Chili

Real chili does not contain mushrooms.  *OR* beans!  Or even large chunks of tomatoes.

And one never, *EVER* pours it over spaghetti!

Now that hot and spicy beef and bean stew they serve up over in Cincinnati goes just *FINE* over spaghetti!  (Hey, I was *born* in Cincinnati and I'm not stupid enough to call that stuff chili.  But then, I'm not stupid enough to turn down a bowl of it, neither.)

Of course, you can put whatever you want into a bowl of chili - you can even take the main ingredients out!  I met one person - a strict *FRUIT*arian (And he was 'fruity' in other mental ways as well.) - who made a fruit-based dessert 'chili', which of course contained no real chili peppers - although he insisted upon 'spicing' it up with black pepper.  Needless to say, I managed to gag down one small cup of his concoction and shortly thereafter found reasons to disassociate from him. ;-)

Derek

Maybe we need a whole thread just about chili.  I'll start:

I like mushrooms in mine.

Venison, chunked.
Walla Walla sweet onions.
Holy Trinity.
S&W Cajun-style stewed tomatoes.
Chipotle peppers.
Cayenne peppers.
Freshly ground black peppers.
Bullard's hot sauce.
Chili powder (no 'seasonings' or 'mixes'; waay too much salt & sugar).
Shoot anyone who gets within six feet of the stove with cinnamon.Mah mamma did engineering school @ U-Cinci, that's too strange a town to be allowed to ruin good venison.
Beans? That's a theological issue I shall dodge, except to suggest you rinse-soak-drain-rinse the beans if you use them, even canned beans.

I'm not a good enough cook to make chili from scratch, but in order to spice it up I'll purchase habanero peppers from my local Safeway; remove the stems, seeds and placenta (remember to wear gloves); chop the remaining peppers into little squares and add them to whatever can of chili I happen to be microwaving.

I'm currently trying to grow chile peppers hydroponically.  Not exactly a cost-effective alternative, but once I get good at it I hope to grow some more specialized pepper varieties.

I'm not a good enough cook to make chili from scratch, but in order to spice it up I'll purchase habanero peppers from my local Safeway; remove the stems, seeds and placenta (remember to wear gloves); chop the remaining peppers into little squares and add them to whatever can of chili I happen to be microwaving.

When I dice up a habanero for an omelet, all I remove is the stem.  Seeds and placenta remain.  Three jumbo eggs, a generous handful of Vermont cheddar, one habenero (and maybe a shallot).  And a couple of slices of sourdough toast on the side.

I'm currently trying to grow chile peppers hydroponically.  Not exactly a cost-effective alternative, but once I get good at it I hope to grow some more specialized pepper varieties.

I've tried gardening habaneros, the climate in New Jersey isn't harsh enough and the growing season is too short to really bring out the heat.  Did OK with jalapenos, serranos and other mild chiles.  Once I'm in New Hampshire, I may build a greenhouse if I ever have time off from selling chili.  Of course, any "decorative" plants in the restaurant will be potted chile plants, mexican oregano, comino  and cilantro -- I'm not into flowers for the sake of flowers, I'll only put effort into growing plants that can be eaten (or consumed in other ways, but that's another show).

By the way, I'm making a batch of chili today.  The local supermarkets have lamb at a good price for the easter season, so I'll be turning an eight pound leg into Lamb o' God chili.  (Yes, I blaspheme.  Regularly.  Next week the oven will be used to make roast Leg o' Lamb o' God).  The chili will be accompanied by a pottage of lentiles better than Jacob cooked for Esau, if I do say so myself.  In my younger days, the lentils would have been in the same pot as the chili.

I'm not a good enough cook to make chili from scratch, but in order to spice it up I'll purchase habanero peppers from my local Safeway; remove the stems, seeds and placenta (remember to wear gloves); chop the remaining peppers into little squares and add them to whatever can of chili I happen to be microwaving.

When I dice up a habanero for an omelet, all I remove is the stem.  Seeds and placenta remain.  Three jumbo eggs, a generous handful of Vermont cheddar, one habenero (and maybe a shallot).  And a couple of slices of sourdough toast on the side.

Any advice on cutting up habaneros and leaving the placenta and seeds in?  I don't mind the added heat, I'm just kind of concerned as when I slice the peppers, sometimes they seem a little fuzzy inside.  I also don't like hard seeds floating around just waiting to get stuck between my teeth.

I'm currently trying to grow chile peppers hydroponically.  Not exactly a cost-effective alternative, but once I get good at it I hope to grow some more specialized pepper varieties.

I've tried gardening habaneros, the climate in New Jersey isn't harsh enough and the growing season is too short to really bring out the heat.  Did OK with jalapenos, serranos and other mild chiles.  Once I'm in New Hampshire, I may build a greenhouse if I ever have time off from selling chili.  Of course, any "decorative" plants in the restaurant will be potted chile plants, mexican oregano, comino  and cilantro -- I'm not into flowers for the sake of flowers, I'll only put effort into growing plants that can be eaten (or consumed in other ways, but that's another show).

I have seeds for decorative chile peppers but I'm told that they don't make good eating.  Probably good for the restaurant atmosphere.

By the way, I'm making a batch of chili today.  The local supermarkets have lamb at a good price for the easter season, so I'll be turning an eight pound leg into Lamb o' God chili.  (Yes, I blaspheme.  Regularly.  Next week the oven will be used to make roast Leg o' Lamb o' God).  The chili will be accompanied by a pottage of lentiles better than Jacob cooked for Esau, if I do say so myself.  In my younger days, the lentils would have been in the same pot as the chili.

I can't wait until you open your restaurant.  The only reason I can think of to visit New Hampshire.    While I'm currently a Kalifornia resident, I'm more of a Wyoming person myself.