The 5th Taste of Chili

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Loaded with spice and a umami bomb of flavor while being paired with a cool cumin crema and contrasting lime

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  • 6
  • Average
  • 30 mins
  • 180 mins
  • 480 mins
  • Average budget

Ingredients

  • 1/2 pound dried kidney beans
  • 1/2 pound dried navy beans
  • 3-4 dried whole New Mexico chilies
  • 2 dried arbol chilies
  • 3-4 dried whole ancho chilies
  • 2-3 whole chipotle chilies in adobo sauce
  • 1/2 cup toasted cashews, finely ground
  • 4 teaspoons dried oregano
  • 2 tablespoons cumin seeds, toasted and finely ground
  • 1/2 oz of dried mushrooms, finely ground
  • Kosher salt
  • 2 bell peppers, one red and one green
  • 3 portobello mushrooms, diced
  • 2 small sweet onions,
  • 1-2 fresh jalapenos, charred, sweated and skins removed
  • 1 head of garlic
  • 2 imported bay leaves
  • 1 (28 oz) whole can tomatoes
  • 3 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1 tablespoon Marmite
  • Olive oil, not extra virgin
  • Water
  • 3 tablespoons Bragg Liquid Aminos
  • 2-3 tablespoons bourbon, vodka or tequila
  • 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
  • Cilantro, red onion, fresh lime juice/wedge and crema (recipe below) for garnish
  • Crema recipe
  • 1 cup of heavy whipping cream
  • 1 tablespoon of buttermilk
  • Kosher salt to taste
  • 1 chipotle pepper
  • Couple pinches of ground cumin
  • Minced garlic clove
  • Heat the heavy whipping cream in a microwave safe jar to 100F. Add the buttermilk and shake. Leave a warm place for 24 hours. If all went well, it should have thickened to a thin yogurt. Combine with the rest of the ingredients and smooth with a stick blender. Refrigerate.

Preparation

Step 1

Rinse beans and sort out any unwanted beans. Soak beans in separate bowls. Add about a tablespoon of salt each with enough water to ensure they stay submerged. Soak for 8-12 hours until the beans are splittable between your fingers. The kidney beans will likely need a longer soak than the navy beans.

Step 2

When ready, drain and rinse beans again and place in a large Dutch oven with lid. Preheat the oven to 300F. Add enough water to cover and bring to a simmer on the stove. Once the pot and the oven are heated, place the Dutch oven with lid on in the hot box. If kidney beans didn't seem to soften enough during the soak, give them 10-15 minutes of cooking before the navy beans see any heat.

Step 3

Once the beans are cooking, remove stems and seeds from dried chilies. Toss them in a medium skillet or saute pan with enough water to submerge. Heat until a simmer and continue until the chilies are tender (10-15 minutes). Once tender, drain chilies and reserve cooking liquid.

Step 4

Drain can of tomatoes while retaining liquid. Squeeze out seeds and place on a baking sheet. Toss with olive oil and broil for 15-20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes. They should be nice and caramelized when finished.

Step 5

Transfer chilies to a food processor with chipotles and a tablespoon or so of adobo sauce. Add tomato paste, booze and enough of the reserved cooking liquid of the chilies to properly blend. Blend until smooth. Throw in broiled tomatoes, a couple pinches of salt and pulse a couple times.

Step 6

Set aside.

Step 7

After the beans have cooked for 20-25 minutes, add 1 green pepper half, 1 sweet onion half, the bay leaf, half the garlic head and the ground mushrooms. Check liquid level and stir. Return to oven for 25-30 minutes until the beans are soft.

Step 8

In a large skillet, heat a enough olive oil to coat until shimmering on medium heat. Chop remaining bell pepper and sweet onion. Add diced mushrooms and chopped peppers and onion to pan. A couple minutes later, kick in the oregano and ground cumin seeds. Wait until everything starts to brown and toss the remaining garlic, minced, and jalapenos with splash of oil. Give that maybe a minute and then mix in the tomato/chili concoction until a nice fond further develops.

Step 9

Drain beans, keeping cooking liquid, and discard onion, bay leaf, garlic and pepper. Use bean cooking liquid to deglaze the sofrito of sorts. Combine that deglazed mixture with the beans and the rest of the bean cooking liquid in the Dutch oven. Further combine with the nuts, Bragg's, mermite and Worcestershire sauce. Use reserved tomato juice and chili broth for any additional liquid needs. Cook until beans are fully tender, a couple hours, with salt to taste being added near the end of the cooking process.

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