While I'm feeling my way regarding content for blogOptica's central topic, here's a mostly meaningless off topic start--a recipe. Suggested by my reptilian brain after not eating for 24 hours in preparation for a colonoscopy, (thank you, Katie Couric), food is all I'm thinking about right now.
These are not all the steps and ingredients I've used over the years, but it's close enough for a start. Maybe I'll add more steps and stuff as I remember more.
My Chili in Maine
This is 'liquid' steak, really, seasoned somewhat spicy with copious amounts of onion and cubed and ground chuck roast and flavorings (sautéed and flavored to personal taste). This recipe should come out with an enormous amount of meat and a broth-like semi-clear liquid. Serve with toppings: sour cream, ground cheddar cheese, diced scallions, sliced and mashed avocados, fruits (apple, oranges, almost anything), and the freshest rustic bread you can find--broken into chunks. It is sooo simple.
Ice cold beer is great with this (additionally, three 16 oz bottles of Budweiser are in the brew), but so is cold fresh milk to 'cut' the spiciness.
Meat, onions and chili powder should be browned or sautéed in a pan before adding to the chili pot (preferably stainless steel) -- best to cook the chili powder separately with butter--'cooking' the chili powder removes the 'rawness' factor.
Tomatoes (fresh, 2, large) or, canned chunked
Spanish Onions (2, large--low slope shoulders, not round)
Trimmed meat: 6-7 lbs. chuck roast, (1, roast to be cut into 1" squares trimmed of grizzle, membrane and excessive fat, 1 of the roasts to be ground by meat cutter, 1 lb. pre-cut trimmed chuck stew meat, chuck is the most flavorful).
An individual ingredients chili mix (Wick Fowler's or Carroll Shelby's packaged, premeasured will do just fine, and includes separate salt, cumin, ground chili, red pepper, paprika, masa flour packets--I don't use the masa flour--again, this recipe is for a non-starchy broth ... if you use flour, it won't be this recipe.)
Use fresh ground black pepper--coarse Kosher salt is better than the stuff in the packets.
1/4 lb. butter (spread it around throughout the recipe--adds a certain 'substance' to the brew, really.)
3, 16 oz. bottles Budweiser
Spring water (Poland Spring, Dasani, are decent) as needed for to thin out the mixture if needed.
Miscellaneous Ingredients: hot sauce of choice, chocolate (dark), or syrup, A1 sauce, rich/dark coffee, whole milk (these items can be added, by tasting, to sweeten, thicken, or add contrast...just don't over do it)
Other Resources:
In addition to primal hunger, significant pressure from my family, (divorce, emancipation, joining the army, getting a tattoo, whatever), encourage me to shop for chili ingredients.
If you make too much it is even better after being frozen.
RHN
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