[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Smokey-Grilly Chili (Page 1 of 2)
Posted: 9/13/2014 11:03:35 PM EDT
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It was pretty amazingly lovely today here in Seattle, so I wanted to spend as much time outdoors as possible. And I wanted chili. Like any sane man would, I made my chili on the grill. First, job is to start the base sauce known as chili colorado.  First, get out the chills.  De-seed them.  Toast them in the oven 'til they smell like toasted chills. Do not overcook them, or they will be bitter.  Soak them in simmering water for 10-20 minutes. This leaches out the astringent compounds in the chills and is very important.  Meanwhile, brown some onions, adding garlic at the very end.  Use a plate to keep the chills submerged.  Puree the chills in a food processor.  Heat up a skillet to very hot and then toss in the chili puree all at once and then stir like a madman as it gives off a heavenly smell and darkens substantially. Stop after a minute or so. Do not burn the chills puree, or it will turn bitter. This is called "frying the sauce" and adds noticeably to the depth of flavor of the chili. Mix the fried chili colorado and your onions in a pot. Now, you are ready for the meat. Speaking of meat, today, we are cooking a cut of meat called "special trim" at the restaurant supply. What is special trim? I don't really know, except that it looks and cooks very similar to flank or skirt steak, except that it is far thicker than either of those cuts—and also far cheaper than either of those cuts. Some say it is the muscle on a cow analogous to the latissimus dorsi muscle on a human. It has a great meaty taste but unless you butterfly it and then cut it paper thin, it's tough. The way around that is to cook it a while, as we will be doing in this chili. And today, because it is so nice outside, we are grilling and smoking the meat. Those slabs are thicker than they look. That's about 5 lb. of meat. Get it good and charred, and then move it to the cool side to keep cooking/smoking a bit. When it's ready, bring it in and rest it for a few minutes, and then cut it into whatever size chunks you like. Then, toss some smoking wood onto the coals and the meat in with the onions and fried sauce. Pour the steak juices in with the chili colorado. Add cumin, beer, Mexi oregano, salt, and pepper to your taste.Stir it well and put the pot onto the grill. This grill is a very versatile device. It grills, smokes, cooks pizzas to die for, and even makes a great outdoor oven. In this case, we're using it as an outdoor oven. I set it to 350 degrees. Once the chili is on the smoke, check it every half hour and pull the chili off while that nice special trim still has a touch of bite. This is not pot roast, after all. It'll be off soon, and I'll add updates to the OP. UPDATE 1: Staring to look darker and more evil. The meat is almost done, after 2 hours. Back on the smoke . . . Final Update: It's done when the meat has a little bit of bite left. Extra credit if the chili colorado is also thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Money shot. I like my chili with some grated cheese and sour cream. Flavor like this is difficult to describe. Smokey, musky, dark, spicy warm but not too hot, and utterly delicious. Yes, it's a bit of work to make, but it was totally worth it. |
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Quoted: How was it? Grilling of the meat and then smoking the sauced meat added a whole new dimension to what is already a very complex-tasting dish. Maybe more accurately, smoking the assembled works added back a dimension long missing from chili since cooks stopped cooking over open fires? I give it a thumbs-up. I will be grilling all my chili in the future. |
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Quoted: Was that the full bag of chilies and 1 onion ? I want to try this but would like to get the portions correct. Does your puree use the water they were simmered in? I can't follow a recipe to save my life, so I really don't have any recipes. I do everything to taste, and to get the right consistency, adjusting as necessary. The result of that is a certain "vagueness" on quantities. To answer your first questions, I used about half the 1-pound bag of chiles, with one very large onion, about 5 pounds of meat. I do discard the soaking water. Some use it in making the chili, but there's too much bitterness in it for my taste. I don't add water to the sauce, other than the water the chiles are simmered in. I do add beer to the sauce, but only after the frying step. I have also added coffee to it at times, and chocolate to the beer at other times, and it was really good both times. One note, though: this chili is strong on the flavor of chiles, but not strong on heat. If you love heat, add in fresh chiles or your favorite hot sauce. Similarly, if you really like the flavor of chiles, you will probably love carne con chile colorado. If not, you may find it a bit bitter. If so, add a small amount of sugar at a time, until it's to your taste. One time, just to see what would happen, I added sun-dried tomatoes in with the chiles when I roasted everything, then pureed them along with the chiles, and I must admit it was fantastic. It was actually the perfect thing to counteract the bitterness of the chiles without making it all too sweet. I would do that again. And for those who want to save a bunch of work, go to a restaurant supply and get a big can of chile colorado (of whatever brand they carry):  This chile colorado is typical of the stuff almost all Mexican restaurants use when making enchiladas in bulk. It's pretty much equivalent to the chile colorado I make, minus the wonderful flavors from the "frying" step. I'd call it an 75 percent equivalency right out of the can. Proper use of it can make up maybe 5-10 percent of the other difference. It's pretty thin, so go lightly on the beer or coffee or whatever else you add for liquid. I'll use it if I have to make chili in bulk for an event, but I do prefer to make my own. A gallon can is under $4 here in Seattle. (You might also find big cans of "enchilada sauce," but skip those, as they include many ingredients other than chiles and water.) |
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Quoted: It looks a touch thin, but otherwise awesome. |
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Quoted: I'll be honest, with the first line having the word 'Seattle' in it I was expecting fail. I was, however, pleasantly surprised by the outcome. Good job OP. Gracias. Good chili is where you find it. I learned how to make it while in Mexico, many years ago. I humbly judge my chili the best in Seattle. That may seem arrogant, but I know exactly how I want my chili to taste. And that's the way I make it. Can anyone else do that for me? Second best is at a bar called Slim's Last Chance Chili Shack, which is run by a Texan and is in my neighborhood. This place is fantastic. All the bartenders and cocktail waitresses are tall and slim and uncommonly hot and look like idealized versions of "Tattoo Barbie." Drinks are strong, and they carry Mexican and Texican beer. You can have a bowl of red washed down by a Shiner Bock, if you so desire. Highly recommended for anyone visiting Seattle. http://slimslastchance.com Or, I invite you to my humble abode, and I'll cook you the best . . . |
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Quoted: I would have desired it to be thicker, but I wanted the meat to have some bite left more than I wanted the chili thicker. Sometimes, compromises are necessary. I don't use thickeners. If the chile colorado coats the back of a spoon at the exact time the meat is perfectly done, I feel I did well. Quoted: Quoted: It looks a touch thin, but otherwise awesome. If you want it thicker, add a little paste of Masa Harina and beer. I use only good beer in my chili, no water. I like my chili to be of a consistency that one can spread it on tortillas...like you could, say, with potato salad. Your chili looks good though! |
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Quoted: If you want it thicker, add a little paste of Masa Harina and beer. Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: It looks a touch thin, but otherwise awesome. If you want it thicker, add a little paste of Masa Harina and beer. I use only good beer in my chili, no water. I like my chili to be of a consistency that one can spread it on tortillas...like you could, say, with potato salad. Your chili looks good though! I also use good beer. I am convinced that it makes a difference. IMO, sweetish and malty beers such as Shiner Bock and Fat Tire bring more to the party than more bitter beers such as IPAs. |
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Quoted: I am cooking for a wild game supper next weekend. I had in mind to do a big sauce picquant. Instead I may give this a shot with some venison. |
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Quoted:
Good idea. Venison can be very lean, though. What cut off the deer will you be using? You may want to do a bunch of cooking of the sauce before you add the meat, is my thought. Quoted:
Quoted:
I am cooking for a wild game supper next weekend. I had in mind to do a big sauce picquant. Instead I may give this a shot with some venison. Most likely backstrap/tenderloin. I would smoke the meat for a very short time, pretty much just enough to get some flavor from the smoke. |
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Quoted: Most likely backstrap/tenderloin. I would smoke the meat for a very short time, pretty much just enough to get some flavor from the smoke. Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: I am cooking for a wild game supper next weekend. I had in mind to do a big sauce picquant. Instead I may give this a shot with some venison. Most likely backstrap/tenderloin. I would smoke the meat for a very short time, pretty much just enough to get some flavor from the smoke. If the former, make the sauce. Smoke the sauce pretty thoroughly. Smoke the backstraps but stop when they are 120 degrees. At the last minute, cut the backstraps thinly, and toss into the simmering chile colorado. Pull the colorado, mix through the venison, and cover it. Serve after 5 minutes or so. If the latter, pull the meat at 115 degrees, add it, mix through, and re-heat on-site. Good luck!
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