Texas-Style Chili

I am a 68 year old Texan. I can make Texas chili well enough to make you cry. Three comments about this recipe.
1. It will produce a good bowl of chili. It will work for those who have little knowledge or experience in making the real thing,
2. Please, no tomatoes or, for God's sake, beans.
3. The real thing uses no chili powder, but a paste made of various dried, softened chilies to the cook's taste. If you must, order some Gebhardt's and use more cumin.

There are two classes of chili--competition chili and eating chili. The former contains cubed meat, spices, water, and masa. Onions, bell peppers and tomatoes are taboo.
The latter contains anything you want it to. It's your kitchen, you make the rules.
This particular recipe reminds me of the chili cooked up and served by the lunch ladies at my grammar school many decades ago. I remember it fondly.
I hope this note eases the religious tension that any chili recipe seems to create.

i am texan and do chili very well indeed.

this is the best recipe i have come across in many a year - one that i don't have to alter or ad lib. i live in abu dhabi and have managed to cobble together a larder that contains all the ingredients except the ro-tel, which i believe i would not use if i lived the US !
this recipe is a keeper. i, of course, change the recipe around; but no matter how you slice and dice it, this is makes for a mighty fine blow of chili.

I agree completely about the tomatoes, and the only shortcut I recommend for the Masa Harina/corn tortillas is to remove about a cup of liquid while cooking and put itini a blender - then add about a cup of Fritos Corn chips to the liquid and blend to a paste, then add this back to the pot. Fritos ingredients are only 'corn, corn oil and salt', and they make a great way to thicken and establish that essential corn taste, with very little hassel.

This recipe is delicious as presented. I have made numerous trips to Texas. I have eaten chilli with beans, chilli with tomatoes, chilli with beans and tomatoes, barbecue with sause on it and BBQ'd pork, all in the Lone Star state, all cooked by Texans in Texas establishments. So authentic means nothing if it tastes good.

I'm a 67yr old Hispanic Texan and I really liked this. I was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas where Chili was born. I worked for the Institute of Texan Cultures and per historical accounts, the original Chili Bowl was created from dried beef pounded and shredded called 'Carne Seca'. It was then cooked and reconstituted with fat, water, dried powdered chilies, and other spices added as per each cooks taste. NO Beans. It's called Chilli because it has chilies.

I don't get it, there are no beans in this recipe, how would it taste of beans?

Thank you. As a 6th generation Texan whose grandfather drove cattle from the family ranch to the rail head in Kansas and made real Texas chili, I agree:

No beans. No tomatoes.

I cannot attest to whether this is "authentic" Texas-style chili, but it seems that battle has been fought pretty thoroughly in the comments section already. For those, like me, who are stumbling across this recipe and simply want to know if it tastes good, it does! I followed it to the letter (using ancho as my chili powder of choice, and 4 of the recommended 4-7 jalapeños) and it turned out wonderfully.

This is not Texas chili as I remember it. First, real Texas chili uses a coarse-ground ground chuck. Second no beans. Third, it should taste of beef, cumin, onion, not tomato, beans or, heavens forbid, any sweetness.

As a vegetarian, I altered the recipe by cooking up a pot of Rancho Gordo Midnight Beans and using half of them instead of the beef. I also thought that Mexican chocolate would be good - but not having any, I used the unsweetened chocolate I had and added some cinnamon - about a teaspoon, although I did not measure it - probably would add a bit more next time.

While I respect those who do not consider beans a legitimate part of chili, eg, Texans, this is a fabulous recipe for anyone with or without beans. I add all kinds of fresh chilis - Anaheim, pasilla, etc. — and beans. Delicious. And, if anyone thinks chocolate adds sweetness, they aren’t paying attention. It is just adds a very subtle layer of flavor.

i cook chili all the time. and am texan. this is on fine recipe. just about every ingredient is essential. altho go light on the diced tomato, this is not a tomato soup recipe !!

This is absolutely delicious, and it thickens up nicely on the second day. I don’t understand why everybody is kvetching about beans, there are no beans in this recipe. Our family was unanimous that this is a keeper. I used four large jalapeños, instead of seven and it was plenty hot. Otherwise I followed the recipe exactly.

This is similar to a recipe i copied out of GQ over 25 years ago. That recipe made me a chili snob. No beans or tomatoes! Cubed chuck, onions, garlic, bay leaves, cayenne, chili oowder, paprika, cumin, oregano, salt, pepper, stock and dark beer, thickened with corn meal. Even though it is 90 outside I sure would like some!