chili
I made chili last night as I had several friends over, as it's a crowd-pleaser, and doesn't require a whole lot of attention. The recipe was requested, and so here it is:
So the first thing to note is that I view chili in a rather... vague sense. I almost never make it exactly the same every time, and this is a common enough concept, I'm sure, that I don't have to explain why.
That being said, I was specifically asked for yesterday's recipe, so what I'm going to do is: First, describe the general recipe (as in sort of what's in my notes), and then describe in detail what I did yesterday.
General Recipe
* Saute in a minimum of oil 1 large onion, chopped.
* If a meat version of the chili, cook 1+ lb. of ground something in a pan, and when cooked add to veggies.
* Chop and add to the onions, some combination of the following:
** carrots,
** zucchini
** bell peppers
** broccoli (if making a veggie version, definitely include the broccoli)
** dried apricots
** garlic cloves, diced/smushed somehow
* Add canned goods, some combination of the following:
** 2-3 large cans of tomato-y stuff
** 2+ cans of bean like substances, drained
** 1 can corn, drained
* Add spices, some combination of the following:
** chili powder (X T.)
** cumin (X T.)
** cinnamin (X t.)
** bay leaves (several)
** cayenne (< t.)
** oregano (X t.)
** paprika (< t.)
** green chili powder (< t.)
** coriander (X t.)
* Cook down for a couple of hours
* Add more spices as necessary
(X = some number of, and < = less than. (T are tablespoons, t are teaspoons.) My notes have many variants of the spice ratios, so if you want something more specific, continue reading below.)
Specifically what I did yesterday Recipe
* Cook 20 oz. ground turkey (93% lean Jennie-O brand) in a pan
* In a large stock pot, heat a T. or so of corn oil.
* Add to the pot:
** a large diced onion (do this first, but for the others, the order doesn't matter so much)
** 2 diced bell peppers (1 red, 1 orange)
** 2 diced small yellow zucchinis
* When the turkey is finished cooking, add to the vegetables in the stock pot.
* Add:
** 1 large can whole tomatoes, (once they're in the pot, sort of stab the whole tomatoes with a spoon to break them up)
** 1 large can diced tomatoes
** 1 large can crushed tomatoes
** remaining tomato paste that was hiding in the fridge. This might have been 2 T.
** (If adding beans, now would be the time to add 2 cans of kidney beans. But I didn't do that yesterday. I know. I wanted them too. But the cans had stupid dents in the bottom, and we couldn't determine if they would kill us. So, no beans. Bah.)
* Stir in 6 bay leaves
* Add spices: (Note: I like my chili fairly mild. So, this is a mild chili.)
** 3 T chili powder
** 2 T. cumin
** 1/4 tsp. green chili powder
** 2 tsp. oregano
** 2 tsp. coriander
* Cook something like an hour and a half
* Check the spices to see if they need anything about 20 min before planning to serve, and (in my case), add:
** 1/2 T. cumin
** 1 tsp. oregano
** 1 tsp. coriander
Serve with grated cheddar cheese (we went through half a lb.), sour cream, and fresh rolls.
Made enough to serve 5 hungry people, with maybe 2 servings of additional chili leftover.
So the first thing to note is that I view chili in a rather... vague sense. I almost never make it exactly the same every time, and this is a common enough concept, I'm sure, that I don't have to explain why.
That being said, I was specifically asked for yesterday's recipe, so what I'm going to do is: First, describe the general recipe (as in sort of what's in my notes), and then describe in detail what I did yesterday.
General Recipe
* Saute in a minimum of oil 1 large onion, chopped.
* If a meat version of the chili, cook 1+ lb. of ground something in a pan, and when cooked add to veggies.
* Chop and add to the onions, some combination of the following:
** carrots,
** zucchini
** bell peppers
** broccoli (if making a veggie version, definitely include the broccoli)
** dried apricots
** garlic cloves, diced/smushed somehow
* Add canned goods, some combination of the following:
** 2-3 large cans of tomato-y stuff
** 2+ cans of bean like substances, drained
** 1 can corn, drained
* Add spices, some combination of the following:
** chili powder (X T.)
** cumin (X T.)
** cinnamin (X t.)
** bay leaves (several)
** cayenne (< t.)
** oregano (X t.)
** paprika (< t.)
** green chili powder (< t.)
** coriander (X t.)
* Cook down for a couple of hours
* Add more spices as necessary
(X = some number of, and < = less than. (T are tablespoons, t are teaspoons.) My notes have many variants of the spice ratios, so if you want something more specific, continue reading below.)
Specifically what I did yesterday Recipe
* Cook 20 oz. ground turkey (93% lean Jennie-O brand) in a pan
* In a large stock pot, heat a T. or so of corn oil.
* Add to the pot:
** a large diced onion (do this first, but for the others, the order doesn't matter so much)
** 2 diced bell peppers (1 red, 1 orange)
** 2 diced small yellow zucchinis
* When the turkey is finished cooking, add to the vegetables in the stock pot.
* Add:
** 1 large can whole tomatoes, (once they're in the pot, sort of stab the whole tomatoes with a spoon to break them up)
** 1 large can diced tomatoes
** 1 large can crushed tomatoes
** remaining tomato paste that was hiding in the fridge. This might have been 2 T.
** (If adding beans, now would be the time to add 2 cans of kidney beans. But I didn't do that yesterday. I know. I wanted them too. But the cans had stupid dents in the bottom, and we couldn't determine if they would kill us. So, no beans. Bah.)
* Stir in 6 bay leaves
* Add spices: (Note: I like my chili fairly mild. So, this is a mild chili.)
** 3 T chili powder
** 2 T. cumin
** 1/4 tsp. green chili powder
** 2 tsp. oregano
** 2 tsp. coriander
* Cook something like an hour and a half
* Check the spices to see if they need anything about 20 min before planning to serve, and (in my case), add:
** 1/2 T. cumin
** 1 tsp. oregano
** 1 tsp. coriander
Serve with grated cheddar cheese (we went through half a lb.), sour cream, and fresh rolls.
Made enough to serve 5 hungry people, with maybe 2 servings of additional chili leftover.