Our Favorite Chili

By Thom7747

RECIPE-Our Favorite Chili-Why This Recipe Works: Blade steak was easy to cut into pieces and cooked up tender, so it served as the base of our chili recipe. We avoided the grittiness of supermarket chili powders by making our own. Adding cornmeal to our chili powder thickened the chili. For secret ingredients, our chili recipe relies on lager, unsweetened cocoa, and molasses.

RECIPE All-Purpose Cornbread

Why This Recipe Works: The secret to a cornbread recipe with real corn flavor turned out to be pretty simple: Use corn, not just cornmeal. While fresh corn was best, frozen was nearly as good, and pureeing the kernels in a food processor made them easy to use while eliminating tough, chewy kernels. Since we couldn't assume that everyone would own the cast-iron skillet in which Southern cornbreads traditionally get their thick crust, we compensated by baking the bread at a higher than conventional temperature, producing a crunchy crust full of toasted corn flavor.

Ingredients

• Chili Ingredients:
• table salt
• 1/2 pound dried pinto beans, (about 1 cup), rinsed and picked over
• 6 dried ancho chilies, (about 1 3/4 ounces), stems and seeds removed, and flesh torn into 1-inch pieces (see note)
• 2-4 dried árbol chilies, stems removed, pods split, and seeds removed (see note)
• 3 tablespoons cornmeal
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons cocoa powder
• 2 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 medium onions, cut into 3/4-inch pieces (about 2 cups)
• 3 small jalapeño chilies, stems and seeds removed and discarded, and flesh cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 4 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed through garlic press (about 4 teaspoons)
• 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 2 teaspoons light molasses
• 3 1/2 pounds blade steak, 3/4-inch-thick, trimmed of gristle and fat and cut into 3/4-inch pieces (see note)
• 1 (12-ounce) bottle mild-flavored lager, such as Budweiser
• Corn Bread Ingredients:
• 1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, (7 1/2 ounces)
• 1 cup yellow cornmeal, (5 1/2 ounces), see note
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon table salt
• 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar, (1 3/4 ounces)
• 3/4 cup frozen corn, (3 1/2 ounces), thawed
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 large eggs
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, (1 stick), melted and cooled slightly

Details

Servings 6
Adapted from americastestkitchen.com

Preparation

Step 1

Instructions For Chili

NOTE FROM THE TEST KITCHEN A 4-pound chuck-eye roast, well-trimmed of fat, can be substituted for the steak. Because much of the chili flavor is held in the fat of this dish, refrain from skimming fat from the surface. Wear gloves when working with both dried and fresh chilies. Dried New Mexican or guajillo chilies make a good substitute for the anchoes; each dried árbol may be substituted with 1/8 teaspoon cayenne. If you prefer not to work with any whole dried chilies, the anchoes and árbols can be replaced with 1/2 cup commercial chili powder and 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, though the texture of the chili will be slightly compromised. Good choices for condiments include diced avocado, chopped red onion, chopped cilantro leaves, lime wedges, sour cream, and shredded Monterrey Jack or cheddar cheese. The chili can be made up to 3 days in advance.

1. Combine 3 tablespoons salt, 4 quarts’ water, and beans in large Dutch oven and bring to boil over high heat. Remove pot from heat, cover, and let stand 1 hour. Drain and rinse well.

2. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 300 degrees. Place ancho chilies in 12-inch skillet set over medium-high heat; toast, stirring frequently, until flesh is fragrant, 4 to 6 minutes, reducing heat if chilies begin to smoke. Transfer to bowl of food processor and cool. Do not wash out skillet.

3. Add árbol chilies, cornmeal, oregano, cumin, cocoa, and ½ teaspoon salt to food processor with toasted ancho chilies; process until finely ground, about 2 minutes. With processor running, very slowly add ½ cup broth until smooth paste forms, about 45 seconds, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary. Transfer paste to small bowl. Place onions in now-empty processor bowl and pulse until roughly chopped, about four 1-second pulses. Add jalapeños and pulse until consistency of chunky salsa, about four 1-second pulses, scraping down bowl as necessary.

4. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion mixture and cook, stirring occasionally, until moisture has evaporated and vegetables are softened, 7 to 9 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add chili paste, tomatoes, and molasses; stir until chili paste is thoroughly combined. Add remaining 2 cups broth and drained beans; bring to boil, then reduce heat to simmer.

5. Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Pat beef dry with paper towels and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon salt. Add half of beef and cook until browned on all sides, about 10 minutes. Transfer meat to Dutch oven. Add ½ bottle lager to skillet, scraping bottom of pan to loosen any browned bits, and bring to simmer. Transfer lager to Dutch oven. Repeat with remaining tablespoon oil, steak, and lager. Once last addition of lager has been added to Dutch oven, stir to combine and return mixture to simmer.

6. Cover pot and transfer to oven. Cook until meat and beans are fully tender, 1½ to 2 hours. Let chili stand, uncovered, 10 minutes. Stir well and season to taste with salt before serving.

TECHNIQUES FOR CHILI

Secret Weapons...or Weird Extras?

When chili cook-offs proved a bust, we combed the Internet for claims of "secret" ingredients to see if any would actually improve our recipe. Most were better left on the shelf.

YOU'RE IN! Cornmeal brought great body to the sauce, while beer, molasses, and unsweetened cocoa added depth and complexity.

DIDN'T CUT IT We’ll pass on ingredients like peanut butter, red wine, cola, prunes, and coffee. "Umami bombs" such as anchovies and shiitake mushrooms are also off our list.

Our Best-Ever Chili

1. QUICK-BRINE beans by bringing to boil in salt solution and letting stand 1 hour.

2. TOAST ancho chilies in skillet to enhance flavor.

3. MAKE PASTE by grinding toasted anchos, dried árbols, spices, cornmeal, and broth.

4. SAUTÉ onions, jalapeños, and garlic in Dutch oven.

5. ADD chili paste, tomatoes, molasses, broth, and beans to Dutch oven. Stir to combine.

6. SEAR beef in batches in skillet until well-browned; transfer to Dutch oven.

7. DEGLAZE skillet with lager between batches and scrape up fond; add to Dutch oven.

8. TRANSFER chili to oven and cook until meat and beans are fully tender, 1½ to 2 hours.

Getting the Fundamentals Right: No secret ingredient can make up for a dish that takes too many shortcuts. Here's how we laid the groundwork for a top-notch bowl of chili.

TYPICAL STARTING POINTS

Ground Beef: Ground chuck can't help but turn dry and nubbly after hours of cooking in the chili pot.

Bottled Chili Powder: Commercial chili powders lack depth, and the ground seeds and stems they often contain will turn the stew gritty.

Canned Beans: They're certainly convenient, but canned beans can also be bland and mushy.

UPPING THE ANTE

Whole Blade Steak: Starting with whole steak allows us to cut the meat into beefy chunks that stay moist and tender.


Three Kinds of Chiles: For complex chili flavor, we grind dried ancho and arbol chilies into a paste. Fresh jalapenos bring grassy heat.

Brined Dried Beans: Soaking dried beans in brine before cooking seasons them throughout and contributes to creamier texture.

Instructions For Cornbread

MAKES ONE 8-INCH SQUARE

NOTE FROM THE TEST KITCHEN: Before preparing the baking dish or any of the other ingredients, measure out the frozen kernels and let them stand at room temperature until needed. When corn is in season, fresh cooked kernels can be substituted for the frozen corn. This recipe was developed with Quaker yellow cornmeal; a stone-ground whole-grain cornmeal will work but will yield a drier and less tender cornbread. We prefer a Pyrex glass baking dish because it yields a nice golden-brown crust, but a metal baking dish (nonstick or traditional) will also work. The cornbread is best served warm; leftovers can be wrapped in foil and reheated in a 350-degree oven for 10 to 15 minutes.

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat oven to 400 degrees. Spray 8-inch-square baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Whisk flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl until combined; set aside.

2. In food processor or blender, process brown sugar, thawed corn kernels, and buttermilk until combined, about 5 seconds. Add eggs and process until well combined (corn lumps will remain), about 5 seconds longer.

3. Using rubber spatula, make well in center of dry ingredients; pour wet ingredients into well. Begin folding dry ingredients into wet, giving mixture only a few turns to barely combine; add melted butter and continue folding until dry ingredients are just moistened. Pour batter into prepared baking dish; smooth surface with rubber spatula. Bake until deep golden brown and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 25 to 35 minutes. Cool on wire rack 10 minutes; invert cornbread onto wire rack, then turn right side up and continue to cool until warm, about 10 minutes longer. Cut into pieces and serve.

TECHNIQUES FOR CORNBREAD

Preparing Cornbread

1. Puree corn--along with brown sugar, buttermilk, and eggs--to eliminate coarse texture of whole kernels.

2. Create well in center of dry ingredients, then pour in wet ingredients, except for butter.

3. After a couple of initial folds, add warm melted butter.

4. Working quickly but gently, fold mixture together just until dry ingredients are moistened.