Bowl of Red

Texas A&M University
Press (2002)

Get two Texans talking about the best recipe for chili and you could have a fight on your hands. Each chili cook is absolutely adamant that his or her recipe is the only one worth cooking. The American humorist H. Allen Smith, himself a contest-winning chili cook, described it this way: "...the chief ingredients of all chili are fiery envy, scalding jealousy, scorching contempt, and sizzling scorn."

So it wasn't easy to come up with a recipe that would accurately represent the classic Texas "bowl of red." In the end we went with the late Texas journalist Frank X. Tolbert, who wrote the book A Bowl of Red and was also cofounder, in 1967, of the now-famous chili cook-off in Terlingua, Texas (for more information on the cook-off, go to abowlofred.com).

Here's how Tolbert describes the earliest versions of a real Texas bowl of red:

"The original Texas-style chili didn't contain any vegetables except chili peppers...no tomatoes or chopped onion....[It] was simply bite-size or coarsely ground...beef...cooked slowly and for a long time in boon companionship with the pulp of chili peppers, crushed powder from the curly leaves of oregano, ground cumin seeds...and chopped garlic cloves."

The following recipe is adapted from Tolbert's description of the old-timers' bowl of red. He notes that he considers the suet that early chili cooks favored an optional ingredient—so we left it out.

Bowl of Red

Makes 6 servings
Texas chili inspires great passion. As one of Tolbert's editors put it, "Addictions to it are formed early in life, and the victims never recover." This explains frontiersman Kit Carson's supposed dying words: "Wish I had time for just one more bowl of chili."

Note: the original recipe called for peeling the cooked chili peppers. This is tedious, and food processors will take care of the skin for you, but if you're up for it, peel the peppers before you puree them.

4 ancho chili peppers (dried poblanos)
6 cups water
1 tablespoon sweet paprika (optional)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 pounds stew beef, cut into 1-inch cubes
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons oregano
1 teaspoon salt
11/2 tablespoons masa harina or finely ground cornmeal
2 teaspoons Louisiana-style hot sauce (optional)

1. Pick out the reddest chili peppers you can find (some anchos can be greenish-red); you want the dish to be as red as possible.
2. Under running water, stem and seed the peppers Put them in a medium saucepan with the 6 cups water and bring to a boil. Reduce to a high simmer and cook until very soft, about 30 minutes. Set a strainer over a bowl and drain the chilies. Reserve the cooking water.
3. In a small food processor, puree the chilies with 1/4 cup of the cooking water. If the chilies you used were on the green side, add the paprika to the puree to boost the red color.
4. In a 4-quart Dutch oven (do not use a larger pan or the chili will be watery), preferably cast iron, heat the oil until shimmering. Add the beef and sear, about 3 minutes.
5. Add the chili puree and enough of the chili-cooking water to come 2 inches above the beef. (If you don't have enough chili-cooking water, add tap water.) Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook, uncovered, for 30 minutes.
6. Stir in the garlic, cayenne, cumin, oregano, and salt. Return to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for 45 minutes.
7. In a small bowl, blend the masa harina with enough water to be pourable (this is to keep it from clumping when you add it to the chili). Stir the masa mixture into the pot, return to a simmer, and cook, uncovered, until the meat is completely tender, about 30 minutes. Stir occasionally and add a little bit of water if it seems in danger of sticking.
8. Add the hot sauce (if using). Taste the chili and add more cayenne, cumin, oregano, or salt to taste.

Bowl of "Green": This is made with fresh green poblano peppers instead of ancho chilies (dried poblanos). Roast 4 poblanos under the broiler (or over a gas flame), turning them to evenly blister and char the skin. Place in a covered bowl to steam for a minute, then peel and seed them. Omit the paprika. The rest of the recipe is the same.

[This article first appeared in the December/January 2008 issue of Hallmark Magazine.]