chili.

chili is one of those great American foods that pretty much everyone has their own rendition of. there have been, and will likely always be, grand arguments about what goes in it. should it have ground beef as opposed to cubed? should there be beans? if so, what kind? should the heat level be mild, spicy, atomic? i say there is no "right" way. but this is my way. and just in time for football! if you're into that sort of thing.

Atomic Kitchen Chili

ingredients-
1 lb ground beef
1 lb Italian sausage (you can use hot or sweet for this. Mexican style chorizo works well too.)
1 large yellow onion, medium dice
5 cloves of garlic, minced
1 28 oz can of chopped tomatoes, fire roasted if you can get them
1 4 oz can of green chiles (you can omit this if you can't find them, or if you're more industrious you can roast your own. the ones i get from Trader Joe's are Hatch chiles.)
1 bottle beer (use whatever you want, but the less bitter, the better. i actually prefer darker beers for this. chocolate stout works well.)
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp chipotle powder OR 1 chipotle in adobo (or more if you want it spicier. this is a modest amount and i usually use more)
3 tbsp chili power of your preference
1 tbsp mexican oregano
1 tbsp smoked paprika (if you don't have this in your kitchen, give up on life now. or go to Penzey's and get some.)
1 tsp cumin
3 tsp salt (this is really to taste, so use less or more as you see fit.)
2 cups beef, chicken, or veg stock (or any stock, or just water)
1/2 cup pickled jalapenos, and 1/4 of the pickling liquid
1 15 oz can beans (i use red kidney, but use what you like)
2 tbsp masa harina, optional (this is really just to thicken, so you can leave it out if you don't have it)

set the burner to medium-high and heat up a big, heavy pot (like the Le Creuset you should have) and add about 3 tablespoons of oil. dump in your onions and cook until translucent. add the garlic and cook another minute or so. add the ground beef and sausage and start browning. you want to make sure you break up the sausage well or it will make the texture of the overall chili sorta lumpy. at this point, most people would drain the fat off the meat...i don't. do whatever you want, but i feel like it's just an unnecessary, messy step.

add the salt and seasonings and tomato paste, mix well. then the beer, tomatoes, chiles and stock. bring to a boil, then turn the heat down to medium-low and let it bubble away for a solid 3 hours. stir it every now and again and make sure it's not simmering too hard. you're basically just cooking it until you like the consistency and this will vary from person to person, so you should start checking it around the 2 hour mark. near the end of cooking is when you want to add the pickled jalapenos, beans and masa if you're using them.

and that's it. put a bunch of stuff on it and serve with cold beer.