That Chili Recipe

When making this make sure to have at least 4 hours of free time and 3 hours before dinner. It makes a lot so be sure to have a large stock pot for cooking. You may also need plenty of plastic containers for leftovers unless of course you make and eat it while you’re camping. A friend of mine and I used it for a staple on a weekend camping trip. Chili dogs (some of the best dogs you’ll ever taste!**), chili eggs, chili chili….you get the picture. Just be sure to stay away from fire after the second day. Did you know methane gas damages the atmosphere a lot more than CO2? Anyway, I can’t believe we wasted this on Busch Light, chalk it up to inexperience. 

Nowadays I like this with a porter or an IPA. Why a porter? I discovered that the dark chocolate in porters goes very well with the smokiness from the chili powder. It may sound weird but it’s definitely good.  Good examples of porters are "Great Lakes Edmund Fitzgerald" and "Road Dog Porter from Flying Dog Brewery". A very good example of an IPA would be without a doubt "Dogfish Head Brewery's 60 or 90 Minute IPA's". My favorite is "New Holland's Existential Hopwine" but that's another story. 

Ingredients

2lb ground Beef

1lb Italian sausage (medium, hot, mild……your choice)

4 cloves minced Garlic 

2 large onions chopped

½ large green pepper

3 stalks of chopped celery

112 oz of tomatoes (usually 4 28oz cans of whole peeled tomatoes will work)

1 large can of tomato juice

¼  cup sugar

3 tablespoons chili powder

½ tsp of cayenne pepper

 2 oz Franks hot sauce (I put that shit on everything) 

3 tablespoon Creole seasoning

1.5 oz Worcester sauce

4 28oz cans kidney beans ( I used dark and light red)

Start Cooking

Brown the sausage, beef and onions.

Dump them into a large stock pot with all the ingredients except the beans. Bring to a boil.

Turn down the heat and simmer for 2 hours stirring occasionally (say, every time you get you get up to grab another beer stir the pot a little)

After 2 hours pour the beans in and bring it to boil. 

Turn the heat down to simmer and wait another hour*, stirring occasionally. 

*Note: When I want this a little hotter I take about 3 cups out of the pot after 2.5 hour and set it aside. I then add about 2 oz of hot sauce, chopped jalapeno, and one more clove of garlic. I bring it to a slow boil then let it simmer for about 30+ minutes. It’s not massively hot but you’ll sweat a little.  

**Note 2: The chili dogs. There’s this little place at a non-descript US Submarine base I used to visit when the boat I was on stopped for supplies. 

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I dreamt of their chili dogs they were so good. A cold beer and a hot chili dog was the best after a bit at sea. After I introduced a slightly burnt (very slight) hot dog to this it was all she wrote. I would love to visit that bar again but the chili dog they had has been replaced indefinitely.  

Cheers!