Three Meat Chili - Aunt Bee's Recipes (2024)

FAQs

Do you drain hamburger meat for chili? ›

The beef will release a lot of fat and liquid — do not drain it; you'll skim the fat off at the end. Add the ancho chili powder, chipotle chili powder, cumin, oregano, coriander, smoked paprika, and cinnamon (if using). Cook, stirring frequently, for 1 to 2 minutes, until well combined and fragrant.

DO NOT DRAIN CHILI BEANS. (That's what thickens it up, I don't use tomato paste) add juice and all! Do Not drain Stewed tomatoes,diced tomatoes,or tomatoes with green chiles. Add all ingredients, and seasoning, mix.

Because venison is a lean meat, the chuck does the work of adding more fat and richness to the chili. You could also combine chuck and ground turkey, or use ground sirloin and toss in a bit of bacon or sausage for additional smoky or spicy flavor.

The best beans for chili are pinto, kidney, and black beans, like in this easy and tasty recipe. This 3-bean chili freezes great for meals later in the week. If you prefer thinner chili, add an extra can of tomato sauce. The green chiles are not hot and add a wonderful flavor, so don't be afraid to use them.

The fats from grease bond together with other discarded fats and chemicals to create blockages. These can cause serious problems in the sewer system and lead to backups in your neighborhood. Even a teaspoon of grease down the drain now and then can add up.

Raw meat and pot of chili are two things that just don't belong together. If the recipe includes any type of ground meat, bacon, chorizo, or cubes of beef, it should always be browned first. Try this: The first order of business before adding anything else to the pot is to brown any meat in your recipe.

If you are making chili that will cook for 30 to 40 minutes, diced tomatoes will work best. If you want to make a quick, fresh-flavored tomato sauce with basil, choose the crushed tomatoes.

Crushed Tomatoes seasoned with chili spices are the perfect tomatoes to help make your best chili recipe.

Tomato sauce is not a strong a taste as tomato paste. Also, sauce will increase the liquid content of your chili ever so slightly. Tomato paste has a more full, rich, tomato taste and smell. Using either one is appropriate, but you will need to tweak your seasonings to suit your personal tastes, anyway.

Try a little fenugreek, turmeric, garam masala, or sumac to layer in more complex flavors. Smoky paprika is my own personal favorite. Squash, pumpkin, or sweet potato: Traditionalists would scoff, but soft chunks of slightly sweet butternut squash or sweet potato are delicious in a smoky chili.

Which onion is best for chili? ›

Sweet onions are great for caramelizing due to their higher sugar content. You can cook them into your chili, serve them raw over top, or even elevate your chili with a sophisticated caramelized onion topping! Some of my favorite sweet onions are Walla, Walla, Maui, and Vidalia Onions.

If you want more of a smoky flavor, add cumin, Spanish paprika, ancho chili powder, or a combination. If you are looking for more heat, add cayenne, crushed red pepper, or Hungarian paprika. If it's too spicy add a little brown sugar and some sweet paprika.

Only Add Flavorful Liquids

Instead of adding water to your chili, add some more flavor with chicken or beef broth, red wine vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, or even beet or wine. Each one of these options brings out different notes and levels of sweetness that will enhance your culinary creation.

Chili: Canned, diced, fire-roasted tomatoes. The tomatoes will cook without disintegrating into the sauce so it will be chunky and have that lovely flavor of smoke from the char. Burgers or sandwiches: A really big heirloom tomato.

Drain the fat after you brown the meat. When you brown ground beef, do you ever keep the fat in the pan, or do you always drain it? It depends on what I am making and how much I am making, if I drain the grease. If I am making a pot of chili with beans i typically will not drain the grease.

Here is how we do it in our house – it takes a pan and a colander. Simply place the colander inside the cold pan, dump the ground beef in the colander and all the grease drains right into the pan. Once the grease cools a bit we then pour it into an old can and discard in the garbage can.

Draining the grease from ground beef will make a dish healthier and is usually recommended. Brown the meat first to extract the fat. Then, you can spoon the grease out of the pan or use a colander to drain the grease. It is important you do not discard the hot grease down a drain as it can cause damage to the drain.

Browning ground beef is simple, and recipes almost always tell you to drain the grease after cooking it. But this is not necessary. It is totally up to you.