Sunday, December 15, 2019

Tiny House Cooking - Christmas Caroling Chili


With the frigid cold weather we woke up to this morning, with temps a little below zero F, a good hot hearty soup was on my mind. Chili seems to be another of those dishes that most people have passionate opinions about the correct way to make. I never order chili if I am away from home because
I know it won't be just the way I like it. So here's my favorite recipe.

This chili recipe is my father's with a few modifications I've added. Traditionally made when a large group of people would get together to go sing for neighbors or elderly folks in the community. 

If you've followed much of my cooking, you'll also note the surprising occurrence of actual measurements. ;) That's thanks to both of my parents being far more precise than I am. When I make this, I use my normal method of dumping and pouring approximate amounts. It's a somewhat sweeter and less spicy chili than most and is my favorite. It makes a good warm meal on cold winter evenings.

McGlothin's Christmas Caroling Chili

Brown:
1 lb. ground elk (Or beef, bison, turkey, etc. You can also use any kind of diced stew meat.)

Add and saute:
1 large onion, diced
6 cloves garlic, minced

Add and simmer:
3 c. canned crushed or diced tomatoes
1 T. basil
1 T. oregano
2 T. chili powder
1 cinnamon stick
6 whole cloves
5 bay leaves
1 t. salt
1/4 c. honey
1/8 c. apple cidar vinegar
32 oz light red kidney beans
16 oz dark red kidney beans
16 oz great northern beans or pinto beans (I use any combo of beans I happen to have at the moment)

Fry the ground beef till browned. Add diced onions and garlic and simmer for a few minutes. Add all remaining ingredients and simmer for 1-3 hours to fully cook all the flavors together. Pull out bay leaves, cinnamon sticks, and whole cloves before serving. This is excellent served with cornbread or baked potatoes. Garnish with sour cream and or green onions if you like.

Give it a try and let me know what you think, or comment below with your favorite chili version! 





35 comments:

  1. I'm not really a fan of sweet chili but the addition of vinegar sounds interesting. Chili is also one of my favorite cold weather dishes. However here in Coastal Virginia we never see temps like you get.

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    1. It's not super sweet, more just not acidic as tomatoes can tend to be. :)

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    2. Thanks for sharing, Ariel. We tried this for lunch and everyone loved it!

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    3. Wonderful! So glad it was enjoyed.

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  2. Sounds delicious and hadn’t thought about adding cinnamon but this could be a game changer. Perhaps it’s part of my “still want adventure” in my soul. Always up to try new dishes, TYFS. Stay warm.

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    1. One of the fun things about making your own food is being able to experiment with making it just the way you like it! :)

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  3. Awesome. Beans in chili are important to me. Some folk argue it's not chili if there's beans in it or some such nonsense. I like both tangy and sweet. I can do spicy hot too but not if it lingers. This recipe sounds about perfect.

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  4. After browning the meat, do you drain the fat?

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    1. Depending on the kind of meat used, you could. I have elk and there is no fat, so no I personally don't. :)

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  5. Cinnamon, cloves and vinegar?? Hmmm. . . may have to try that?! Hot chili and corn bread is always a good warming comfort food.

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  6. Greek cooking sometimes adds cinnamon where there is tomato.....unique flavor but needs time to soften and marry the flavors.

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    1. I do think chili, like many soups, get better the second day or even longer for exactly that reason.

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  7. yup, cinnamon in tomato based sauces in the southern Mediterranean area which they add for the subtle sweetness. They don't use additional sweetening though. Are these canned beans you are adding or soaked and cooked dried???

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    1. Those proportions are canned, but you could certainly use dried instead.

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  8. LOOKING GREAT LASS! NOW, IF I MAKE MY CHILI LIKE THIS... WILL IT MAKE ME A BETTER SINGER? LOL. THANK YOU FOR SHARING!

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    1. Well you'll have to give it a shot and let me know! :)

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  9. This looks so good Ariel . Real Comfort food and satisfying . I usually start making Chili in the Fall, but for some reason didn't this Year. But right now ,its on my list on things to make ...soon. I noticed the Cinnamon and cloves . I wonder if Skyline Chili (which does contain those ingredients ) got the recipe from your parents .? (smile)Your family recipe is a definite keeper. Thanks for taking out the time to share it with us all.

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    1. Interesting. Is Skyline Chili a commercial brand? I'm not familiar with it.

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  10. Good Morning Ariel, I'm trying this tonight!!! I have ground turkey in the house, soooo I'll let you know how it goes. Cathy Miller in PA

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  11. Ariel, this looks good. I like chili spicy so will have to modify it some. Is this the first of moving your recipes to this blog? I use to make a sea food gumbo this time of year but haven't in a few years. It was good over spaghetti noodles.

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    1. It is. You'll see more of them over here soon. That sounds good!

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    2. Seafood gumbo...could you share the recipe?

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  12. It sure does look good! And just the right weather for Chili.

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  13. Definitely will try your recipe.. We also like it on the sweet side.

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  14. Can't wait to try this recipe -- I've really never met a chili I didn't like. :) So glad I signed up to receive your email updates. By the way, I'm "agloriouslife" on YT so that you can make the connection!

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  15. Ariel, your chili looks delicious. Do you precook the beans?

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    1. I used canned bean for this, but if you use dry, I would precook. Otherwise you'd need much longer to simmer everything.

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  16. Delicious recipe, esp with the cider vinegar. Used a teaball with pickling spices instead of the cinnamon and cloves, added a Tbs of cumin and reduced the honey to a tsp. Having the last of the pot for supper tonight. Merry Christmas to you...thanks for sharing!

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