In this edition of Epicurious 101, professional chef and culinary instructor Ann Ziata demonstrates how to make the best chili at home. From using aromatics for flavor to creating the perfect amount of heat, follow Ann’s steps to get the best chili every time.
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00:00Hi, I'm Anne Ziatta, professional chef and culinary instructor,
00:03and today I'm going to show you the best way to make homemade chili.
00:06We'll be going over techniques the pros use to make a perfect bowl of chili.
00:11This is Chili 101.
00:14There's so many great versions of chili out there.
00:17Today we are making a classic beef and bean chili.
00:20Making your own chili from scratch is going to be better than anything store-bought, anything pre-made.
00:25It's just going to taste really fresh, and the spices are going to be really bright and flavorful.
00:30Chili 101
00:32Most recipes will call for a chili powder,
00:35which is basically a blend of different spices that's been pre-mixed and you can get it in stores.
00:41They're not nearly as bright and aromatic as something you can make at home.
00:45Our first step is to toast some of our spices that are whole.
00:49Heat is usually where a lot of food flavor really develops and comes out.
00:53We're going to start with a hot, dry pan.
00:55I'm not adding any oil, I'm not adding any water.
00:58I don't want to dissolve any of the flavors, I just want them to be concentrated in the seed.
01:02I'm going to lower it just to a medium.
01:03It's going to cook very quickly, and I don't want to burn it.
01:06So I'm going to add two teaspoons of cumin seed.
01:09We're just kind of bringing those flavor compounds into the oils of the seed
01:13and just getting them alive and active.
01:15So I'm going to keep this moving.
01:17It'll just become a little bit darker, a little bit more toasty, and it will smell really aromatic.
01:21It's starting to smell really strong, and I can even hear it sounds different.
01:26A little kind of stinky when it moves around the pan.
01:28I don't want to grind it right away because it's going to come out a little bit kind of mushy.
01:33Right now the fats and the flavors are really active and excited,
01:36so we're going to bring it down to room temperature just so they relax a little bit,
01:40so the texture comes out really nice.
01:42So let's toast the coriander seeds.
01:44We're going to do one teaspoon.
01:46Okay, it's starting to smell really nice and floral.
01:48You can start to see some caramelization happening.
01:51We're ready.
01:52Now we can grind our cumin.
01:54So I have a mortar and pestle here.
01:55You can also use a spice grinder or even a coffee grinder.
01:58Just make sure it's nice and clean and dry, and just give it a few pulses until it's nicely ground.
02:03I'm just going to press the seeds down and run it in circles.
02:07Now I can smell it like 20 times more than before.
02:10It smells wildly better than anything pre-ground you would get at the store.
02:14This looks lovely.
02:16Now let's do the same with the coriander.
02:18Kind of crush them up.
02:19It smells nice and warm and citrusy.
02:22This is perfect.
02:23I'm using Mexican oregano here.
02:25Mexican oregano is a little more citrusy, and it's just very refreshing and delicious.
02:30If you're using Italian oregano, you can skip this step,
02:32but these leaves are a little bit larger, and I'm just going to break them up a little,
02:36and I can smell them already.
02:38And we are done grinding.
02:39So let's finish our spice blend.
02:41Paprika, I would say, it still has a nice kind of sweet, peppery aroma.
02:45It's basically from dried red peppers.
02:48There's no heat or spiciness to it,
02:50but you still get a little bit of that smoky, sweet, peppery flavor.
02:53So because it is one of the more mild spices, we can use a large amount.
02:58So we're going to use one tablespoon.
02:59And if it's not exact, that's okay.
03:01Add a teaspoon of smoked paprika.
03:03So smoked paprika has a pretty strong, smoky flavor.
03:07Cayenne pepper.
03:07This is the first pepper that we're adding that is a little spicy,
03:11but it's not going to destroy your palate.
03:13I'm going to do a little less than a quarter teaspoon.
03:16And then we're going to add some black pepper.
03:18That's going to be about a quarter teaspoon.
03:20And whisk it together.
03:21Our chili powder is ready.
03:23Let's make our chili.
03:27So I have everything already cut before I start cooking.
03:30So I'm using a Dutch oven here.
03:32So this is a ceramic-coated cast iron pot,
03:35which means it's going to hold heat incredibly well.
03:38It's going to distribute the heat nice and evenly.
03:41If you don't have a Dutch oven, you can use another thick pot,
03:46especially one with a thick bottom.
03:48So I'm going to start by preheating my Dutch oven at medium high,
03:51just to get it hot.
03:52And then I'm probably going to lower it to medium.
03:54First thing we want to do is to get all of our aromatic ingredients
03:58sweated and come to life.
03:59This feels nice and hot.
04:00I'm going to add a few tablespoons of olive oil,
04:03just enough to barely cover the bottom of the pan.
04:05Onion.
04:07So I don't want to caramelize the onions here.
04:09Salt is going to draw out moisture in the onions,
04:12which is going to help it sweat.
04:13It usually takes about five to seven minutes or so.
04:17And now we're ready to add our garlic.
04:19Minced garlic, but not a garlic paste.
04:21We still want to be able to see the pieces in there.
04:23And garlic cooks very quickly.
04:25So once we add it, give it a minute.
04:27We just want the garlic to become aromatic.
04:29We don't want to burn it.
04:30So we have red bell peppers here, diced up.
04:33And we have a little jalapeno.
04:35This is going to add a heat, but nothing insane.
04:38The seeds have been removed, and it's just the outside flesh that we cut up.
04:43Some jalapenos are spicier than other jalapenos.
04:46You can taste it first before you add it,
04:48just to see what you're going to get.
04:50But I like to make life exciting.
04:52So this is our little sofrito here.
04:54Sofrito is a type of mirepoix in that it's going to be the aromatic base.
04:59I want the peppers to look just a little cooked, almost like sauteed.
05:03A little tender, a little glossy and shiny.
05:05So I want to make sure all of my aromatic ingredients
05:08are hot before I add the chili powder.
05:11Because the chili powder, it needs to touch a hot surface in order
05:14for the flavors to come out.
05:16If I were to put them first in the pan before anything else, they would burn.
05:19But here we're going to get a nice heat where
05:21they can bloom and develop their flavors.
05:23And this is hotter than when we add our wet ingredients, right?
05:26Anything like tomatoes or stock, anything with water in it.
05:30Water can only get up to like 212 degrees,
05:32and that's the highest it's going to go before it turns into vapor.
05:35Whereas oil can get a lot hotter, right?
05:38300 or so degrees.
05:39So we want to add this before we add anything with water in it.
05:42So let's add our chili powder.
05:44So we want to be sure we don't burn the chili powder.
05:46So we should have enough food in there, enough moisture in there
05:49to keep it from burning.
05:50If there's a little bit of caramelization at the bottom,
05:53you can use a little vegetable stock or even white wine to deglaze.
05:56So our tomato paste is going to go in next.
05:58Some recipes call for tomato sauce, but I would way
06:02recommend using tomato paste.
06:03It's much more concentrated.
06:05It's deeper.
06:06You get more of that umami flavor that's just naturally inherent in tomatoes.
06:11Brown the tomato paste.
06:13And we're going to get it a little bit deeper in color.
06:15So I have the meat here, and I'm going to go right ahead and break it up
06:18so it cooks nice and evenly.
06:20I'm using ground beef in this recipe, but you can use ground turkey.
06:23You can use even chicken.
06:25Or you can make it vegetarian and just use a few different types of beans.
06:28I'm adding the beef now because it's going to make the temperature drop.
06:32And I'm adding it after all the spices have bloomed, right?
06:35The pan is the hottest it's ever going to be,
06:38and now it's going to get a little cooler.
06:40So now we can start to brown the beef, which we need to cook it, right?
06:43We don't want it raw.
06:45We're going to get some caramelization, the Maillard reaction in the beef.
06:48So the beef itself is going to lend, of course,
06:50a ton of flavor to the dish too.
06:52But now we get to season it.
06:53Take your time with this step to make sure you do
06:56get that nice browning on the meat before we add any water to the dish.
07:00Once we add water, we have lost our window of opportunity.
07:03I'm using red kidney beans.
07:05They hold their shape really well.
07:07They have a delicious kind of meaty flavor.
07:09So they're my bean of choice, but you can absolutely
07:12use white beans, black beans.
07:14Even black-eyed peas are great too.
07:16I'm going to add some fire-roasted tomatoes.
07:20They're going to add sweetness.
07:21They're going to add body, a little brightness and acidity.
07:24That's another strong base of this chili.
07:27And lastly, add your beef stock.
07:29If you're making this with turkey or chicken, you can use chicken stock,
07:32or you can even use beer too.
07:34Give it a little gentle mix.
07:35So we can see it's starting to come to a low boil.
07:38Leave it on a simmer for 30 minutes, and we're good to go.
07:43So before you plate, taste it for salt and for heat,
07:47and make sure everything is exactly where you want it.
07:49And now we can plate.
07:51Sour cream is going to help cut some of the spiciness.
07:54So it provides a little cooling relief and a really lovely contrast.
07:58Cheddar cheese also adds some richness.
08:01And who doesn't love cheese?
08:02Fresh cilantro, some scallions, tortilla chips.
08:06They just come from food after all, and who doesn't love a chip?
08:09And then some fresh squeezes of lime on the side
08:13to add some brightness, freshness, and a little acidity to the dish.
08:16And that is how you make the perfect bowl of chili.
08:19Chili tastes best when it is made at home.
08:22We want your home to be filling with the aroma.
08:24We want it to be simmering on your stove.
08:26And it's so easy to make in one pot too.
08:28You won't get the whole kitchen messy.
08:29Most importantly, don't stress out, because chili should be chill.
08:33Feel free to double or triple the recipe.
08:35Make a big pot of it and freeze some for later.