Regarding Texas Red Chili, one thing that is not debatable is the original chili started off as Chili Con Carne (chili with meat) and it started off in the Southwest. Chili was about the meat and the flavors from the chilis. There were no fillers such as beans, noodles or rice. Today the Original Terlingua International Chili Cookoff doesn’t allow them either so you can taste the chili and the meat.

Chili is even the State Dish of Texas – 1977.

NOTES:
– Use 4-5 ancho and around 12 guajillo chilis – don’t go by weight
– Save the chili water to thin out the chili while cooking – that roux is pretty thick. Probably used 2-4 cups
– Cook the chili around 6 hours or so. Partially cover the pot, and stir occasionally and add the chili water
– Use a combo of 32 oz of beef and chicken broths
– That’s a lot of flour – may want to decrease that and use masa harina instead of flour or a combo
– Freeze-dried chilis seem to work – serranos can be spicy – maybe use a chipotle or 2

Serves over 4

meatchurch.com

INGREDIENTS
3-4 lbs of stew meat, cubed (sub chuck roast, brisket or game meat)
5 oz dried ancho chili (~4 chilis)
16 oz dried guajillo chili (~12 chilis)

1st spice dump:
2 Tbl garlic powder
2 Tbl onion powder
1 Tbl black pepper
3 cubes of beef bouillon
2 packets of Sazon Goya Coriander & Annatto (or whatever amount of coriander you want)

2nd spice dump:
1 Tbl Cumin
½ tsp Mexican Oregano (sub regular oregano)

Other:
16 oz of chicken broth/stock
16 oz of beef broth/stock
3 serrano peppers, whole
½ Cup flour
2 Tbl, lard (manteca), sub ¼ C, olive oil
3 cloves garlic
½ Tbl salt

INSTRUCTIONS
Prepare your spice dumps:
Mix spice dumps #1 and #2 and set aside.

Prepare the chilis:
Stem and seed the all the dried chilis. Place in a skillet on medium high heat and toast the chilis. Flip and stir until fragrant. Remove chilis and place in boiling water. Once chilis are soft, remove from the water and set aside.

Prepare the chili:
In a hot skillet, heat ¼ cup of olive oil until it fries a pinch of flour. Mix in ½ C of all-purpose flour and stir vigorously.

Once it gets to a golden color, add a 16oz of chicken stock to this blonde roux and bring to a simmer.

Now add the roux, chilis, 3 cloves of garlic and a ½ T of salt to a blender and blend until smooth. This is now your chili sauce. Set aside.

Brown the meat:
Add some lard or olive oil to a dutch oven or heavy cast iron skillet. Brown the cubes of meat over medium high heat for 6-8 minutes. Brown in 2 batches if necessary, so as not to overcrowd the pan. Drain off excess grease.

Reduce heat to medium and add your chili sauce and beef stock. If you used a cast iron skillet you will need large pot to continue.

Cook the chili:
Add spice dump #1. Then float the serrano peppers.

Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer for 45 minutes.

Add spice dump #2. At this stage taste test it.

Simmer for at least another hour stirring occasionally. The chili will be “done” at this point although you can simmer it all day.

Remove from the heat. Enjoy

Here’s another version from the same company – they were plugging their spice mix

Makes around 7 quarts

meatchurch.com

INGREDIENTS
2 lbs of ground meat (Venison also great, Matt’s fav)
1 lb of HOT breakfast sausage
1 lb of chuck roast (Alternatively Matt loves using brisket, venison medallions or quarters.) This ingredient is key to making it hearty.
3 medium red onions, chopped
1 head of garlic, minced (sub 3 T Spice World Ready to Use garlic)
2, 28oz can crushed tomatoes with juice
1, 28oz Italian Style diced tomatoes with juice
1 7oz can Chipotles in Adobo Sauce, chopped. Preserve the liquid.
2 Beers. 1 for the chili and 1 to drink while you’re making it.
6 T Meat Church Texas Chili Seasoning. This is a great heat level, but back it down to 4-5 T for Mild. Add 1-2 T more for even spicier or add 2 T cayenne pepper.

Garnish
Shredded Cheese
Fresh Jalapeños
Chopped White Onions

Tools
Large Slow Cooker or Dutch oven. We make ours in a Lodge 7 qt dutch oven.
Large Skillet (to sauté the veg)
1/3 C, Olive oil

INSTRUCTIONS
Prepare the chili:
Add the olive oil to a very large skillet. I prefer cast iron. Sauté the onions, garlic and adobo peppers (including all the liquid from the can [that can be a lot of heat]). This is a lot of onion, so you may have to cook in 2 batches if you don’t have a really large skillet.

Cook for about 10 minutes until the onions are translucent. Remove from skillet and place the mixture in your slow cooker or dutch oven.

Dice the chuck roast into small pieces. Brown the meat in the same skillet. We are going to simmer this chili all day so you just need to brown it and get some char on the outside. Remove from skillet and place the meat in your slow cooker or dutch oven.

Cook the ground meat and breakfast sausage completely in the same skillet. Drain the fat and place all of the meat in the slow cooker or dutch oven.

Mix the chili:
By this time you already have the meat, onions, garlic and adobo peppers in your slow cooker or dutch oven. Now add the 3 cans of tomatoes with the juice, 1 beer and 6 T of Meat Church Texas Chili Seasoning. Mix thoroughly.

Cook the chili:
The ingredients are already cooked at this point, [stick a whole jalapeño in the middle of chili] but we will simmer this chili all day to break down the meat and meld the flavors together.

If you are using a slow cooker you can run this 6 – 8 hours on low. Stir it periodically throughout the day if you can.

If you want to smoke this chili you can run it at 250 degrees in a smoker or pellet grill for 6-8 hours. I leave the lid off for 4-5 hours stirring on the hour. I cover the last couple hours.

Remove from the heat. Allow it to cool. Garnish and enjoy with some cornbread!

This Lebanese lentil and pasta soup (Rishta) comes from “Nistisima,” Georgina Hayden’s beautiful collection of vegan Mediterranean recipes.

INGREDIENTS
8 cups Scrappy Vegetable Broth or store-bought low-sodium vegetable broth
1 heaping cup (7 ounces) brown/green lentils, rinsed and picked over
1/4 cup olive oil
2 medium-large onions (9 ounces each), thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon ground coriander
2 cups lightly packed fresh cilantro leaves and stems (1 large bunch), finely chopped and divided
4 ounces dried tagliatelle or fettuccine, broken into bite-size pieces
1 teaspoon fine salt, plus more to taste
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, plus more to taste

INSTRUCTIONS
In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the broth and the lentils and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat until the liquid is at a simmer, and cook until the lentils are very tender, about 35 minutes.

While the lentils are cooking, in a large skillet over medium heat, heat the oil until it shimmers. Add the onions and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are soft and just beginning to take on color, 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in the cumin seeds and ground coriander and stir-fry until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in half the chopped cilantro and cook, stirring, until completely wilted, about 1 minute. Remove from the heat.

When the lentils are tender, add in the onion mixture. Add the tagliatelle pieces, salt and pepper, and stir to combine. Increase the heat to return to a boil, then reduce the heat so the liquid is simmering, and cook until the tagliatelle is just tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in the lemon juice and the remaining chopped cilantro. Taste, and season with more salt, pepper and/or lemon juice as needed.

Serve hot.

Bigos is an Eastern European stew that has many adaptations; some versions incorporate rice and/or a variety of vegetables and meats, so you can use whatever you have on hand. This version is a Polish hunter’s stew that features kielbasa, smoky bacon, melty cabbage, and lots of delicious broth that can be sopped up with bread.

Serves 12

bonappetit.com

INGREDIENTS
1 lb. double-smoked slab bacon, cut into 1″ cubes
1½ lb. kielbasa sausage, sliced on a diagonal ½” thick
8 garlic cloves, crushed
3 Tbsp. double concentrated tomato paste
1 Tbsp. paprika
1 tsp. ground coriander
1 tsp. ground cumin
¾ tsp. cayenne pepper
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
1 cup dry white wine
2 Tbsp. kosher salt
1 small head of green cabbage (about 2 lb.), cored, thinly sliced
2 large carrots, peeled, sliced 1½” thick
1 Pink Lady apple, cored, grated on the large holes of a box grater
2 lb. Yukon Gold potatoes, scrubbed, cut into 1″ pieces
1 lb. sauerkraut (not drained; about 2 cups)
4 cups homemade beef stock or water
Small dill sprigs, dark rye or pumpernickel bread, and unsalted butter (for serving)

INSTRUCTIONS
Cook bacon in a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot over medium heat, stirring often, until brown and crisp, 10–12 minutes. Transfer bacon to a small bowl with a slotted spoon; set aside. Cook kielbasa in bacon fat in pot, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl with tongs; set aside.

Reduce heat to medium-low, add garlic to same pot, and cook, stirring often, until just beginning to turn golden brown, about 3 minutes. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly, until paste darkens slightly in color and begins to stick to pot, about 2 minutes. Add paprika, coriander, cumin, and cayenne and cook, stirring constantly, just until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Immediately add onions and turn to coat. Increase heat to medium-high, pour in wine, and cook, scraping up browned bits from bottom of pot, until smell of the alcohol cooks off, about 3 minutes. Stir in salt, then add cabbage, carrots, apple, potatoes, sauerkraut, stock, and reserved bacon. Bring to a simmer. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer gently, mixing well halfway through, 1 hour. Mix in reserved kielbasa. Cover and cook until bacon is tender, cabbage is meltingly soft, and potatoes are cooked through, 30–60 minutes.

Divide stew among bowls. Top with dill. Serve with bread and butter alongside.

Do Ahead: Stew can be made 1 week ahead (flavor will improve as time goes on). Cover and chill.

Made with convenient canned beans, this quick and healthy Indian recipe is an authentic chickpea curry that you can make in minutes. If you want an additional vegetable, stir in some roasted cauliflower florets. Serve with brown basmati rice or warm naan.

Serves 6

eatingwell.com

INGREDIENTS
1 medium serrano pepper, cut into thirds
4 large cloves garlic
1 2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 medium yellow onion, chopped (1-inch)
6 tablespoons canola oil or grapeseed oil
2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 teaspoons ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground turmeric
2 ¼ cups no-salt-added canned diced tomatoes with their juice (from a 28-ounce can)
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
2 15-ounce cans chickpeas, rinsed
2 teaspoons garam masala
Fresh cilantro for garnish

INSTRUCTIONS
Pulse serrano, garlic and ginger in a food processor until minced. Scrape down the sides and pulse again. Add onion; pulse until finely chopped, but not watery.

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onion mixture and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add coriander, cumin and turmeric and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes.

Pulse tomatoes in the food processor until finely chopped. Add to the pan along with salt. Reduce heat to maintain a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, for 4 minutes. Add chickpeas and garam masala, reduce heat to a gentle simmer, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes more. Serve topped with cilantro, if desired.