Chili recipe, Cincinnati Green

Wherein: quick, easy, good


A few years back we stayed in Santa Fe, NM while visiting the Albuquerque ballon fest. Weather was horrible: cold and windy, and we didn't see a single balloon launch. Instead, we drove around, did some sight-seeing, and ate. Bought a giclee print from Joseph Comellas; the Rio Chama to be exact. Had some excellent meals, though one of my favorite meals was from a street vendor by the capital. He opened a bag of Fritos and dumped in chili sauce (green and/or red), cheese, and onions. One of the highlights of the trip, seriously.

Back at home, playing around with green chili sauce, I had the idea to somehow combine it with a Cincinnati chili recipe for some sort of sweet and sour chili. Sounds odd, but it worked. There's a sweetness from the cinnamon, cloves, and allspice; sour from the vinegar--the green chili and chocolate helps out here; then heat from the cayenne and chilis. It's well-balanced and the heat sits nicely on the tongue and lips. If you like more heat, I'd add some Crystals hot sauce (definately not Tabasco) instead of ramping up the cayenne.

Entered this in a chili cook-off at work and was surprised when it took 3rd place. I enjoyed it, but thought it would be too different.

Excellent chili – nice and thick. If you wanted thinner, then use 3 cans of sauce and skip the chopped tomatoes or add some water during the cooking stage.

Fool around with this in any way you want. This makes a huge pot of chili, but my guess is that halving the recipe shouldn’t be a problem.

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  
• 1 med or large chopped onion
  
• 2 pounds ground beef
  
• 1/4 cup chili powder
  
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
  
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
  
• 2 bay leafs
  
• 1 ounce square unsweetened chocolate
  
• 2 cans tomato sauce
  
• 1 can chopped tomatoes
  
• 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
  
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
  
• 1 can of chopped green chili (5-6oz can)

Directions

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook until tender, about 6 minutes.
   
2. Add beef, and cook until browned.
   
3. Drain grease.
   
4. Add everything else. Stir to mix well. Bring to a boil.
   
5. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.

Best to refrigerate overnight.Remove the bay leaves. Reheat gently over medium heat. Cheese and sour cream go well with this. Or dump a ladle into a bag of Fritos.