Competition Chili - The Final Version

Hawg Father of Seoul said:

Dude, I did a 20 something people comp yesterday, if it is edible then you are in the top 20%. People SUCK at cooking.
Top three for sure.

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Thanks for the vote of confidence, bro.

Timmy said:

Can you explain why cheese was determined not to be a big factor? Seems like most folks like cheese on just about everything. Just curious.

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In a nutshell, it wasn't economically viable. I have to cook 10 gallons of chili with no guarantee of return on my investment. There are about 40 teams. Money is awarded for only the top 3 teams. That means that I only have a 3 out 40 chance of getting anything to help offset expenses. Now, if you take into account that several teams (say 50%) will be there cooking just to get out and have fun and have no chance of winning, that means I have a 3 out of 20 chance to reap a return.

When evaluating the chili by itself, with sour cream, with cheese, and with both cheese and sour cream, the evaluation group didn't see a significant value brought by the cheese but they all really liked how the sour cream complimented it. So, I decided to skip the cheese. That's also why I'm using a bit more beans than I would if I were cooking it at home. The beans are an inexpensive filler to help me get to 10 gallons.

deepsouth said:

secret recipe?

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Jaskew82 said:

looks awesome! recipe please!

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The current version 2.1 recipe is a secret at least until I find out if it will do well in local comps. If it bombs, I'll share it. Here is version 1.1 of the recipe. It's pretty good. Version 2.1 doesn't require the tweaking at the end and some ingredients have been either swapped out for others or eliminated all together.

Version 1.1 (Won 1st place last year)

2 pounds of 93% lean ground beef
2 15 ounce cans of black beans - rinsed
1 15 ounce can of light red kidney beans - rinsed
1 11 ounce can of Mexican corn - drained
2 1.25 ounce packets of Old El Paso Reduced Sodium Taco Seasoning
1 1.25 ounce packet of Old El Paso Hot & Spicy Taco Seasoning
2 TBS Obie-Cue's Fajita Fabulosa
1 Medium size onion chopped
6 - 8 garlic cloves chopped
1 28 ounce can of Cento San Marzano Peeled Tomatoes pureed in food processor
1 26 ounce container of unsalted beef stock
4 packets (not boxes) of Herb-Ox Sodium Free Instant Beef Broth & Seasoning
2 Tsp ground Cumin
1 Tsp ground Coriander
1 Tsp Worsty Sauce
1/2 Tsp ground bay leaf (Or just use 2 bay leaves and remove before serving)
1 TBS Brown Sugar or to taste
2 TBS Texas Pete Hot Sauce or to taste
1 TBS Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) or to taste
1 TBS Olive oil

Saute the onion and garlic in 1 TBS olive oil for about 2-3 minutes and don't let them burn. Add the ground beef immediately followed by the beef stock. Stir the ground beef/onion/garlic/stock mixture into a slurry. This is when the beef breaks down into fine pieces that contributes to the chili's texture.

Once the beef is done, add the tomatoes and bay leaf and 1 packet of the reduced sodium taco seasoning and cook for 20 minutes at a medium boil. Add the 2nd packet of low sodium taco seasoning, the Worsty, Herb-Ox beef/seasoning, cumin, and coriander. Let the mixture continue to cook at a medium boil for another 20 to 30 minutes. The chili should begin to thicken up and much of the broth should be reducing and boiling away.

Add the hot & spicy taco seasoning and the Fajita Fabulosa, the beans, and the corn and let the chili continue to cook until it reaches a thick consistency without broth on top. The broth should be more of a sauce in the meat than a soup. Let it continue to cook until the proper consistency is reached.

At this point, it's time to start tuning the flavor. This is where the sugar, vinegar, and Texas Pete come in.I look for a smooth flavor finish without any harshness or bitterness and without a pronounced sweet flavor (so go easy on the sugar) and with a hint of heat right at the end. I have found that a little vinegar and a little heat from the Texas Pete along with a little sugar can help smooth out the flavor landing. Once you are happy with the flavor, serve and enjoy. And, as is the case with most chili recipes, it's better reheated after you cool it and store in the fridge over night.


And, I told you above that this version was simple to cook. Here are all of the ingredients in the pot ready to be brought to a simmer. :mrgreen:

SmokeFan said:

Bo that looks awesome! Thanks for sharing that recipe. It's getting cool enough in TX to start thinking about chili! Yeah! I would love to do a chili comp some day!

Though no one has mentioned it yet, my personal favorite thing to eat with chili is FRITOS! Big ones, little ones, scoops...it's all fantastic with chili.

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Fritos with chili sounds good! I will have to give it a try.

The competition is "in the books." I will post a full report sometime tomorrow.

CrackerJack from KC said:

Your recipe is very similar to mine as I said before (since it looked so much like my chili) I just use plain old chili powder, I have not played with the Mexican seasonings yet. Other than that my chili making process is very similar.

What amazes me is that I totally just made up the recipe and tweaked it over the years. I recently started adding some brown sugar and Worsty sauce, and I have always used a bunch of bay leaves.

I do not use coriander, apple cider vinegar, beef broth or the olive oil.

Whats the purpose of the vinegar and oil?

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The oil is for sweating the onions and the vinegar is for adjusting the finish flavor. I like the flavor to dissipate without any harsh after tastes. Sometimes cumin, cayenne, and chili pepper can result in a flavor that ends in a crash. It may be subtle and it varies from pot to pot but sometimes it's there. The vinegar and sugar helps to balance those things out. I want a finish where the only thing noticed is a little heat at the back of your throat.

wtxsmoker said:

May as well add some macaroni while your at it.

That is not the way we do it in Texas

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Macaroni sounds good!

I'm glad to be helping Texas move into the 21st century of chili cooking. :biggrin1: :bow:

Seriously, I understand that there are regional tastes in regards to chili. But, this recipe is a big hit around these parts in Virginia.

CarolinaQue said:

Well...good thing he's not in Texas then!!!


Bo...the chili looks good!!! I'll take a piece of corn bread, some jalapenos, and sour cream with mine please!!!

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A man after my own heart! :thumb: