My recipe for Cincinnati Chili, as close as I could make it!
- 3 tablespoons worcestershire sauce
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 2 pounds ground chuck
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 3 teaspoons cinnamon
- 4 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 quart water divided
- 2 medium onions finely minced or grated
- 2 cans tomato sauce 15 ounce cans
- 2 teaspoons allspice ground
- 3 teaspoons garlic powder
- 3 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoons ground cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoons ground cloves
- 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 3 tablespoons cider vinegar
- 2 each bay leaves
- 4 squirts tabasco sauce
- 1 to 2 cubes beef bouillon cube
- Carbohydrate 23.1431151935299 g
- Cholesterol 80.512645675 mg
- Fat 24.164964919802 g
- Fiber 3.80906588130535 g
- Protein 22.0685966885563 g
- Saturated Fat 9.16746386026636 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (361g)
- Sodium 463.636976090001 mg
- Sugar 19.3340493122246 g
- Trans Fat 3.64970165024587 g
- Calories 394 calories
Step-by-step
- Bring the water to the boil and add the raw ground beef. Stir until the beef is separated. Don’t Brown the meat first! You want the meat to really separate.
- Add the rest of the ingredients. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 2 to 3 hours, or until thickened.
- If you are eating it right away, use a ladle to skim the fat towards the end of the cooking time. Other wise, cool and refrigerate overnight, the chili is actually better the second day. Skim off any accumulated fat and reheat the chili. Almost always served over cooked spaghetti.
- And with any or all of the following accompaniments: finely grated cheddar cheese (3 way), chopped raw onion or/and cooked kidney beans (4 way with one, 5 way with both), -- and (sacrilege) oyster crackers on the side.
Deep mahogany and scented with cinnamon, cloves, and cocoa powder, this regional chili presents a smooth, sauce-like texture rather than the chunky consistency of a standard Texas bowl. Boiling the raw ground beef directly in water instead of browning it first prevents the proteins from forming tight, hard clumps, yielding a fine, uniform meat sauce.
Fresh yellow onions bring sharp sulfur compounds and moisture when grated raw into the simmering pot, contrasting with the dried ground spices like cumin and cayenne that supply background heat. Using cider vinegar introduces acetic acid to brighten the heavy blend of beef and tomato sauce, cutting through twenty-four grams of fat per serving.
Altering the spice ratios by substituting pre-ground supermarket spices with freshly grated whole nutmeg or freshly cracked cloves will drastically intensify the aromatics, potentially overpowering the cocoa powder. Standard table salt can replace kosher salt at a one-to-one volumetric ratio, though the finer grain dissolves faster and requires careful measurement to avoid over-salting.
Allowing the pot to chill overnight in the refrigerator for twelve to twenty-four hours lets the fat solidify at the surface for effortless removal while marrying the volatile flavor compounds. Reheat the mixture gently on the stovetop before ladling it over hot spaghetti and topping it with finely grated cheddar cheese.
