Best Bowl/Cup of Chili In State of CT?

[superjohn]

Who allowed them to add "various spices and other ingredients"? Those weren't in the original recipe.

It's all just arbitrary BS. If you want to call something like "Texas Red" a very specific set of ingredients, have at it. Otherwise, who gives a rat's ass, other than it shouldn't contain cinnamon or be served over pasta with cheddar cheese.

August_West clearly makes substandard chili, most likely garbage meat sauce you would find on a hot dog.

 

[HuskyHawk]

I make chili at home. It does have beans, always. It does not have onions or green bell peppers. Also, hamburger is lazy. I've used prime rib and other cuts of meat.

Among the best chilis I've had out was on the edge of Loch Ness, in an amazing Scotch bar. It was venison chili.

 

[Drew]

I’ve found brisket to be the best meat to use for homemade chili. Great combination of meat/fat.

Mix that with more lean ground beef for a great flavor.

Have to then cook your onions and tomatoes and anything else in the juices left by the meat

A sneaky key ingredient I’ve used- spicy bloody Mary mix. Tomato based obviously and has a ton of good flavor when mixed with chili.

Then slow cook 6-8 hours and you have a great football Saturday/Sunday meal

 

[pepband99]

View attachment 71994

Says the guy who nominates Arby's for the James Beard award and a Michelin star.

 

[storrsroars]

The one trick I use when making chili at home is borrowed from Indian cooking. Fry the spices (and onions/garlic if using) first or separately if you need, before you brown the meat. Really deepens the flavor.

 

[huskyjawz]

Kuhn's chili. You can buy it at the 5-0 food store on Black Rock Turnpike in Fairfield. Think they serve it on the dogs at Rawleys and The Cricket. All heat, no beans.

Not Rawleys. They serve it at Danny's Drive-In in Stratford.

 

[Chin Diesel]

I’ve found brisket to be the best meat to use for homemade chili. Great combination of meat/fat.

Mix that with more lean ground beef for a great flavor.

Have to then cook your onions and tomatoes and anything else in the juices left by the meat

A sneaky key ingredient I’ve used- spicy bloody Mary mix. Tomato based obviously and has a ton of good flavor when mixed with chili.

Then slow cook 6-8 hours and you have a great football Saturday/Sunday meal

The one trick I use when making chili at home is borrowed from Indian cooking. Fry the spices (and onions/garlic if using) first or separately if you need, before you brown the meat. Really deepens the flavor.

So, is it sautee the meat and then cook veggies in the fat or cook the veggies then the meat?

 

[Northbound]

Not in CT, but Melon on the UES has pretty tasty chili, not close to the burgers, but I digress.

 

[storrsroars]

So, is it sautee the meat and then cook veggies in the fat or cook the veggies then the meat?

Whatever tastes better to you I suppose. I went through a phase where I was cooking a ton of rogan josh, vindaloos, etc. The next time I made chili I simply put the spices in first, then the onion & garlic. Tomatoes went into the cooked meat, along with any green or red chiles I added for flavor/heat. Works for me, maybe not for others. Half the fun in cooking is coloring outside the lines and calling audibles.

 

[WlfdHusky]

I make my own. No ground beef. No beans. Bean on the side. Black or pinto. 2-3 ounces of dried New Mexico or Pasilla or Guaillo chiles, toasted, soaked and turned into a paste with cumin, salt and black pepper. 3 lbs chuck roast cut into small cubes - browned in Dutch oven. Remove meat 1/2 cup fine diced onion 3 minced cloves garlic to dutch oven til lightly browned. Add 2 cups beef broth 2 cups water and masa harina(corn meal). Add the chile paste, add the beef. Cook 2 hours or more at lowest possible simmer. Add 2 TBS white vinegar and 1 TBS brown sugar. Stir in and let sit for 10-15 minutes. Done. Served with Jalapeno & scallion corn bread

 

[WlfdHusky]

So, is it sautee the meat and then cook veggies in the fat or cook the veggies then the meat?

I usually find it is meat then veggies for chili. I am not sure it matters much though as long as you don't burn the brown stuff on the bottom of the pan. That is key.

 

[CTMike]

Chili with beans is good ICS and Texas and @August_West can all kick rocks on that point.

This isn’t competition chili but it’s sneaky good at Texas Roadhouse.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Chili with beans is good ICS and Texas and @August_West can all kick rocks on that point.

This isn’t competition chili but it’s sneaky good at Texas Roadhouse.

Chili without beans is a condiment for hot dogs.

 

[WeAreUCONN]

You’re welcome.

 

[WeAreUCONN]

I created the chili and many other dishes for the Mohegan Sun for several years. I mixed chili powder with Cajun seasoning and added some sugar at the end. Everyone seemed to enjoy it. I would also sauté the beef with the seasoning after draining the grease and then adding the onions.

 

[ClifSpliffy]

View attachment 71994

here's a new cheer that i just made up:

'what the fazool,
is the ICS?'

and for the record, i like skyline chili in the nasty, cold, and dank days of winter, when u have to go out in it, and do stuff, like bear wrassilin, or
a long hike.

 

[RichZ]

First in to kill off anyone using Cincinatti and chili in same breath.

Personally I don't like the fresh chopped veggies thrown on the top at the end.

I have become a fan of throwing in corn in the last 30 minutes. Yellow or yellow white color gives a different look on the eyes and the sweet taste can take some of the sting off the heat from peppers. More of a Sante Fe or Tex Mex style.

While I like to mess around and experiment I always load mine up with dark and light kidney beans, black beans, and some sort of white bean. I'll mess around with different meat cuts too and will use anything from beef, poulty, deer meat, etc.

usually get a bag of the red/yellow/orange sweet peppers, jalepenos, red pepper, chili peppers, poblanos and maybe fresno and aneheim. More a process of what looks good at the grocer than an exact recipe. I don't need to blow the roof off, you just want some warm heat that hangs on after each bite and for a good 20-30 minutes after you finish a bowl.

Fritos scoops or tostitos scoops, mexican crema (or sour cream) and any mild cheese shredded on top.

If you do it with plenty of beans and lean meats and avoid loading it with dairy products at the end you actually get a very healthy meal low in fat and with plenty of protein. Get low sodium canned veggies or get them fresh to control the sodium.

Black or red beans as a condiment, served with chili, never cooked into it.

 

[RichZ]

who gives a rat's ass, other than it shouldn't contain cinnamon or be served over pasta with cheddar cheese.

I have a friend who lives in Cincinnati. He used to send me a can of Skyline for Christmas every year. Fortunately, the joke got old, and fell from grace.

 

[Chin Diesel]

Black or red beans as a condiment, served with chili, never cooked into it.

We already clarified on page 1 9of this thread the fallacy of no beans in chili.
The Texas no bean is as silly as the Cincy skyline. You really out yourself as an amateur going with the no beans.

 

[RichZ]

Where do you guys go for a good bowl or cup of chili? Anyone have good recipes?

Side note- acceptable chili toppings (not necessarily all at the same time):

White onion
Green Onion
Jalapeno
Sour Cream (not a fan personally- but acceptable)
Cheddar/Monterrey/Mexican Blend cheese

anything else on top (avocado.. just no) is ridiculous IMO

There was a place in Danbury for a few years in the early or mid 80s that made a palatable bowl of red. And when I'm in Dallas I go to Tolbert's at least once. It's not like it was when it was in Dallas and being run by the old man (Frank X Tolbert) but it's still worth the ride to Grapevine where it's currently located, and run by his daughter.

 

[RichZ]

As I continue to find ways to cut down on beef consumption, I’ve been experimenting for a few years with a blend of dark and white ground turkey in my recipe. In the case of ground beef chili, I don’t miss it.

There's you're problem. Ground beef? I use chunks of chuck, when the meat shreds while you're stirring it with a big fork, that's when you know it's done.

 

[Deepster]

I wouldn't ever order chili in a restaurant. In my, albeit brief, experience in that industry chili is made from the scraps and "waste" from two nights ago that need to be used now.

At home? My "secret" ingredient is dark chocolate. That's a must for me. If I have some dark roast coffee hanging around from breakfast, I'll also throw that in on occasion.

 

[RichZ]

We already clarified on page 1 9of this thread the fallacy of no beans in chili.
The Texas no bean is as silly as the Cincy skyline. You really out yourself as an amateur going with the no beans.

You clarified nothing. Those who put legumes in their chili are the amateurs and wannabes.

 

[August_West]

You clarified nothing. Those who put legumes in their chili are the amateurs and wannabes.

I love you. . I’ve made your chili recipe a few times. That is chili.

 

[Dove]

Message board chili slamming...