Texans like meat, and in Texas, chili is all about meat and spices. We make ours with chunks of sirloin and season it with a blend of ancho chiles, which lend an earthy, sweet, raisin flavor, and pasilla chiles, which give a spicy, deep taste. Our Texas Red Chili is a “wanderin’ special” on our menu, showin’ up every now and then. During deer season in November, we may even make it with venison.
Ancho and pasilla chiles can most commonly be found whole and dried (locally in Syracuse at the Hot Shoppe in Armory Square; see Resources, page 174). If<br/>you wind up with whole dried chiles, you’ll need to crisp them up a bit before grinding them yourself. So preheat the oven to 300° and toast the chiles for 3 to 5 minutes, til crisp and dry. Slit the sides and get the seeds out. Break the chiles into pieces and grind in a spice mill or coffee grinder.
