I know you’re convinced that a little cinnamon improves your chili.
You are incorrect on this conviction.
I put in a pinch of espresso 🤌
I usually don’t have a nice fine ground coffee on hand. Cocoa powder works just as well! Gives a nice earthy depth to the chili!
That sounds delicious!
Chili is short for chili con carne, not chili con carne y frijoles. I understand competitions demanding a certain “purity.” That said, I will put beans in my chili because that’s what I like.
I say it’s short for Chile con Carne because beans are the baseline chili - I’d eat chili with beans and no meat, Chile sin Carne, that’s a meal by itself.
But chili with meat and no beans, like Chile Colorado, needs to be served with beans and rice, it’s not good by itself. I do make that sometimes but people just call it “meat” when I do. Nobody here thinks of it as chili.
I don’t think any food is pure. Traditions are forever changing.
If you’re chili con carne is “just meat,” you’ve seriously skimped on the star of the show, the chilis. Which most people seem to do… I’ve seen way too many chili recipes that are basically just a tomato, meat, and bean stew with a dash of chili powder.
I don’t think any food is pure. Traditions are forever changing.
I 100% agree. Hence I said I understand the purists and the chili competitions that don’t allow beans, but I’m going to make mine with beans. Also, much of the best foods are fusions. The chilis, the spicy fruits not the dish, are the perfect example. I can’t imagine a world in which Indian, Thai, or just about any Asian dish doesn’t have a spicy kick to it. Yet every single species of chili originated in South America. Same story with the tomato. My favorite cuisine is Cajun which is French cooking techniques using the South American and Haitian ingredients that were available. There are countless examples like that.
Ha, no they call it “meat” but of course there are chiles. Generally anchos & a guajillo and if I have one the smoked oaxacan pepper. rehydrated in the meat broth and blended with onion and roasted tomatillos, not tomato. It’s really good I just cannot think of it as chili.
A guajillo, as in one? You’re proving my point here. And nothing spicy.
Ha! It’s flavorful as fuck actually with the mostly ancho assortment and tomatillos but the venn diagram in my family for people who like meat heavy meals and the people who like very spicy (as in picante) food doesn’t have much overlap - me and the vegan are the only actual chiliheads.
When I make the vegetarian chili, it gets jalapenos, tomatoes, lots of bottled chili powder, some tinned chipotle powder, leftover very spicy salsa, sometimes beer or a splash of whiskey, I keep adjusting it until it seems like it will be good, then leave it to simmer or in the slow cooker. it’s more of a refrigerator stew but always pintos, I don’t like any other beans in there.
Your vegetarian chili sounds better, and I’m definitely more on the carnivore side. I don’t know if I’ve ever made chili with pinto beans. I’m a kidney and red bean man myself.
It’s also not short for chili con carne y tomates, so by that logic it’d be weird to put tomatoes in there too lol
Again, I don’t necessarily disagree about it from a competition/traditionalist perspective, but I’m going to put it in mine because I like it. That said, I do find that most recipes are akin to a tomato, meat, and beans stew and are sorely lacking in the chilis that the dish is named after.
I’m pretty sure it’s actually short for chili con carne, tomates, espinaca, frijoles, maíze, arroz, más frijoles, calabacín, brócoli, pimientos verdes, comino, chipotle, y pimentón ahumado.
Ah, I see you looked it up in the dictionary
the state of texas agrees
If you use cinnamon and cloves in chili, the cinnamon and cloves should be almost undetectable. The spice is meant to provide a warm undertone.
Realistically, if you want to properly experience it, forget adding cinnamon and add good quality chorizo. It has cinnamon, but brings a lot more to the table.
Wait is that why I love chorizo I fuckin love cinnamon
I honestly had no idea what was in chorizo. I had been making chili with it at home and it came time to make it for work, I stopped by the market near work and they didn’t have any. I was all “FINE!, I’ll make my own” and looked it up, there are TONS of variations. The one I went for was basically vinegar, coriander, cinnamon, cloves, and most of the spices I already use in chili.
One of my favorite taco shops made one that was very hot and just a touch sweet the cinnamon was forward which I didn’t care for at first, but it ended up being amazing, it was also processed fine like round beef. I’ve been trying to replicate that for a while.
So any decent garam masala will work?
You know, I’ve never tried it with chili, but I’ll bet it would be wonderful. I’m thinking the cardamom’s going to get lost really quickly, I would probably add it once at about the middle of the cooking, and then lightly dust it again at serving for the aroma.
For sure. A pinch or pinch and a half will do ya. 1/2 tsp and you’ve gone too far.
Put the peeps in the chili make it taste… Bad.
That’s not completely off, but it should be dark chocolate, not milk chocolate or whatever M&M’s are made with now. A little dark chocolate is great in chili.
What about the Peeps?
I can’t tell if you’re joking.
If you’re not, do you mean like baking chocolate, ultra dark chocolate? Or like dark Ghirardelli chocolate chips
Most popular chili recipes have cocoa powder as an ingredient now. Adds a nice bit of earthiness to the chili.
It takes an excruciatingly small amount of chocolate, if you add too much it just tastes like chocolate. But it is good. Same with a touch of cinnamon. Very small amounts just to add some depth.
I’ve used dark chocolate chips before, yes. I think they were Ghirardelli.
And no, not joking. Chocolate without the fat/sugar is bitter, and bitter flavors can add a lot if they’re mixed in correctly.
I came here looking for this and I knew Lemmy would come through for me. Thanks for passing your spark forward.
Cumin can add a cinnamonesque flavor to chilis, I wonder if that is where the idea of putting cinnamon in chili comes from.
I was so offended the first time I saw Ramsey make chili and added cinnamon sticks. Cumin definitely belongs in chili though.
Also bigger onion and pepper pieces mixed in, and steak instead of ground beef
I love cumin. But really, it has a nutty earthy flavor… One of my favorites along with onion powder.
Beans belong in chilli and you can wash the cast iron in the dishwasher
I agree, but then they call that slop they put on spaghetti in Cincinnati chili and it doesn’t have any beans, so I don’t know what’s real anymore.
Only 3 ways and some 4 ways don’t have beans
It’s not choking, it’s “Cincinnati chili,” and you can absolutely get it with beans
My headcanon for the invention of Cincinnati chili is that some midwestern person read that chili is “heavily spiced” and used what they had available, including cinnamon and nutmeg.
Cincinnati chili comes from Greek and immigrants fleeing the Balkan wars of the 1920’s. they got off the boat in New York and saw everyone eating Coney dogs and New York style spaghetti.They then get to Ohio and figure that’s what Americans like to eat, so they made a sauce using Mediterranean ingredients and flavors that they were familiar with. If they had called it anything other than chili, it would be widely regarded as Cincinnati’s greatest contribution to American cuisine.
When I worked there, I had to refund a few people coming from Missouri and Texas who did not expect what they got (and somehow were not concerned at the smell when they walked in to sit down).
I’m from Missouri originally and my family all like it. I don’t listen to Texans as a general rule, but especially never about chili or barbecue. They are ao stuck in their ways and refuse to entertain any variation of what they are used to
I wasn’t aware that chocolate was a traditional Greek flavoring
No Cincinnati chili parlors hhave ever officially added chocolate, but it is common with homemade Cincinnati chili.
I’m an adamant defender of skyline, but I think it’s already considered Cincinnati’s greatest contribution to American cuisine. I can’t think of any others despite being from Dayton myself
Maybe goetta? But goetta might be more controversial than skyline, so maybe that disqualifies it
Yeah it’s definitely more. I think my father in law eats it, but my father was strictly scrapple. Funny enough each eats the other’s city’s gross meat.
And chocolate. Cincinatti chili is great
Except for when they eat it over spaghetti and cut it with a knife instead of twirling
I’ve managed to do this for decades without incident or injury to myself or others.
Some Greek guy living on Ohio, more accurately (used to work there). EDIT – should’ve scrolled down; someone else beat me to the punch.
It’s got beans of you order a 5-way like a real man
Do whatever you want to your cast iron but stay the fuck away from mine.
I, as a chili bean lover who made their chili based on beans, understand this completely.
Chili should (if not vegan chili) be based around the meat. The meat and flavors should be #1 and the accoutrements should be secondary.
If vegan chili (which my mum makes and it’s SO DELICIOUS), this rule can be ignored.
The meat and flavors should be #1
I would argue the chiles should be #1, though the protein/umami source at #2 works fine.
I actually could not agree more. The chili flavours are insanely incredible.
We recently started using dried chilis in a blender after steeping them and it’s so much better than premixed stuff.
Counterpoint: I’ll put whatever I want in my spicy slop and the internet can be mad all it wants, beans are going in there.
That is hella based
But I’ve tried with a lot of different things and it always comes out best if I do the meat as a base (if I’m not making vegan chili)
Chili just needs to be hearty and filling. Meat and beans are great for this purpose. Having an appropriate ratio is important and the types of beans is also important (doubly so in vegetarian chili). Meat should be on top but shouldn’t overpower everything else.
Full agree. If it’s meat chili, the easiest way to do that is to use the meat base.
But you’re 100% correct, you can absolutely do it different ways, especially if you’re making non-meat chili.
There is nothing that cinnamon can’t improve though
Actually cinnamon doesn’t improve cinnamon. Anyone that’s attempted to cinnamon challenge can attest to this
You’ve got me there
“If you like beans in chili put beans in chili. If you dislike beans in chili but you dislike someone who also dislikes beans in chili more than you dislike beans in chili put beans in chili.”
However, there is nothing that cinnamon cannot make better.
Would you put cinnamon on fettuccine alfredo?
Chili without beans is just spicy spaghetti sauce and I will die on that hill.
Beans belong in chili.
Preach it louder, so those in the back can hear it too
Beans are the foundation of chili. You can remove all the meat from a chili and still call it chili. You cannot remove all the beans and still call it chili.
Yes: Pinto beans are called chili beans for a goddamn reason. But also kidney beans in the mix (and black beans at least) are delicious too.
I can’t find good kidney beans (all the ones I find, their skins are too tough compared to the other beans) so I use navy beans instead. Also pinto beans. I can’t remember the third but it’s a three bean chili dammit who ever heard of a two bean chili
Beanless chili only works as a hot dog condiment. I don’t see the point otherwise
Well yeah, take the skyline pill and embrace it
Based and goldstarpilled
You take that gold star filth and shove it. This is a skyline household /hj
Thanks for the handjob?
Where’s my Camp Washington crew at
Keep your head held high, my bean chili brother.
All the beanless chili I’ve had has been made with chunks of meat instead of ground meat so more like a spicy stew.
I’ve had a lot with shredded beef, but that’s probably because they were too lazy to cut it after smoking. Shredding is easier.
Whatever dude. My chili, my choice.
Dude the election was clear. your chili my choice.
A pinch of cinnamon can be pretty good in chili. Adds a certain spiciness that isn’t a capsaicin feeling spice.
I accidentally added a bunch once having thought I was grabbing my oregano spice bottle (they’re identical in shape, size, and color). I refused to throw it out and expected to hate it but, even though it was a lot to my eyes, it was good and wife agreed. That said, we both also like Cincy-style chili.
You are entitled to your incorrect opinion.
Curry powder.
If you can taste cinnamon, you put too much. It gives almost a smokiness while making the sweetness of the tomato pop. But you should use so little you worry it won’t do anything.
