I went to a chili cookoff once long ago and it was quite interesting all the different ways people make what is called chili. Some with beans, some without, some made with beef and others had turkey, chicken, pork and even ostrich (?)! Some so hot and spicy, one whiff and I was crying and others so bland that it was almost tasteless. I make what I think is a pretty traditional chili with ground beef, pinto and kidney beans, and spices. Not too spicy but enough that it has some heat.
Clare

I make mine with tomato juice and barley instead of beans.

I don't think everyone uses "pretty much the same ingredients," at all, hence the different tastes.

I use tomato juice too. I never make my own chili the same way twice usually, because there's no recipe. So it never taste the same.
Leslie

I've eaten a lot of peoples chili, but mine is still my favorite. My daughter was so excited when her friend invited her over for chili dinner. It consisted of fried ground beef with a can or two of pork and beans put in it. NO CHILI! One of the kids in the other family doesn't like spices. LOL Then a few days later she had chili at another friends house and it was almost the same thing. NO flavour at all.

I load mine with all different beans, fried ground beef, onions, 3 different peppers, plus jalepeno's. Chili powder, cayenne, cumin, chili sauce, tomato sauce, tomatoes, a sprinkle of sugar (helps with acid reflux), chocolate and I'm sure there's more.......oh! Corn!!! gotta have corn! LOL I also serve mine with long grain rice.

Just happen to have a picture of my chili. LOL I made this a few weeks ago when my daughter was in town with her boyfriend. This and my cabbage rolls always get my kids over for dinner.

Football ranks first, religion second, and chili third in the heart of Texans. There is a real stand-off between the chili-with-beans group and the no-beans group. Almost every town has a chili cook-off, chili supper, or recognized chili supreme chef. We have eaten chili in almost every corner of Texas, and each bowl was different. The worst was in Austin, where someone thought black beans, turkey and cumin made chili. Whatever it made, it wasn't chili! The best, as far as we can judge, was in Terlingua with no beans, lots of coarsely chopped beef, and some unidentifiable ingredients (sometimes it pays to not ask). One of the best things about chili is that everyone can express his/her individuality by the ingredients used (just so they stay away from turkey and black beans).

Reminds me of "Mama's Family" show where they did the chili cookoff. And the DIL made hers with 2 giant cans of chili and a can of beer! It was her secret ingredient. What I've usually found is that everybody makes it differently and uses different ingredients but it pretty much tastes the same! Let's face it. Mix meat, tomato sauce, chili powder, onions, etc, it's going to be pretty much the same. Now that's more for the "traditional" chili. Around here it has kidney beans. Some want no beans, ok, but I like them. Probably about 25 years ago I was on a chili kick and on the quest for the best chili I could make. I had a basic recipe and tried to model it after a chili made by a bar up north which was fantastic. It was so thick it would mound and you could stand a spoon up in it and that's how chili & stew should be in my opinion. But I made batch after batch after batch and modified and tweaked and came up with a fantastic recipe. I would make it several times and it was terrific. BUT... then I didn't write the exact recipe down because I was so used to making it. Well I didn't make it again for years because I got tired of it. Need I say I forgot the recipe?

But, as I get older I like things a little less spicy. Still want chili thick enough to use crackers to scoop it up. I also like a mixture of meats. I usually use ground beef, pork sausage, pepperoni, bratwurst, maybe some smoked sausage and whatever meat I have around. I like a lot of onion and some celery. Tried using corn in it because I like corn but somehow it just didn't fit. Stewed tomatoes, sauce, paste, etc. Oh and of course, beer. The problem is you can't make a small batch of chili! And you can't freeze chili with beans in it. Just doesn't work. But for the most part I still enjoy it. And occasionally I'll pick up a small one from Wendy's when I need a chili fix. It's not bad. Especially with a few extra spices. Problem is, as I age, I need to be closer to a bathroom when I have chili!

I prefer chili without beans, but will eat it with beans when it is served that way. I used to make wonderful chili, but like cynic, I quit making it for a long period of time and now I cannot replicate the recipe. It's just as well. Bob doesn't eat chili anyway.
Last winter I was shopping at the grocery store and there was a display just inside the front door of some chili mix. I don't remember the name of it, but two women picked up up a package of it and were talking about how good it was so I decided to try it. It was pretty good and it only made enough for a couple of meals for Anna and myself. That worked out well. If I can recognize the package I might buy some again and doctor it up a little bit.

I also like rice with chile or chili over tamales.

Linda

Around here everybody uses about the same ingredients-this is what I should have said.
ground beef
tomato sauce
chili beans
chili seasoning mix
onions
some form of pasta

Saturday when I ate chili twice the basic ingredients where the same one used crushed tomatoes the other used chili sauce, one used macaroni pasta the other used baby shell pasta, but both tasted completely different
Yep around here we put pasta in ours and usually it is more like a soup instead of stew-we like to put crackers or cornbread in it and maybe sprinkle some cheddar cheese over it.
My SO who is a great guy, though sometimes a little quirky-he puts peanut butter on crackers and puts them in the bottom of the bowl and puts his chili on top.

Oh and the little dinner we go to-you get a bowl of chili and a grilled cheese for $3, they make theirs the same way, except the pasta in theirs is spaghetti.

I love chili and I love making it. I never really make it the same or even try to but always wanting a certain taste. One of our little locals has a bowl of red and half a sandwich for a lunch special and I eat it often. It's good but what makes it good is it's a little on the greasy spoon tasting side.

Funny you should mention chili, as I'm making it for dinner tonight. It's simmering on the stove. I like mine, which is basically the same way my mom used to make it with various different beans in it. Tonight I used Pinto, kidney and Great Northern.

Never put pasta in mine, Curlysue, that is called Chili Mac at my house-lol.

I sort of think like cynic. I think everyone uses different ingredients, but it usually ends up tasting about the same to me.

I never make the same recipe twice. Last time I made it my recipe sounded almost exactly like debby ab's (I even used some corn and choc. chips). I did try a new thing though; I added some spicy refried beans to it. I was hoping for a masterpiece, but it didn't really make a difference; it still tasted like usual.

I made 5 gallons of chili on Halloween night...every drop was gone before the night was over. (Plus we had one of those big roasters full of potato soup)

They always give me a "big head"...because they rant over my chili. And I swear it is the most basic chili you can make.

Every year I hear...."is patti making her chili"....they make me feel special....ahhhhhh

patti

patti

I love a good homemade Chili. I've made all kinds. Venison makes a nice Chili. My Turkey Chili is super. But, may Fav is Beef Chili and I have to have Beans. I've also tried the Chili with a can of Beer added.

Gayle

I like mine like Ruthieg said. Sort of greasy spoon tasting. Lots of meat, no beans and broken up spaghetti in it. A little pinch of chapolte in adobo sauce gives it a little kick, but doesn't knock you out. IMHO, you have to use hamburger that has some fat in it to make it good.

Chili is about the only thing I will eat as a "left over". It is always better the next day. I do NOT use a recipe..I just throw the following together:

1# ground turkey, 1# ground chicken and 1# ground beef and 1# pork sausage (all browned)..pinto beans, kidney beans, tomato puree, dehydrated onions, chili powder, Spicy V8, a little garlic powder and sometimes a dash or two Frank's Hot Sauce gets thrown in depending on who is there to eat....I put it in a large pot and pop it into oven to cook all day.

When served; some of the family adds Fritos, shredded cheese, raw onion and a dallop of sour cream! I usually bake a large pan of cornbread to go with it.

I love chili and this post is making me so hungry!

It reminded me of a hilarious account of an inexperienced judge at a chili cook-off. I don't dare post it because the language might get me booted from GW (or as we would say in the good old days, sent to Disney).

But, if you dare (and want a great laugh) Google "Texas Chili Cookoff joke". You can then read it in the privacy of your own chair and I won't be sitting in a tea cup. :-)

Jodi-

I googled it Jodi...and sat here laughing so hard, my DH asked me what was so funny. lol

Thanks for the laugh! I needed it.

Debby ab...YOur chili looks delicious! Now I'm definatly in the mood for some..

For us, chili = gumbo, everyone's is a little different.

But both chili AND gumbo taste better with some deer meat (venison)...lucky for me Dh got a big buck last Sat. :)

DH used to work for a restaurant chain that went out of business. When asked if he wanted anything from the kitchen, he said "the chili recipe." He loved their black bean chili. So, the head chef wrote it down for him, but it served about 200! I had to just take the list of ingredients and play with it, until I got something he declared "darn close." I have to say, I like it much better than anything anyone in my family makes, stuff I grew up with. But I don't measure the spices anymore, so sometimes it's got more heat than other times.

We all like toppings, too. So when I make chili, I set out shredded cheese, crackers, tortilla chips, onion and sour cream. And I like it with corn bread.

Now I'm gonna have to make some.

I think baked beans are the same. At any potluck cook-out someone shows up with baked beans, and no one's tastes exactly the same, but we all like our own best. And like chili, I don't measure, so even my own have a little more/less kick to them each time.

Ahh chili! Every time it is reheated as a leftover, it gets better. My chili turns out a little different each time I make it. Its vegtable stew with chili seasoning and is a complete meal.

Ground beef
Italian diced tomatoes with other ingredients and sauce.
or use tomato sauce.
Carrots, diced (adds vetable bulk)
Celery, diced (adds a flavor of its own)
Bell pepper, diced
Sweet Vadalia onion, diced
Dark kidney beans, canned (other beans can be substituted, but dark beans is the best.)
Chili powder mix.
Brown sugar - My secret ingedient.

Start by browning the meat with a little cooking oil.

When the meat begins to turn, add the carrots, celery, and onion. These need more cooking time than the other ingredients.

After the mix has reheated to the boiling point, throw in the other vegatbles.

Let the mix reheat, then dump in the remaining stuff except for the chili powder and brown sugar.

Add chili powder to suit your taste. Just keep adding until it has enough fire.

Bring the mix to a boil, then let simmer for about 5 minutes, and now add the brown sugar by taste.
CAUTION: Add brown sugar very sparingly and test taste after stirring in each addition of sugar. A little of this stuff goes a long way in modifying the flavor. It can quickly overpower and ruin the batch.

Continue simmering until the vegtables are cooked (softened). if you like crunchy vegtables, shorten the cooking time.

Serve hot with low sodium soda crackers and table salt.

Note that I did not add any salt. Commercially prepared canned vegtables are over salted these days, and will provide plenty of salt for this base chili recipe. Diners may add salt as desired, but try it first as prepared without additional salt.

This recipe can be varied by changing the vegatable mix. It can be turned into a chili flavored beef stew by adding chunks of beef and chopped potatoes.

I have made this dish with turkey instead of beef due to a friend's food preference - no red meat -, but in my opioion, it was not as tasty.

Some folks in my neighborhood use grapes as the sweetner.
Enjoy