Cooking For Engineers

[Guest]

Hi There -

Can you tell me approximately how much one batch of this comes to (e.g., one quart, two quarts)?

[Guest]

Would this work if I threw all the ingredients into a crock pot and slow cooked for several hours? I know I would lose all the yummy browned bits.

Also, is this good reheated? I want to make a big batch the night before a party and then reheat the next day.

[Guest]

Made this exactly like you said and we LOVED it I am in my 20's and was told that every man should know hoe to make a good chilli, I now have my recipe! thank you very much. I am now going back to the kitchen for more.

[Siouxchef]

Your recipe calls for ground chicken but you suggest that you prefer shredded rotisserie chicken. So I just begin the recipe with Step 2, sauteing the vegetables instead Step 1, which is browning the ground chicken. How much flavor is lost without the fond from the browned ground chicken? You kind of wax poetic on how much that fond adds to the dish. Does the wonderful flavor of the rotisserie chicken make up for the relative blandness of the ground chicken but without its fond?

[Dilbert]

>>rotisserie vs ground chicken

a good question, but not a dead duck simple question, actually.

browning the ground chicken generates flavors - I'd mention the "M reaction" but that often generates more conflict than clarity.

now, rotisserie chicken also has good flavors, but typically only "skin deep" -
in the end, rotisserie chicken is "grilled" on a continuous rotating basis....

so unless one includes the skin, the rotisserie chicken has to potential of being just "baked chicken" - flavor wise. since the skin is a prime source of "fat" and some folks just don't do fat, a goodly portion of the rotisserie'd flavor could get lost.

[Coolbreeze]

Seeing a lot of anal-retention here... go figure, how did engineers get that rep?

Chili (by definition) is almost anything that can be thrown in a pot together. Some basics have become necessities by evolution >> Hot Sauce of some kind, meat, chili powder (cumin, coriander, etc.), beans of some kind (I've seen spaghetti in place of the beans [engineering work around]).

Back to point, this recipe is SUPER, even in variation. I've been making chili for years and don't think I've done it the same twice. Such is the case here. A nice touch on the Buffalo side is to use a good Buffalo Wing sauce in addition to/in place of the hot sauce.

Good chili gets better every time it is re-heated. One can never know how good re-heated chili can get as sooner or later...it's gone.
In the never-ending search of the perfect chili! Viva Terlingua!

[another_engineer]

Wanted to add my praise for the basic framework. A couple notes I've found after making this and variations a few times:

Splitting up the chili powder into chili powder and cayenne pepper adds some nice flavor and decent heat that can be tweaked easily.

Using something other than a white beer like a good doppelbock or Scottish ale adds a lot of flavor and, of course, still does the job. Doppelbock/Scottish ale makes it a bit sweeter and tastes a little more noticeable than a white ale in the end product.

For the guy who complained about the lack of butter - adding just 1-2 Tbs of butter when adding the "sauce" ingredients (tomatoes/Frank's) goes a long way in giving it the buffalo creaminess without adding pounds of fat.

I haven't tested this yet but I think that, when serving, sour cream could be replaced with blue cheese (dressing) to go with the buffalo theme. Off to the store to go buy some good blue cheese...

Great recipe. I've been looking for a good chicken chili recipe and this more than fits the bill.

[NC engineer]

I made this chili for a neighborhood cookoff. There were about 15 chili's there and this took top honors - the coveted ladle award! People loved it! I added black beans and extra Frank's red hot. I grated a bowl of Dietz & Watson Hot Pepper NY State Cheddar W/ Buffalo Wing Hot Sauce Cheese - perfect topper. Thanks for the recipe and the contribution to my 1st ever chili cookoff win!

[eltonyo]

Glad y'all are liking this chili, and I appreciate the great comments on additions and changes.

Somebody previosly was asking about the ground chicken versus shredded chicken. I was not trying to recommend one or the other, but I prefer using BOTH as the recipe states. The ground chicken adds some nice flaver and texture when browned up nice, and the shredded chicken adds another layer of chicken flavor and texture. The ratio between these two chicken sources can, of course, be tweaked to your preferences.

One more subtle ingredient you might want to play with, especially if you want to tone down the heat, and that is to add a little molasses!

Enjoy.

[Asha]

My husband and I don't like vegetable very much (yea yea shame on us!), so my question is could we just add onions and jalapenos and leave out the bell pepper, carrots, and celery? Would it still taste ok? Do I need to saute the jalapenos with the onions? Thanks so much, it looks delicious.

[mike]

Made this recently for a "Men who Cook" Fundraiser and it was a hit.

I doubled the recipe and added a can of (drained/rinsed) white and black beans.

It struck me a that one could substitute a BBQ sause for the Buffalo sauce to have a sweeter chili. And that thought got me thinking about substituting Pulled & Ground Pork for a another variation.... I may need to try that!

Thanks for the recipe!

Mike

[engineeringStudent]

I'd agree that a hearty beer (like the aforementioned witbier or Scottish ale) would add more flavor, but I would highly recommend steering clear of a hoppy beer. I love hops (think Imperial IPA, and that's my game) but cooking hops adds a ton of bitterness and might ruin a dish. I cook a lot with beer, so I'd recommend sticking with the maltier beers. Just my $0.02.

[Chellecara]

I think this sounds great..I just sent the link to my mom so maybe they'll make it the next time I go home to visit

[Liz]

I just made this tonight to try it out and YUMMO!! I am lazy and cheap so I used all ground chicken. I had my neighbor taste test it and she wants the recipe.

I must say that your new anti-spam measures are incompatible with the recommendation in the recipe of drinking a beer while you simmer.

[Stacy]

Can you give me a general idea of how many people this recipe can serve?

I haven't tried it yet, but I'm thinking of making it for a party I'm having this weekend.