Recipe By :
Serving Size : 6 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Copycat Info
Beef
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
3 lb Ground or cubed chuck
1/4 c Oil
1 qt Water
1 ts Of Salt or to taste
10 cl Garlic, chopped
3 oz Chile powder, I like
-McCormicks
1 ts Ground cumin (comino)
1 ts Oregano
1 ts Cayene pepper, approximate
1/2 ts Black pepper
1 tb Sugar
3 tb Paprika
3 tb Flour
6 tb Masa (fine ground corn meal)
The first "chili" recipes appeared in West Texas at the turn of the
century. They may have had their origin from old Mexican recipes,
but since most cowboys couldn't read, or for that matter, cook very
good, chili most probably got it's start due to the availability of
spices and other ingredients available in the area. A lot of
ingredients available to us now were just not available then. Most
chili consisted of beef, cumin, pepper, sugar, paprika, garlic, and
masa to thicken. Tomatoes were seasonal and usually not available.
Chili powder was not manufactured at the time. They used dried
chili's (spanish for peppers). Most west Texas cowboys were Mexican.
Most of the original chili did not have beans due to the time
required to soak and cook them...chuck wagons did not appear until
later in history and even then, on most ranches, the cowboy was on
his own and didn't have time to watch beans all day.
The following recipe is based on the original recipes.
CHILI
In a large skillet, saute meat in oil until browned. Add water and
simmer 1 1/2 to 2 hours. In a small bowl, mix chili powder, salt,
garlic, cumin, oregano, cayene pepper, black pepper, sugar and
paprika. Add to skillet. Simmer 30 minutes. Cooking longer will
cause spices to lose flavor. In a small bowl mix flour and masa.
Whisk flour masa mixture into chili, stirring constantly to prevent
sticking. Bring mixture back to simmer until thickened. Remove
from heat. Serve over beans, rice, hot dogs, enchiladas, burritos,
or eat plain. Cheese (cheddar, longhorn, queso blanco, etc.) goes
well on top.
Note lack of tomatoes and beans. Give it a try. KF
