Jim's Chile Con Carne

By JimMac

Ingredients

• 1 small bag dried New Mexico red chiles
• 5 tablespoons bacon drippings
• 2 large onions, chopped
• 1 chile pepper, chopped
• 3 stalks of celery, chopped
• 1/4 cup red or white wine
• 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
• 3 green peppers, chopped
• 5 cloves garlic (or more), chopped
• 2 pounds lean ground beef
• 3 (14.5 ounce) cans whole peeled tomatoes with liquid, or chopped tomatoes
• 1 12oz. can tomato paste
• 1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
• 2 beef bouillon cubes
• 1 cup real bacon bits
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons Italian seasoning
• 2 tablespoons white vinegar
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 1/2 tablespoons ground cumin
• 1/2 tablespoon chili powder
• 2 tablespoons paprika
• 2 tablespoons minced dried onion
• 3 tablespoons dried parsley
• 2 tablespoons dried oregano
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 1 tablespoon (or more to taste) crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon cocoa
• 6 whole cloves
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 (15.25 ounce) cans red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 teaspoon cornmeal
• 1 tablespoon water

Preparation

Step 1

Directions

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add dried red New Mexican chile pods to the boiling water; remove from the heat. Weigh-down the chiles and soak for at least a half hour. Carefully remove chiles and clean them of seeds and veins. Keep the water. Place the chiles in a blender with water to cover. Blend until a sauce is formed. This can be done in batches. Reserve the sauce for the chile.

In a medium sized stock pot, heat the bacon drippings over medium heat. Saute onion, chile pepper and garlic until soft. Add ground beef: cook and stir until meat is browned.
Add remaining ingredients, including the prepared chile sauce, except for the beans, cornmeal and water. Cover and simmer for 45 minutes.
Stir in kidney beans, and cook another 15 minutes. Remove cinnamon sticks. Mix cornmeal and water and add to chile. You can also cook the chile in a 350 degree oven, stirring occasionally.

Chile may also be cooked in a pressure cooker for 18 minutes, once meat has been browned and all ingredients added. You may need to add water to thin the mixture for the pressure cooker.

Serve chile on buttered spaghetti and/or plain white rice. Have chopped red onions, shredded cheese, and sour cream ready for garnishes.