Chilli
Coming out of Mexico in the mid nineteenth century, the meaty dish we know as chili con carne continues to evolve into one of the most popular meals of all time. Originally an extra side dish of meat and chili peppers served in cantinas, it did not take long for chili to become an Americanized specialty.
When the original chili hit San Antonio, Texas, suet began to be added as a thickener to create a more stew-like dish. The "Chili Queens", independent women who would set up outdoor stalls in the marketplace, soon propelled this inexpensive meal into public popularity. By 1893 the "San Antonio Chili Stand" at the Colombian Exhibition held in Chicago, introduced the "South of the Border" treat to a national audience. The open kitchen style the street merchants used came to an abrupt end in 1937. The city of San Antonio passed health restrictions that required the same standards for them as it did for the indoor "chili parlors". These popular eateries began to spring up all over the country with the spread of immigrant families seeking business opportunities in the States.
The original recipe for chili was just meat, preferably beef or venison, and the chopped or crushed chili peppers. However, Americans love to experiment and innovate so distinctly different regional additives started showing up in the mix. Cincinnati style chili stopped being a dish by itself and became the topping for plates of spaghetti covered with beans and smothered in a thinner mix of chili. This style eventually evolved to become "chili hot dog sauce".
New Orleans defined its own chili style with the inclusion of rice in with the meat and peppers. While beef was cheap and plentiful in the cattle ranch areas, other parts of the country resorted to filler substances to make the beef stretch. Beans became a popular additive. Originally pinto beans were the first choice of many though as the twentieth century passed, kidney beans became the commercial standard. Many people began to add tomatoes and tomato sauce to their chili recipes to create a more richly flavored stew. Other fillers that have gained popularity in chili recipes are potatoes, onions, hominy, macaroni and black eyed peas. White chili appeared that used Great Northern Beans and chicken to create an unusually pale and less acidic dish.
Most commercial chili now comes with beans included and most people think this is the way it should be. However, Texas still takes its chili seriously and have made it the Official State dish. The Chili Appreciation Society International states in its rules for chili cook-off contests that NO filler is allowed in competition cooking. Secret flavoring ingredients ranging from peanut butter to tequila however are encouraged and are what adds spice to the competitions.
An alternative for fresh peppers to spice your chili is in using "chili powder". This dried spice consists of primarily various chili peppers, garlic, cumin and oregano ground and mixed. Distinct brand variations will use such extra ingredients as cinnamon, cloves, black pepper, nutmeg and the like in their product. Using chili powder will help adjust the "heat" of your chili from mild to flaming depending on your preference. But for a real chili experience it is said, according to the Los Angeles newspaperman Matt Weinstock, that real chili should "open eighteen sinus cavities unknown to the medical profession".
