Cincinnati chili now added to our household rotation

This dish has walked through my viewfinder several times, in increasing frequency, such that I just had to try it out.

I first heard about Cincinnati chili when I watched an Anthony Bourdain episode about Cleveland, where one of his best buddies, Michael Ruhlman, a food writer and BIG Ohio Fan, resides. They went to Skyline chili and tucked into this dish: chili atop spaghetti (yes you heard right), topped with cheese and beans and other goodies. Judging by the way they gorged themselves on this dish, I figured, “Wow, that must taste good.”

Cincinnati chili can be presented 3-way (chili, beans, cheese), 4-way (chili, beans, cheese, onions), 5-way (chili, beans, cheese, onions, sour cream…) and beyond. Wowee. It seemed bizarre and good, like Frito Pies are bizarre and good. I shelved the images in my mind. Must try this someday.

Cue the Whole Foods Budget Recipe Challenge, where Rachel of Coconut and Lime’s Cincinnati chili recipe was showcased as a finalist. There it was again! It was like being in the know–and boy did it look delicious. I bookmarked the page.

And most recently, I got an email from Cooks’ Illustrated highlighting a Cincinnati chili recipe. I watched the video and became entranced.

You know how they say it takes people three tries to like a food? I guess after running into Cincinnati chili three times, I just gotta make it.

My husband’s a big chili lover and he was excited about me making chili (I’ve never made homemade chili before so sue me!). I announced my intentions on making Cincinnati chili on Facebook and was met with mixed reviews. “Ugggh,” they said, “Cue the Jaws music.” Why? I asked. Does it taste bad?

“No,” my friend replied, “It’s just not chili. It has COCOA in it! And it doesn’t have beans in it!” After pushing them further they said, “It’s an acquired taste.” Hrmmm. “You either love it or hate it.”

Oh. Did I mention that the chili has cocoa powder in it? I was astonished but reassured that it was indeed an integral part of Cincinnati chili. (And really, chocolate can only make things yummier, right?).

Still, I forged on, hoping that we’d be in the love it camp. I had to keep telling my husband, “This is NOT your Texas chili! Don’t expect it to be CHILI!” I wanted him to be in the “love it” camp, and expectation-setting, I felt, was key in preparation.

There are variations on this recipe–Rachel of Coconut and Lime sautes her ground beef. I chose to boil my ground beef, following the America’s Test Kitchen/Cooks’ Illustrated recipe more closely. Rachel’s recipe included cloves. The Cooks’ Illustrated recipe didn’t include cloves. I like cloves. So I added cloves. I tasted as I went, and the following is the recipe I came up with.

The result? It was a hit. The hubby said it was like a really interesting spaghetti. I took it to work and offered it to a couple of Ohio natives, who gave it a thumbs up.

We’re in the “love it” camp. Thank you, Ruhlman and Rachel and America’s Test Kitchen.

Recipe follows after the jump…

CINCINNATI CHILI
(adapted from Cooks’ Illustrated and Coconut and Lime)

INGREDIENTS:
Chili:
1 lb. ground beef (80% lean or thereabouts is what was advised, I used 85%)
2 medium onions
2 T vegetable oil
1-2 tsp salt
2 cloves garlic chopped
2 T chili powder
1/2 tsp cayenne
2 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp cocoa powder
1/2 tsp ground allspice
1.5 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
2 tsp dark brown sugar
2 T cider vinegar
2 cups water
2 cups low sodium chicken broth
2 cups tomato sauce (I used Pomi strained tomatoes)

Accompaniments:
spaghetti
shredded cheddar cheese
1 can red kidney beans (rinsed, drained, warmed)

DIRECTIONS:
In a large saucepan, boil water and add ground beef. Boil ground beef for 2-3 minutes breaking up strands until you see foam. The ground beef should look “wormy.” Remove from heat and drain into a colander. Set ground beef aside.

Wash pot (you will make the chili in the same pot, so you don’t have to scrub it–just wash it enough).

Cut 2 medium onions and chop finely. In the saucepan, heat up 2 tablespoons of oil. Then add onions. Add about 1-2 tsp of salt (this is called “pre-loading”–adding salt early on with vegetables helps draw out their flavor and moisture). Cook down until soft and golden 8-10 min.

Then add:
2 cloves garlic
2 T chili powder
1/2 tsp cayenne
2 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp cocoa powder
1/2 tsp ground allspice
1.5 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
2 tsp dark brown sugar

(Adding spices to a dry pan with a little bit of fat in it will draw out the flavor of the spices).

Then add liquid:
2 Tablespoons of vinegar
About 2 cups of water
2 cups of low sodium chicken broth
2 cups tomato sauce (the Pomi)

Then add blanched beef and bring to simmer for about an hour.

To assemble: boil pasta and cook and drain. You can optionally put 2 teaspoons of butter in the pasta. Then spoon Cincinnati chili over the pasta.

Garnish with cheddar and kidney beans or sour cream or chopped onions or whatever you prefer with your Cincinnati chili!

Mrmmm. Tastes even better the next day.