tT’s T WE To MAKE Ed Ronald, OP Contributor So, summer is over. I can’t think of any reason to be glad that it’s gone except that it’s Chili Season—yeah that’s right, Chili Season. When the weather turns cool, there is nothing better to eat than a bowl o’ red. The great thing about chili is that everyone has their own recipe. One pal of mine hates spicy food yet he has his own chili recipe, though its really just Heinz canned beans with tomato sauce. Granted, if a Texan ever tasted what my friend calls chili, he’d probably beat my friend to death with his license-plate-sized belt buck- le. Texans are very narrow-minded about chili. They believe they own it and don’t believe beans ot tomatoes have a part in it. Chili experts have been arguing for years over who creat- ed chili. People from America, Mexico, and Spain each believe they had a hand in it. Though there are a lot of dif- ferent theories about who invented chili, it is widely agreed that it was invented in Texas in the nineteenth century. One theory is that chuck wagon cooks who repeatedly travelled the same trails in Texas would plant’spices along’the route to collect them later. The spices stewed with local chilies and beef became what is now known as chili: Another theory is in the Texas prison system's’ quest to | serve the cheapest food possible, cooks took local chilies and boiled them with inferior beef until they had something edible. The theory that makes the most sense is that it was created during the Mexican American War by cooks feeding ‘the armies using what was available. Me, I don’t care who invented it. All I know is that there is nothing better to eat on a cold day, and the chili that I eat, I invented. I believe there ate no rules to making chili and that’s why everyone should have their own recipe. You can-put anything you like into it. I love my chili because I make it the way I like it. Chili can be made out of anything. I have made chili out of bison, venison, pork, chicken, turkey, rabbit, and even alligator. There are many recipes out there that use only veg- etables. Chili has been a staple of vegetarian diets. A friend of mine eats only raw vegetables and he has his own chili recipe using only raw vegetables. Creating your own chili tecipe is as easy as finding a recipe you like and adding or subtracting ingredients as it suits your taste. After I perfected my chili, I made the mistake of taking it to a championship cook-off. I and my chili recipe did not do well at the contest. The people who judged the contest were all about rules. I didn’t think it was possible, but they took the fun out of making chili. The contest was basically a get together for an exclusive club. The judges based their deci- sions on a Nazi style list of unwritten rules that only club members are privileged to. Some of the rules are that meat has to be cut exactly in quarter inch squares and any veg- etable must disappear during cooking, The club members win each contest because the judges recognize their chili. Participants like me are allowed to enter solely to provide money to fund the event. The events are promoted as charity events encouraging locals to enter. Chili not handed to the judges is sold with proceeds going to charity. With this in mind, I put 10 pounds of meat into my chili entry. If you attend ane of iets ercotes yon a are eae ee it’s unlikely you'll be able to taste a winning chili because seri- ous contenders in the club only make enough chili for the ee judges, Talking with club members, I found out that most of them travel as a group going to contests all over North America with different members winning at each contest. During my time at the contest, I almost got into a fight with an official I believed was stealing money from locals and my chili ranked second last. The chili that came in last was made by employees of the hotel that was hosting the event. They told me that they didn’t make chili at home and were forced to enter. I have come to the opinion that chili should be fun and made by everyone with any ingredient they like. Chili puritans remind me of those guys who shave their heads and wear swastikas. I think it is almost a duty of free thinkers to create their own chili the way they like it. By creating your own chili with ingredients you like, you are helping chili become a food for everyone and eventually the purists will be forced to move into compounds and arm themselves to protect asinine’ chili beliefs. Okay, forget about chili politics. The true reason to create yout own chili recipe is that you can give it a cool name like Nuclear Chili, Chernobyl Chili, Deadman’s Chili, Dog’s Breath Chili, or Man’s Ass Chili. Fire Camp Chili “You know those A&W chili dogs that they “charge you an arm and a leg for? I’m sute you do. Why not try this copycat recipe to make them? Ty’ll taste just as good, and for the same amount of money, you can probably make 5 "of them! 1 Sabrett brand beef frankfurter - 7.5 inches long Hot dog bun - 1 White onions - 1 tablespoon (chopped) Mild Kraft cheddar cheese’- 1/2 tablespoon (shredded) A&W Coney Island Sauce - 3 tablespoons The whole point of this copycat recipe is to take the A&W Coney Island sauce. Here’s how; Ground chuck = 1b Tomato paste-- 1 can (602) Sugar - 1 tbsp Yellow mustard - 1 tbsp Dried, minced onion-- 1 tbsp. Chili powder - 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce — 1 tsp Salt—1 tsp Celery seed — 1/2 tsp. Ground cumin — 1/2 tsp Black pepper — 1/4 tsp Water - 1 cup ‘Cook the ground chuck in a pan and break into small pieces. Season with salt and pepper. Add in the remaining ingredients, Simmer for about 30 minutes until thickens. Boil some water in a pot, and add in however “many frankfurters you want. Boil for about 8 t0.10 minutes. |Place the frankfurter in a hot dog bun and spread on 3 tablespoons of the sauce you just “you're donel Meat Dragon Chili 1 - med onion | - jalapeno pepper 1 - habanero pepper 3 - cloves garlic 2 - cayenne peppers | 1 tsp hot sauce 1 can black beans 1 can kidney beans 1 can tomato sauce 1 can peeled tomatoes 1 package ground cow flesh 1/4 cup chili powder Salt to taste Dice onions, peppers and garlic. Sauté with olive oil, Add cow flesh and brown. Add everything else, bring to a boil. Reduce heat to min, covet, let simmer for at least 2 hours. Stir periodically. Setve with plenty of milk and bread. This is a delicious and very hot chili. Very pure chili taste, without any useless vegetables, 100 Ib: Pinto Beans 48 large Onions, chopped 4 C Jalapeno Chilies with juice 40 Ib meat (Ham, Sausage, Pork, Bacon-ends, Ground Beef, etc) 4 C Chili powder Salt to taste Soak beans ovetnight, then raise toa boil on high heat. Add all ingredients and simmer until tender (about 6 hours). Add water as necessary. Stir occasionally. Makes 60 gallons. Serves. 1200 approximately, Craig’s Easy Vegan Chili 2.- cans pinto beans (15:02) 1 + can kidney beans.(15 02) 1 ~ can chopped gteen chih’s (4 02) 1 ~ can diced tomatoes 1 - can stewed tomatoes (I blend these) 1 - onion (chopped) mushrooms (chopped) 1/2 t salt 1/2 t pepper chili powder to taste This.recipe was given to me by a close friend and after 15 years, it is still a crowd pleaser ‘on game day. I put all the veggies, salt and pep- per in a crock pot and simmer on low for 12 hrs. I stir every 3 hours and add chili powder until it has a kick but not nuclear. Serve with whole grain crackers or tortillas and enjoy!