Chunky Ancho Chili

Adapted from Southwest Cooking, Beekman House, 1992. ISBN 0-517-68757-7.

This is an absolutely bizarre chili -- we cooked it with ground beef and pork sausage, and it looked like ground meat and beans swimming in meat grease. But it wasn't grease -- it was the ancho-chili & wine puree. It has a really distinctive flavor.

Ingredients

5 dried ancho chillies
2 cups water
2T oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic
1 pound lean boneless beef, cut into 1-in cubes
1 pound lean boneless pork, cut into 1-in cubes
1-2 fresh or canned jalapeno (or serrano) peppers, stemmed, seeded and minced
1t salt
1 teaspoon dried, crushed oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 cup dry red wine
1 can (15 oz) pinto beans, drained
1 can (15 oz) kidney beans, drained

Directions

Remove the stems, seeds, and veins from the ancho chillies. Rinse them, then place in a 2-quart pan with water. Bring to a boil; turn off heat and let stand, covered, 30 minutes or until the chillies are soft. Pour chillies with liquid into a blender or food processor container fitted with a metal blade. Process until smooth; reserve.

Heat the oil in a 5 quart kettle over medium heat. Add onion and garlic; cook until onion is tender. Add beef and pork; cook, stirring frequently, until meat is lightly colored. Add jalapeno peppers, also, oregano, cumin, wine and ancho chili puree. Bring to a boil. Cover; reduce heat and simmer 1.5 to 2 hours, or until meat is very tender. Stir in beans. Simmer, uncovered, 30 minutes, or until chili has thickened slightly.

Comments

We've found dried anchos at the local food co-op. I'm not sure if you can get them in normal grocery stores. Also, we drained the meat grease, as it looked like death otherwise.

Jim Plank

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