It's Fall Y'all
(Scroll down to "The Playlist" and hit play before reading... works better that way!)
The weather's getting cooler, the leaves are falling and the smell of campfires are in the air... perfect time for a Chili Cook-off. Thanks to our good friends Richard and Angela for hosting the annual BandY Chili Cook-off. Good times, music, friends and chili.
Today we're gonna show you how to make a chili we humbly refer to as "BCE"... Best Chili Ever!
Hey, you can't go wrong with 5 lbs of 5 different meat (especially when you start with bacon). Of course you need a little something to wash it down, so we came up with a Pumpkin Wine Bar. And then you have to have music, so we put together a list of tunes for the "Throw-Down"! Oh yeah... there was some trash talk going down.
Pull up a lawn chair... The Pots Are On!
The Plate...
"BCE" Best Chili Ever/Cilantro Crema
Ok... you can search the world wide web or just believe us when we say that this is the "Best Chili Ever"! And we decided that everybody needed to know just how to make it. You will probably say to yourself... "Wow, this is a lot of stuff to throw in a chili." Just trust us and go with it. Besides, what you don't eat you can save because everybody knows that chili just keeps getting better when you pull it back out and heat it up,
Now there are some special "secret" ingredients, so pay attention.
Ready... here we go. We think you'll be happy.
What you need...
For the Chili-
1 lb thin pork loin chops/trim off the fat and cut into small cubes
1 12oz package of "lil Smokies" (the secret ingredient)/cut into four pieces length wise
1 lb 80/20 ground beef
1 lb Venison (or lean ground beef)
1 lb center cut bacon
1 16oz package of "Sweeties"-mini sweet peppers
1 28oz can of crushed tomatoes
1 16oz can each of kidney beans, Black beans, Stewed tomatoes, Tomato sauce
1 10oz can of Rotel diced tomatoes with green chilis
1 1/2 tbsp of "Better than Bouillon" (sold in a jar at most stores)
1 medium sweet onion/chopped
8 cloves of fresh garlic/minced
5 fresh jalapeños/chopped (seeded if you don't want as much heat)
2 tbsp each of Cumin, White pepper, Black pepper, Onion powder, Cinnamon, Smoked paprika, and Garlic powder
1 tbsp Cayenne
3 oz Chili powder
For the Cilantro Crema-
1/2 cup firmly packed cilantro
1/2 cup Mexican crema (for sour cream)
1 tbsp fresh lime juice
1/2 avocado
1 jalapeno / chopped
What you do...
For the Chili-
First things first... in a 2 gallon stock pot throw in the 80/20 ground beef and brown (do not drain off the fat).
After the ground beef has browned, add all of the tomatoes and beans complete with their juice.
(Do not drain the juice from the beans or the tomatoes... this adds flavor)
Now add all the dry spices except the Chili powder.
Cook on medium high stirring every now and then.
Cook the bacon and drain most of the fat. Crumble the bacon and set aside.
Cook the pork loin in the bacon grease and set aside.
Brown the Venison and the "lil Smokies" and set aside.
Saute the onions, jalapeños and sweet peppers in a little oil until they are soft.
Add the garlic to the pan and continue to saute for an additional minute.
Add the Venison, lil Smokies, bacon, onions, jalapeños, garlic and sweet peppers to the stock pot.
Add "Better than Bouillon" to the pot.
Add the Chili powder to the pot and stir mixing all ingredients.
Now, turn the down the heat on the stock pot to medium low and simmer for at least 4 hours.
Serve with a little Cilantro Crema and enjoy.
For the Crema-
Combine the cilantro, Mexican crema, lime juice, avocado and jalapeño in a blender and give it a whir until it's smooth.
Add salt and pepper to taste.
The Playlist...
BCE Chili Cook-Off
Don't know what it is, but cool weather and a little rebellious blue grass, southern rock and chili just seem to go well together. As usual we've mixed some old with some new. So crank it up and start stirring that chili.
The "Playlist" runs on Spotify-Click on the link to listen BCE Chili Cook-Off
The Bar...
Pumpkin Wine Bar
Well, we thought since we we're going to the chili cook-off we should do something a little different. We've seen folks do this with beer but we thought this would be a little different. Seemed to go over well.
What you need...
1 large pumpkin
1 box of your favorite wine (yes there is good box wine to found. We used Bota Pinot Grigio.)
Ice
2 (1gallon) ziplock bags
What you do...
Carve out the pumpkin, scraping out the seeds as best as you can.
Take a small knife and cut a circle at the bottom on the front of the pumpkin just large enough for the spout on the wine to stick through. Be sure to cut the hole high enough on the pumpkin so you can fit your glass underneath.
Place ice in gallon plastic ziplock bags. Place one bag in the bottom of the pumpkin.
Take the bag of wine out of the box and place inside the pumpkin.
Place the other bag of ice behind the wine for support as well as extra cooling.
And Then This Happened...
As Usual... Y'all Please Day Drink Responsibly
&
Keep On Cookin'!
