I just ate some chili. I made it with pinto beans.

My Oklahoma in-laws consider chili with beans or tomatoes of any kind heresy. But while I do like their chili on a hot dog or layered between corn chips on the bottom and cheese on top, it's nothing like the hearty, spicy stew I grew up eating--you'd never make it a meal by itself.

My Oklahoma in-laws consider chili with beans or tomatoes of any kind heresy.

Wait, no tomatoes? So it's just meat and spices in a pot? How does it get from solid meat form to -- I hate to say "liquid" -- you know, the less-solid texture of chili if there are no tomatoes?

When I make chili that's just meat and spices (as I sometimes do. I don't have a one true chili/e, I am pan-chili-enthusiastic) it's like spicy gravy with meat in. Brown the meat, add flour or something with chili powder or crushed dried chiles to the fat and brown that, add some stock or beer or water or whatever, fresh or frozen chiles if using those, simmer and stir it then l it looks right. Nom.

This all meat chili sounds a lot like the meat hot sauce we have in New York.

My grandma made chili from Betty Crocker, so it was kidney beans, ground beef, tomatoes and green peppers, plus chili powder.

I don't have strong opinions about barbecue, either. I'm probably woefully ignorant, really, but I'm happy that way. I mentioned to someone that I liked Memphis barbecue once, and he started asking me about its characteristics and how it's different from other regions and all I could say was "when I've been in Memphis and gotten barbecue, it's been delicious".

I also have always had a hard time getting people to understand that I don't have a lot of experience cooking over charcoal because when I was growing up the first step of grilling was gathering up firewood for the hibachi.

#DidNotHaveDinnerYet #MaybeHaveSomeOatmealInsteadOfTalkingAboutFood

Wait, no tomatoes? So it's just meat and spices in a pot? How does it get from solid meat form to -- I hate to say "liquid" -- you know, the less-solid texture of chili if there are no tomatoes?

Beer. It's meat, spices, and beer.

And I have so many strong opinions about barbecue I'm thinking of investing in a smoker because no one makes barbecue I like out here (and if you want something done right, learn to do it yourself).

I grew up with Betty Crocker chili too. Gotta have beans in it.

I am coming to the conclusion that however much coffee I drank yesterday is too much.

The all-meat chili sounds like what I put in burritos. And it's delicious! But my mental image of chili is Grandma Maisie's Depression Era, descendent of German immigrants chili, minus the rice. In fact, I think I'll make some today. [link]