Recipe Mixed Pepper Venison Chili

[ElizabethB]

Texas is a near neighbor. We visit there often and have friends and family from Texas. Two things about REAL Chili: no beans and cubed rather than ground meat. Two items subject to discussion (argument): tomato products or no tomato products; onions or no onions

The one thing all Texans agree on is peppers - not all hot. This is my take on REAL Chili

Ingredients:
2 lbs. venison roast - cut into 1" cubes
6 slices thick cut Applewood smoked bacon - cut into 1' pieces
1 medium yellow onion diced
4 cups beef broth
3 Tbsp. Chili powder
1 Tbsp. ground Cumin
2 Tbsp. Masa (corn flour)
2 Tbsp. Tomato
Sea salt and fresh ground black pepper

Fire Roasted Peppers
1 Poblano pepper
1 Anaheim pepper
1 green bell pepper
1 red bell pepper
1 yellow bell pepper
1 orange bell pepper
3 jalapeno peppers
2 serrano peppers

Method

1. Roast the peppers over a flame until the skin is completely charred - black.
2. Cool and wipe off the charred skin with paper towels - first dry then wet. Core - remove seeds. Finely dice the jalapeno and serrano peppers and chop remaining peppers.
3. Cut venison into 1" cubes, pat dry and season with sea salt and fresh ground pepper. Set aside in a colander over a bowl.
4. In a Dutch oven or heavy pot cook the bacon until fat is rendered and bacon is crisp. Remove the bacon and reserve for another use.
5. Add venison to the bacon drippings in batches - brown on all sides, transferring each batch from the pot to a bowl.
6. Add onions - stir and cook until tender.
7. Add tomato paste and stir to mix. N.B. By this point my pot was dry so I added a little beef broth a Tbsp. at a time until the tomato paste softened enough to mix with the onions.
8. Add the peppers. Give the mixture a good stir then return the meat to the pot including any drippings in the bowl. Add beef broth - you may or may not use all 4 cups - just enough to barely cover.
9. Add chili powder and ground cumin and stir well. Bring to a boil and cook for 10 minutes
10. Reduce heat to a simmer and cover, stirring occasionally until meat is tender - 1 1/4 hour
11. Dissolve Masa in hot water and add to chili, stirring to mix. Simmer for 10 minutes. If Chili thickens too much add a little beef broth

Options:
Top with a dollop of Sour Cream, Medium Sharp Cheddar, Cilantro, Green Onions (any or all).
I was out of sour cream - not really out but the container was more of an archeological relic than an edible product. I like sour cream and cheese on my Chili. The cool of the sour cream balances the heat of the peppers. I did not have any fresh cilantro so I used Parsley.

Note: My range is an old coil type electric range so I used George's LPG grill to roast the peppers.

 

[The Late Night Gourmet]

2 lbs. venison roast - cut into 1" cubes

I always like to see chunks of meat in chili, instead of the ground beef that I see 99.9% of the time. Particularly with a lean meat like this, you get more of the meat and less of the grease than you'd get with ground beef. And, I love the color you achieved with your chili. Very nice!

 

[ElizabethB]

 

[Morning Glory]

A fantastic selection of peppers in this chilli!