food AJ's Red

klyth said:
I'm going to make this tonight for a chili cook-off we're having at work. I'll let you guys know how it turns out...
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Dude, it's aaaaaawwweeeeesssoooommmmeeee. You should win handily.
 
making me blush SM....thanks man...
 
I'll tell ya what...i had to 'adjust' the recipe because i don't have anything large enough to cook it in it's entirety. I had to cut it way back to fit in my meager ass crock-pot. I'm going to get a huge stockpot one of these days just to do this they way it should be done. I'm just trying to figure out how to carry it home on a bicycle.
 
Hey Mon, just balance de 'ting on you head...
 
Ok. It's been cooking almost 24 hours now. Definately not as hot as it was 20 hours ago. Not sure why that is. Last night when I was tasting it, it was so hot it make my eyes water and it made me cough. Now, it just burns. Considering adding more nagas and fataliis.

The taste is nice, but it's kinda... Plain... Which is fine - it's a darn easy chili to make. I'm not sure what I expected, but this isn't really it.

I've also considered that your home-grown chili powder is what really makes it shine for you. I just had to use the generic stuff cause I don't have a dehydrator.

Anyway, it's still got about 12 hours to go. I'll let you know how I make out!
 
I have got to make this recipe. I never heard of a 36-48 hour chili before though. Does that really change the taste or make the meat more tender? I guess I am asking what is the advantage of slow cooking it so long vs. 6-8 hours?
 
I don't know Jay. It definitely makes the meat more tender, and mixes the flavors better. But I'm not sure it's really worth the time.

The meat came out kind of "ashy" tasting. Almost no flavor at all. I'm not sure what I did wrong. Maybe my crock pots "low" setting is too high and it burned the meat?
 
Ok guys, the smoke has cleared.

I didn't win - not by a long shot. I'm not at all surprised. It was hot, but not hot enough, and tasty, but not tasty enough. I strongly feel that I did something wrong. The ashy, flavorless meat made the whole thing kind of limp, and it just wasn't hot enough to make up for the lack of flavor.

I actually added more chili powder and salt at about the 24 hour mark because it tasted kinda "blah."

I will give this one more shot - with a new crock pot. I had to have burned it or something. But it didn't smell burned - it just tasted funny. I'll repost when I get to try it again!

Next time I won't cook it nearly as long. It tasted much better (and hotter) at the 2 hour mark than it did at the 24 or 36 hour marks. And I definitely won't use sausage links - I'll buy ground sausage.

I realize this post is kind of unorganized. I'm just posting for future reference so I don't forget what to change next time.
 
TheJollyRancher said:
Sounds like a good recipe....but.....























you forgot the beans :)
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Oh behalf of all Texans I hereby ban you from our state. You're still cool, it just probably wouldn't be safe for you here. :lol:
 
Klyth...I don't know what to yell you about the chili...

I have never tried it in a crock pot since I use a 20 quart stock pot to make it in...how much did you stray from the recipe?...

And for TJR...."there ain't no beans in real Texas chili"
 
AlabamaJack said:
Klyth...I don't know what to yell you about the chili...

I have never tried it in a crock pot since I use a 20 quart stock pot to make it in...how much did you stray from the recipe?...

And for TJR...."there ain't no beans in real Texas chili"
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My guess is that it flopped for several reasons....

A seasoned cast iron dutch oven is not only one of the best investments one could make but a key ingredient in making chili.

Try a different sausage. I don't use it myself but if I did, I would use a good chorizo.

The quality of chili powder could also be a factor. Most are just paprika's with added salt and "other" ingredients. The best is to make your own.

Chili will be good the day you make it but gets better the following day.

My secret ingredient is....beer! A little brown sugar or balsamic vinegar goes a long way to jacking up the flavor when using bland ingredients.

Cheers, TB.
 
AlabamaJack said:
Klyth...I don't know what to yell you about the chili...

I have never tried it in a crock pot since I use a 20 quart stock pot to make it in...how much did you stray from the recipe?...

And for TJR...."there ain't no beans in real Texas chili"
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I cut everything exactly in half for a 6 qt crock pot. I didn't really change anything. I added a tsp of cocoa powder just as a goof. I didn't measure the wine, I just added that by eye.

I may have cooked the sausage too much (I like sausage crispy) before I chucked that in the pot. I'm not sure what I did wrong exactly but speaking to others, people were amazed that I browned my meat before cooking it for 36 hours. The sentiment seemed to be it's not necessary to pre-cook meat when you're going to slow-cook it that long, and that's why it tasted ashy, as all the meat was overcooked. I don't know.

texas blues said:
My guess is that it flopped for several reasons....

A seasoned cast iron dutch oven is not only one of the best investments one could make but a key ingredient in making chili.

Try a different sausage. I don't use it myself but if I did, I would use a good chorizo.

The quality of chili powder could also be a factor. Most are just paprika's with added salt and "other" ingredients. The best is to make your own.

Chili will be good the day you make it but gets better the following day.

My secret ingredient is....beer! A little brown sugar or balsamic vinegar goes a long way to jacking up the flavor when using bland ingredients.

Cheers, TB.
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I was really considering adding beer, but I didn't want to change AJ's recipe too much. Yeah, I don't have home-made chili powder. No dehydrator.

I used chouriço and Italian sausage.

I do need to buy a dutch oven some day.
 
I've made this recipe a couple months back and it was good. Used fresh organic grass fed beef (cuz I ordered half a cow from a farm, excellent meat!) and the only sausage was chorizo. Oh and the wine was a pinot grigio I think... I have no blush in the house. The chili powder was store bought but actually pretty decent. Overall I'd say this recipe is a good one.

However, I think what makes it a real winner for AJ is the variety of peppers he uses. I mean, I can't get my hands on stuff like pasillo up here. I'd have to grow that or maybe import it I guess :)
 
I hope your experience with the recipe is better than Klyths was...

I made another batch three weekends ago and canned another 14 pints...
 
AlabamaJack said:
I hope your experience with the recipe is better than Klyths was...

I made another batch three weekends ago and canned another 14 pints...
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So when are you going to start marketing and selling this stuff?
 
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