same way and I never measure. I put about 2 lbs hamburger in it and 2 cans of beans. Some times I put in 3 of each but then the crock pot is so full it is hard to carry. This time I added 1 green bell pepper, 1 yellow bell pepper and 1 red bell pepper, all chopped of course. I also didn't add as many jalapenos because some people are afraid of them and pick them out but I added a couple tablespoons of Tabasco Habanero Sauce :basic05. Then I put in about 3 tablespoons of sugar. I have never done that before. My crock pot was empty even before everyone had been through the line and the other crocks pots of chili had some left over in the end. Everyone said mine was the best ever :) Someone else brought corn bread. I love chili and corn bread, Yummmm :fav07

Joel

[David Cash]

One of the major customers at my place of employment brought us a crockpot of what he called "Four Alarm Chili." I was afraid to eat it.

David Cash

[Joel Merrill]

One of the major customers at my place of employment brought us a crockpot of what he called "Four Alarm Chili." I was afraid to eat it.

David Cash

I've ate some really hot chili and I've made some really hot chili. I don't make mine as hot as I used to because some people just can't eat it that hot. My secret is not the heat, it is the flavor. Some people think that in order to be good, it has to be hot, and then they make chili that is just hot but has no flavor. I like a little heat but it has to have flavor! If I want just heat, I'll chew on a habanero pepper and save my money on the other ingredients. Speaking of flavor, a good cook tries to please as many of the senses as possible. It has to look good, smell good and taste good. If I could make it sound and feel good I would. The corn in mine is just for looks, you don't really taste it. The 3 different colors of peppers are just for looks. I think the green bell peppers actually have a better flavor for chili.

Joel

[David Cash]

Sometimes I think I should learn to cook things that don't come out of boxes and cans. The work of people who are good cooks is something I really enjoy.

Your chili may feel better than you think! Sounds, not sure how you'd do that once it quits boiling.

David Cash

[Joel Merrill]

Sometimes I think I should learn to cook things that don't come out of boxes and cans. The work of people who are good cooks is something I really enjoy.

Your chili may feel better than you think! Sounds, not sure how you'd do that once it quits boiling.

David Cash

In a way, eating hot chili on a cold day or cold ice cream on a hot day applies to the sense of feeling. Biting into a crisp apple is a nice sound but doesn't have much to do with cooking. I think the inventor of Kelloggs Rice Crispies was a genius. The sound appeals to a child's need for fun and it makes you think, "crispy" when you hear it even if the cereal may be soggy by the time you are done.

Joel

[Joel Merrill]

Wow! It's great to have the recipe forum where all of us can read it. :fav18
I will probably read it more than I will post but since the weather is cooling down I thought I would post my chili recipe. I've been perfecting it for 30 years. This is the latest version. I view recipes as a starting point. I never make this exactly the same way. I start with the amount of herbs and spices mentioned and I usually add some toward the end after I've tasted it. I sometimes add 3 cans of beans if there is room. I like to add more chopped peppers too. I need a bigger crock pot. I have done it on top the stove but it is better in a slow cooker.

Joel :)

Here is an important note on how to make my chili. When I took my chili to work a couple weeks ago, several people who ate it asked for the recipe. I gave the recipe to a gal and she made it for her boy friend last Saturday. She didn't mix the cheese in. She just sprinkled a little on top. The chili was a lot hotter than the chili I made. One of the reasons I mix the cheese right in the chili is that it tones down the heat from the jalapenos. It's like drinking milk if you get a hot pepper in your mouth that is too hot. The jalapenos add important flavor and the cheese helps you taste it. I have also found that some of the jalapenos that come in a jar are hotter than fresh ones. I always use fresh jalapenos. Don't add any more salt than the recipe calls for until after you mix in the cheese. The cheese is salty and will make the chili saltier.

Joel :fav18

[Brad Mercer]

Joel,

Your chili sounds delicious. You mention that the jalepenos aren't hot when you cook them. I think the main thing that takes the heat out of the peppers in your recipe is that you advise seeding them. Jalepenos become significantly less hot when you remove the seeds.

I love stuffed jalepenos. You slice the pepper lengthwise, scrape out the seeds and mix them in with cream cheese and pimentos and then put the mixture back in the jalepeno halves. They are hot and spicy and delicious. If you want to make a much milder version, just throw the seeds away instead of adding them back into the cream cheese mixture.

I don't really have a recipe for my chili, but one thing I do that's a little different is make half the meat ground beef and the other half ground breakfast sausage. I use pretty nearly the same spices as you, but I put a few drops of Dave's Gourmet Insanity Sauce in it. It's hotter than fresh habaneros. I figure if there's going to be a half-dozen crockpots of chili, there should be something for everyone, so I go ahead and make mine very hot for those who like flavor AND heat. ;-) I'm just careful to put a tag on the crockpot warning that it is genuinely hot and spicy.

Brad

[Joel Merrill]

Joel,

Your chili sounds delicious. You mention that the jalepenos aren't hot when you cook them. I think the main thing that takes the heat out of the peppers in your recipe is that you advise seeding them. Jalepenos become significantly less hot when you remove the seeds.

I love stuffed jalepenos. You slice the pepper lengthwise, scrape out the seeds and mix them in with cream cheese and pimentos and then put the mixture back in the jalepeno halves. They are hot and spicy and delicious. If you want to make a much milder version, just throw the seeds away instead of adding them back into the cream cheese mixture.

I don't really have a recipe for my chili, but one thing I do that's a little different is make half the meat ground beef and the other half ground breakfast sausage. I use pretty nearly the same spices as you, but I put a few drops of Dave's Gourmet Insanity Sauce in it. It's hotter than fresh habaneros. I figure if there's going to be a half-dozen crockpots of chili, there should be something for everyone, so I go ahead and make mine very hot for those who like flavor AND heat. ;-) I'm just careful to put a tag on the crockpot warning that it is genuinely hot and spicy.

Brad

That's interesting about the seeds. I just take them out because they look gross. I like hot chili but as my friends get older (not me) they can't take it like they used to. My chili definitely has more kick than any one else's chili at work but their chili is so mild, it's more like hamburger and bean soup.

Thanks, Joel

[Brad Mercer]

their chili is so mild, it's more like hamburger and bean soup.

Thanks, Joel

Ah, then another bit of chili trivia that might interest you is this. The full name of the dish is chili con carne, which is Spanish for "peppers with meat." Chili is Spanish for peppers. ;-)

Brad

[Joel Merrill]

Ah, then another bit of chili trivia that might interest you is this. The full name of the dish is chili con carne, which is Spanish for "peppers with meat." Chili is Spanish for peppers. ;-)

Brad
Yep, I read all of your posts about chili. I've learned more from you than you know, oh Great Chili Master. We don't have the hot food heritage here that you Texans have. Besides that, my mom was a very bland cook. So I've had to figure out how to make chili else where and by a lot of experimentation.

Thanks, Joel :fav18