Chilli Con Carne and its variations

Morning Glory

Morning Glory

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There was a little bit of discussion in the 'What did you cook today' thread about the Chilli Con Carne and whether to use cubed or minced beef. Apparently, Texas style Chilli uses diced meat (see here http://www.chilli-con-carne.co.uk). There are also those who never use beans and others who always. And then there is vegetarian/vegan Chilli (Chilli sans Carne - since the Carne means meat).

So - what type of meat do you use? Is it always beef? Do you use mince, cubes or bite sized pieces. Do you use beans? If so what type? What types of chillies? And what do you put in vegan Chilli?

Please don't post recipes in this thread. This is a discussion thread. But if you do have recipes then you are most welcome to post them as a new Recipe thread and link them back here.
 
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I'm not sure if Chili Competitions occur outside the US, but beans are banned. My oldest brother Lee (RIP) would compete. The only time he ever won for his chili, his spice supplier made a mistake and gave him another bag of cayenne instead of another ground chili he normally used.

I mostly use ground/minced beef, dried chilis that are toasted and reconstituted, herbs, spices and beef stock. There are no tomato products. When we have chili con carne, Karen makes her version and I make mine. Both tend to find their way onto hotdogs as another meal.

I also make a Green Chili Stew using cubes of pork butt, chicken stock, tomatillos and poblanos among the vegetables, along with herbs and spices. I put potatoes in mine and hominy in Karens. Now I'm thinking, I could have used the extra huitlacoche in this stew to mask the flavor instead of throwing it away.
 
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CraigC said:
I'm not sure if Chili Competitions occur outside the US, but beans are banned.
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I've always hated the beans in chili: they're just a filler, which detracts from the good stuff (the meat and the spices). But, it's interesting how passionate some people are about some things: I have one coworker who insists that the only Correct way to make chili is with beans and ground beef.

I used to make chili with ground beef until I saw Bobby Flay's recipe that uses bottom round beef. This makes almost a beef stew, which isn't practical for making chili dogs, but is certainly tasty.

I've never used a thickener: just keep reducing it until it reaches the desired consistency. But, Masa does sound like a good way to speed things up (after all, I expect corn chips to be involved, so this meshes perfectly with that).

I've never made a vegan chili, but I think I'd use mushrooms to replace the meat and make everything else the same way. I can't see just taking the meat out of a meat chili and having it work out right.
 
The Late Night Gourmet said:
I've never made a vegan chili, but I think I'd use mushrooms to replace the meat and make everything else the same way. I can't see just taking the meat out of a meat chili and having it work out right.
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It can be made with just beans - or as I do for vegan son with vegan mince. I've not tried mushrooms - don't know why... it just doesn't seem to be a right ingredient in a chilli. But why not?

I like beans in chilli - particularly black beans for the way they look and their smokey taste.
 
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The Late Night Gourmet said:
I've always hated the beans in chili: they're just a filler, which detracts from the good stuff (the meat and the spices).
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I have a feeling that "Chili" started out as a bean dish and beef was added when it was available. Probably a luxury item during the times of the "Chili Queens". Just the name of the recipe suggests that it started out as a bean dish, "chili with meat" Most of the area like Texas and New Mexico, as history tells us, began as part of Mexico. So where does the "Tex begin and where does the "Mex" end?:unsure: I have the "Tex-Mex Cookbook by Robb Walsh. Lots of info about the origins of this style cuisine. It has a recipe for "Chili Gravy" that would probably make a great base for Chili con Carne. We've used it as a sauce for savory tamales.
 
morning glory said:
It can be made with just beans - or as I do for vegan son with vegan mince. I've not tried mushrooms - don't know why... it just doesn't seem to be a right ingredient in a chilli. But why not?.
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Mushrooms don't generally show up in Mexican cuisine. But, I've lost track of how many times I've heard that "mushrooms are the meat in vegan dishes". They certainly act the part for savoriness and even texture. So, I thought, why not?
 
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The Late Night Gourmet said:
Mushrooms don't generally show up in Mexican cuisine. But, I've lost track of how many times I've heard that "mushrooms are the meat in vegan dishes". They certainly act the part for savoriness and even texture. So, I thought, why not?
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Especially Portobello mushrooms. People usually substitute them in place of burgers on a roll..
 
I think chilli with meat in it would have been a special occasion dish most probably.

At least the beans would have been the main event most of the time.

Beans have been the food of the poor in a lot of cultures traditionally and people probably grew their own onions, peppers & tomatos. Probably the beans too.

If you think of this dish being cooked over camp fires by cowboys it might have included chunks of dried salted beef thrown in a pot with water & dried beans & whatever else that could be found.

I make the most inauthentic version ever because I hide a lot of grated vegetables in it because when my son was small he wouldn't eat any vegetables. I use black beans in my chilli because my son prefers them to the larger kidney beans. Mostly I use ground minced beef but sometimes I use diced or a mixture. I add dried peppers & usually a chunky diced green capsicum. (Yes, he picked it out)

These days I can make it hot & he's better with veg but I still add grated carrot & sometimes zucchini as it stretches the meat & adds nutrients.
 
Pinto beans are most likely the original beans used. I'm not a fan of kidney beans in anything.
 
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