Oct 01 2013
When I saw this recipe for Chili Gumbo by aagersi at food52.com I knew it was something I had to try. Her story about how she came to create this was interesting. When she heard Cyril Neville play at the Boogaloo in New Orleans she got the idea. Cyril said after Katrina he, the band and families moved to Austin Texas and stayed three years. When he returned to New Orleans he realized Austin had put some chili in his gumbo! He wrote a song called “Chili in my Gumbo.”
I adapted her recipe and changed some. For the meat I used one pound of Kah Meats Firehouse Brats and a pound strip steak; I smoked both in my Traeger the day before. I used Yuengling black & tan for the beer. My dried peppers were 2 Guajillo’s and 2 New Mexico hot peppers. I had to buy a pound of each so looks like I will be making a lot of chili this winter! After the peppers had soaked in the beer about 2 hours I pureed them with some of the beer.
I sliced the brats and diced the strip steak about ¼ inch before browning up.
I browned some flour for the roux and just added ¼ cup of oil and a good half cup of the flour. My chili powders were a tablespoon of Penzey’s Cajun and a tablespoon of Penzey’s ground ancho chilies. The firehouse brats are pretty hot and I had seasoned the strip steak with Cajun seasoning before smoking.
I think any chili should simmer at least 3 hours to meld all the flavors; I did it 1 ½ hours with the lid off then covered for 1 ½ hours. I added and extra cup of beef broth since it would reduce down some.
I made some cast iron skillet cornbread while the chili was simmering. I used my favorite mix, Miracle Maize, and added buttermilk instead of 2% and 2 tablespoons of bacon grease. It didn’t rise as much as usual but it sure was good! The grandson stopped in and ate 3 pieces.
I knew my wife would not eat this so she had some chicken and rice casserole and peas for her supper. I had a bowl of the chili gumbo over rice and added some lime juice and about 5 drops of Cholula hot sauce and a couple pieces of buttered corn bread.
This hit the spot on a cold evening. It was about as hot as I want but to a real chili head it is probably mild. It could also be served over some pinto beans I think would be good. If you want to eat it plain as a gumbo I would say to add some Filet Gumbo powder to thicken some.
Dried peppers, beer and browned flour
Chili meat
Ingredients
Browning the brats
Browning the beef
Celery, onions, and peppers in
Mixing in the roux
Simmering
Buttermilk, bacon corn bread
Cornbread inverted to serve
My bowl
Smokin Don
Recipe:
Chili Gumbo
By aargersi
Makes 1 large pot of chili gumbo 1/2 cup toasted flour (see first step in
directions)
2 Dried Ancho chilis
2 dried Guajillo chilis
1 dark beer - I used an Abita Christmas Ale
2 tablespoons olive oil
10 ounces Andouille sausage
2 teaspoons cumin
1 pound coarsely ground sirloin (aka chili meat if you are in a Texas market)
2 cups diced onion
1 cup diced green bell pepper
1 cup diced celery
3 large cloves garlic - minced or pressed
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons red chili powder (just ground chilis - not with other stuff -
this is what I use and it is incredible:
http://www.potrerotradingpost.com/RedChile.html)
1 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes
2 cups beef broth
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons Cajun seasoning
Cooked rice, limes and Louisiana hot sauce to serve
Salt and pepper
Chili gumbo cont’d
Toast the flour - we do this in big batches so it is always on hand. (It's great for roux, gravy, etoufee, or whatever you might need to thicken and make delicious.) Heat the oven to 350°F. Put a couple of cups of AP flour in a baking dish -- I use a 9" x 13" metal cake pan. Stir every 20 minutes until it gets nice and toasty -- about an hour to an hour and a half. Test by mixing a little with some oil -- it should turn a very deep chocolate brown. Store in the pantry in a jar and you will be happy every time you pull it out!
Remove the seeds and stems from the chilis and chop them up. Put them in a bowl and pour the beer in. Let them soak. Heat the olive oil in your chili pot. Cut up the andouille and brown it in the oil. Remove it. Toast the cumin in the remaining fat for a minute or so, then add in the chili meat and season with a good pinch of salt and pepper. When it is browned, put it with the sausage. Put the onions in the pot and get them sweated, then add the celery, peppers and garlic. Cook all of that for a few minutes until it is just starting to soften, then add the vegetable oil and toasted flour.
Stir that around for a minute or so, then add the chili powder and tomatoes and cook for a few more minutes. Follow your nose -- everything
should smell rich and toasty and not at all raw. Add the chilis and beer, and put the meat and any juices back in the pot.
Stir it all, then add the beef broth and vinegar. When that is all simmering away, stir in a tablespoon of the Cajun seasoning. Let it simmer a bit, taste, and see if you want more -- this is all a tasting game, as your chilis, seasoning, and personal preference will vary.
Turn the heat to low and let your pot simmer for at least a half hour -- it gets better with time.
When you are ready to serve, put rice in your bowl, then chili gumbo. Squeeze just a bit of lime and add a dash of Louisiana hot sauce -- those two things really give it a final fabulous kick. That's it! Enjoy!
