Local Chili Cookoff Fundraiser

Bongo Lewi

Bongo Lewi

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I have entered my chili in this contest three times and won once. I was going to be out of town and decided not to enter this year. I entered my maple bacon cornbread instead. That was easier because I could make it in advance. They have a subcategory for best cornbread. My wife called today to tell me me I won "best cornbread".

My wife got to be Brando's Indian, accepting the award on my behalf.
 
Bongo Lewi said:
I have entered my chili in this contest three times and won once. I was going to be out of town and decided not to enter this year. I entered my maple bacon cornbread instead. That was easier because I could make it in advance. They have a subcategory for best cornbread. My wife called today to tell me me I won "best cornbread".

My wife got to be Brando's Indian, accepting the award on my behalf.
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Ummm, you can’t tease us like that. Gonna need a recipe.
 
I can do that but I have to write it down first. The ingredients are simple. The trick is to mix it slow and not to overmix it. And use good maple syrup. None of that chemical brew they call pancake syrup.
 
We had a neighborhood chili cook off a few weeks ago. 10 entries. I knew going in that I wouldn’t win. Most people are only comfortable with what constituted chili when they grew up. Ground beef, a can of Ro-tel, some chili bean and McCormick chili seasoning. For example, the 2nd place winner admitted to buying 4 quarts of Wendy’s chili and adding some more peppers.

The real question is, beans or no beans?
 
Notshawn54 said:
We had a neighborhood chili cook off a few weeks ago. 10 entries. I knew going in that I wouldn’t win. Most people are only comfortable with what constituted chili when they grew up. Ground beef, a can of Ro-tel, some chili bean and McCormick chili seasoning. For example, the 2nd place winner admitted to buying 4 quarts of Wendy’s chili and adding some more peppers.

The real question is, beans or no beans?
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Beans: I have made it both ways but I tend to stick with the tradition that the best chili has no beans.

I've experimented with Texas Roadhouse and Cincinnati styles. My winning entry was very smoky and on the hot/spicy side. That's the way I like it. I was shocked when I won that year. I thought it would be too much. There are no judges. People vote. The crowd that year were mostly older folks, closer to my parents age. My guess was the smoky, slightly fiery recipe was not going to appeal to the landline, Yellow pages, still have encyclopedias from 1967, track their bowel movements crowd. I was wrong. I won like Trump. It wasnt even close.

When my sisters kids were young, I made chili-mac for them. The little monsters all wrinkled their noses when told chili was on the menu until they tried it. They are all adults now and on the rare occasion we get together they ask me to make it.

The Wendy's guy? I'd take him off my contacts list :). I once killed a man for recommending "white pizza".

OK I really didnt kill him but I wanted to. He was a waiter in restaurant in California. That's a mortal sin to me. Like putting ketchup on a hot dog. :)
 
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Bongo Lewi said:
My winning entry was very smoky and on the hot/spicy side
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We have similar tastes. Mines a little unconventional as I make it in a crock pot. Then I throw it in the smoker for about an hour or two. Usually use habaneros and jalapeño for heat but used serranos and jalapeño this last time. To the dismay of my Texas friends, I use beans.
 
Notshawn54 said:
We have similar tastes. Mines a little unconventional as I make it in a crock pot. Then I throw it in the smoker for about an hour or two. Usually use habaneros and jalapeño for heat but used serranos and jalapeño this last time. To the dismay of my Texas friends, I use beans.
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Ive done a bunch of different approaches. Grinding the meat myself, adding diced or shredded sirloin, smoking the peppers and onion. How you heat it probably doesnt matter. Besides fresh ingredients, how long it cooks seems to make a difference. Ive found the longer all those flavors have time to mingle, the better. I also buy good quality spices. No grocery store stuff. Same goes when I make tacos or enchiladas. I mix my own seasoning.
 
I’m also of the opinion that chili is better after sitting in the fridge for 2-3 days and then reheated.
 
Notshawn54 said:
I’m also of the opinion that chili is better after sitting in the fridge for 2-3 days and then reheated.
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Next day, I agree. However, my policy is to refuse eating anything that is more than one day old.

My mother's cooking was record-book awful. The prospect of one of her meals fermenting in the refrigerator was terrifying. She was a repeat offender in making too much of whatever drek she put on the table and 'saving it'. Want not, waste not. So I don't eat leftovers at all. My wife was baffled by this idiosyncrasy until she had a chance to experience one of my mother's meals.

My father who grew up poor would eat whatever was on his plate. It could have been a turd. He would eat it.

Because of my malnourished childhood, I consider anything more than 24 hours old toxic waste.

BTW: We were not poor. This had nothing to do with money or social status.
 
Bongo Lewi said:
I've experimented with Texas Roadhouse and Cincinnati styles.
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As a Cincinnati guy I chuckle at your comment only because it seems unless you are from Cincy, the chances of you liking Skyline, Gold Star, etc are slim. How'd you first encounter it and how do you like it? Interestingly, I cooked up a recipe for vegetarian Skyline/Cincy chili (using plant based "beef") that turned out ok. My chili entries were usually in October for my local Fire Department "fall fest" fund raiser. Placed a couple of times in the open category but in at least one case due to the fact that there weren't other entries ;)
 
“My winning entry was very smoky and on the hot/spicy side.“

I’m down for that!!
 
One Ping Only said:
While not adverse to leftovers, and yes some things like spaghetti sauce, homemade chicken noodle soup etc, are better on the second day presentation, I’m militant about what’s in the refrigerator and how long it’s been in there…. at the refrigerators’ 37 degree temperature. That really keeps things in-check aside from judicious inventory watch.
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brian said:
As a Cincinnati guy I chuckle at your comment only because it seems unless you are from Cincy, the chances of you liking Skyline, Gold Star, etc are slim. How'd you first encounter it and how do you like it? Interestingly, I cooked up a recipe for vegetarian Skyline/Cincy chili (using plant based "beef") that turned out ok. My chili entries were usually in October for my local Fire Department "fall fest" fund raiser. Placed a couple of times in the open category but in at least one case due to the fact that there weren't other entries ;)
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My interest in Skyline was due largely to another food passion. Hot dogs. I found the Skyline style to make an awesome chili dog. Some call them Coneys. That led me to the Gold Star variant. It makes a good chili-mac. Some purists say Cinci chili is a sauce or ragu, not really chili. I dont have a dog in the fight. If it tastes good, I'm happy. I don't care what people call it.

Speaking of dogs... As a self described frank-o-phile, I traveled internationally for years and have sampled every variation of hotdogs I could find. Every city, state and country has their own style. This (see pic) is a thorough but not complete list. I've sampled nearly all of them at the source. Missing are Japadog (western Canada), Jersey, and Currywurst (Berlin). A few others.

Screenshot 2024-12-08 at 8.27.57 PM.png

I read someplace that every hotdog you eat cuts seven minutes off your life. So I'm probably going to die at least a year before I normally would.

NOTE: The unfortunate souls who live in SoCal have the worst government ever, but at least they have Pinks in LA (West Hollywood). Love that place. It's been around forever.
Screenshot 2024-12-08 at 8.53.58 PM.png
 
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I’ve had Carneys (I think) in studio city ca between recording sessions but never had the chance to try the famous Pinks. I LOVE hot dogs…beef hot dogs. But don’t keep them around as the sodium content in most of them are pretty high, sad to say.

Amazingly, one of the best beef dogs in stores out this way is the signature select brand (Safeway and Albertsons). They are delicious. And better than Nathan’s or Hebrew National. You can also get them in jumbo sized. I haven’t had one in a few months…hep me. Lol
 
As a Texan, I agree that Cincinnati chili is a sauce, not chili. It would be a sacrilege to put real chili on a hot dog. I make my own chili powder from scratch. (It's amazing how much better your chili is than when using store-bought powder that's full of fillers and stabilizers.) Then I use both coarse ground (chili grind) beef and chunks of beef. The best liquid base I've found is Shiner Bock. My chili cooks for about 3 hours. Sometimes I just cook it in a cast iron Dutch oven on the stove. Sometimes I throw it in the smoker for that extra smoky flavor. I usually make it bean-free, but serve beans on the side for those who want to mix them in. Shredded cheddar, diced onions, sour cream and tortilla chips to dress up your bowl as desired.

Oh, a tip: Add your chili powder in 3 doses. At the beginning, half way through and just before it's finished. You'll get different dimensions from the doses that cook longer and the fresher dose.
 
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