I love great chili. I’ve never looked up ways to make my own chili seasonings, though. I never really cared since McCormick’s & Lawry’s packages do just fine for me. I always add some of my own stuff though. Give it a shot!

1 ½ pounds ground beef or a mix of 50% ground beef, 25% ground pork & 25% ground veal
1 15oz can diced Roma tomatoes
1 15oz can tomato sauce
1 15oz can black beans
1 can white shoe peg corn
2 ½ packages McCormick’s Original Chili Seasoning Mix
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 large shallot, minced
½ cup red wine
1 teaspoon (or a little less, this stuff is potent) chicken base paste
Beef broth
Wondra Powder
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Salt & freshly ground black pepper

Add olive oil to a large, hot sauce pan or pot. Sautée garlic and shallots for a few minutes under medium-high heat and add chicken base paste and stir till paste has melted. Add beef, season generously with salt and pepper and stir well. Brown beef and crumble down to your liking. Add tomato sauce, canned tomatoes, black beans, corn, wine, McCormick’s seasoning mix and ½ cup of beef broth. Stir well, cover and heat to a slow boil. Stir well and lower heat to bring it down to a simmer. Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring often. Take a quick taste. If it’s not spicy enough for you, add the last ½ package of chili seasoning mix and/or add a few dashes of ground cayenne pepper.

With chili, consistency is very important. Everyone has their own liking when it comes to consistency. Some people like it loose and soupy, some people like it thick and hearty. I’m a bit in between, but I make it different every time. This time around I made it thicker than usual and served it over garlic infused rice. If you like it soupier, add more beef broth. If you like it thicker, add less beef broth or add a few sprinkles of Wondra Powder, stir well and it will thicken up. When you add Wondra powder to anything, make sure what you’re adding it to is very hot. Stir well ass you sprinkle it in. Better yet, dissolve the Wondra Powder (or flour, or corn starch) with some water first, then add it in.

There are a million different ways you can take this. Add your own ingredients. Try black eyed peas instead of black beans. Add some freshly chopped jalapeño peppers. What I forgot to do this time is sprinkle freshly chopped Italian flat leaf parsley over the chili after it has been plated. I usually eat mine with saltine crackers and green onions on the side Namaste! Yankees suck!

One Response to “Mostly Homemade Chili”

1. Bruce Howell says:

   August 10, 2007 at 11:27 am

   just gave the FIOS install guy your chili recipe – he said he loves chili