Chili. It doesn’t have to be complicated.

Chili recipes overwhelm me.  Come to think of it, many things overwhelm me…

There are so many different types of chili… “Con Carne, Cincinnati, Verde, White, Texas Red, Vegetarian, Armadillo, Firehouse, Ass-smacking, Ring-o-Fire, Loose Cannon” … it’s dizzying really.

I’ve only tried making a few different chili recipes over my lifetime. Mainly because I find it nearly impossible to follow chili recipes.  They’re too restrictive to my “just wing it” cooking tendencies. Which is why I rarely make deserts.

To me, chili should be one of those things that just comes together easily and then evolves from there.  It’s shouldn’t require too much baby-sitting (or a complicated recipe) or too much effort.

A pot of Chili should be something you come back to and visit periodically throughout the day as its simmering away, tasting here and there, to determine what it wants you to add in order to develop the flavors that will “evolve” as it cooks.

Mostly, I use what I would call a basic recipe that I picked up from my mother, but each time it will come out a little different.  I don’t measure ingredients for my chili.

The meats change, depending on what’s in the freezer at the moment. One day it could be pork or beef. Another time it might be rabbit… But never Armadillo. Or Okra.  Ever. Because Okra should never be in anything or anyone’s house as far as I’m concerned.  But a basic ingredient list can always be added to or omitted from, depending on what you feel would compliment your choice of meat that day.  Whatever that may be.

Other things will also change, like depending on how cold it is outside, because lower temps require more Scoville units in my opinion.  And you can always add more beans (or lentils) and meat to bulk it up.  Also, throwing beer into a batch of chili never hurt anyone that I know of. Plus it helps disguise the “gaminess” of the  Armadillo you’re serving your Mother-in-Law.  ~A