No matter what the World Economic Forum says….
So I was making Chili the day after Thanksgiving. Grandma’s classic recipe…
Meat, Beans, Chilis, salt. (And yes, Real Chili has beans in it. Grandma raised her kids in Del Rio, TX with a Mexican husband and that’s normal chili there. Equal parts Meat and Beans and some chilies and salt to taste…..simple Mexican Border Chili. Don’t blow up my comments because someone who doesn’t know better (and whose ancestors came to Texas from Germany or some other country rather than Mexico) told you that “real Chili has no beans”. This recipe goes back 5 or more generations (that I know of) of people who were making chili before your ancestors got off the boat, and is tasty. If you think otherwise you are wrong, and that’s just the way it is. Go eat your spicy stewed meat.)
Anyway, I browned some ground pork that I had laying around, and some ground beef. Let it set in the skillet for a few and added some water to a stewpot. Added some Chili powder (can’t get good dried chilis here, so gotta use what I can get) and some chipotle, to let it rehydrate before adding the meat and ∗pinto∗ beans.
Odd, some stuff floating on the top looked like bugs. Fished some out and took a closer look. Yep, bugs. Like mealworm beetles, kinda…… Bugs in the ground Chipotle. Never seen that before. The ground pepper is maybe a year old, but I have never seen bugs in dried chilis of any kind, whole or ground. Plus chipotle is, of course SMOKED dried jalapeno, so how anything could live off of it I dunno. But there it was…..
Tossed that water out and started over with a different jar of chipotle…. 6 hours later it was a tasty meal with some tortillas. Just what I needed to warm me up after spending most of the day outside.
But I’ve never seen dried ground pepper have bugs in it. And I simply won’t (knowingly) eat bugs.
∗Pinto beans are the only correct bean to use in Chili. Red beans or Kidney beans are wrong. Any bean beside pinto beans are an Affront to God and will send you straight to eternal damnation. If you use white beans then your soul and the souls of your children and all future generations are doomed forever.
That is just flat odd… never heard of bugs in peppers before! Wow!
LMFAO. As a Kentuckian who is without knowledge on this subject, other than what my loving mother did to feed her five hungry sons on my dad’s low factory wage, I will now forever follow your recipe.
It really is “Poor Folks Food”, but it is tasty and good for you.
To bean, or not to bean? That is the question.
My answer…I’m not prejudiced. Love em both.
My uncle’s “chili team” won a national championship back in the 80s. Venison, elk, beef…that’s all I ever managed to get out of him ingredient-wise. He did leave the full recipe to his grandson. Need to get ahold of my cousin