Frank X. Tolbert's Original Bowl Of Red

Total Time: 2 hrs 40 mins Preparation Time: 40 mins Cook Time: 2 hrs

Ingredients

• Servings: 4
• 12 dried ancho chiles
• 3 lbs lean beef chuck, cut in thumbsize pieces
• 2 ounces beef suet
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 tablespoon cayenne
• 1 tablespoon tabasco sauce
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped (or more)
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 2 tablespoons masa harina (optional)

Recipe

• 1 break off the stems of the chiles, and remove the seeds.
• 2 place chiles in a small saucepan and cover them with water.
• 3 simmer for 30 minutes.
• 4 purée the chiles in a blender with a tiny bit of cooking liquid to make a smooth, thin paste.
• 5 use as little liquid as possible, unless you want the chili to be soupy.
• 6 pour the chile purée into a dutch oven or large, heavy pan.
• 7 in a heavy skillet, sear the meat in two batches with the beef suet until the meat is gray.
• 8 transfer each batch to the chile purée, then pour in enough of the chile cooking liquid to cover the meat by about 2 inches.
• 9 bring the chili to a boil; reduce heat to a simmer.
• 10 cook for 30 minutes.
• 11 remove the chili from the heat, and stir in the rest of the ingredients.
• 12 return chili to the heat, cover and resume simmering for 45 minutes, keeping the lid on except to stir just occasionally.
• 13 (too much stirring tears up the meat) add more chile liquid only if you think the mixture will burn otherwise.
• 14 after 45 minutes, you may add the masa harina, if you wish.
• 15 the masa adds a subtle, tamale-like taste, but it also thickens the chili.
• 16 cover the chili again and simmer for another 30 minutes.
• 17 do a lot of tasting to see if seasoning suits you.
• 18 add more seasonings as you like, but go easy on the oregano to avoid ending up with a spaghetti sauce flavor.
• 19 take the chili off the heat, and refrigerator overnight.
• 20 skim as much fat as you wish from the chili before reheating it.
• 21 serve hot.