CHILI COOK OFF...sound the alarm

Tomorrow (Friday Funday) is my school's chili cook off. I am pretty excited. I have never made anything for a competition. I am actually making two kinds of chili because some of the competitors dropped out of the game (law school is rather time consuming). However, it is perplexing because chili is something that takes maybe 30 min to prep and then you let it cook for hours in a crockpot or on a low setting on the stove or even in a dutch oven if you have one.

In honor my choice to take the TEXAS bar exam this coming summer, I decided to make a Texas inspired chili. I shall call it Poke My Pork & Call the Cattle Chili.

Here is what is in it:
1 pork tenderloin approx 2lbs (yea the whole thing, cut into 1 inch bundles of awesome)
1 boneless chuck steak approx 1lb
3 cans of Guinness (2 for the marinating and one for the chili itself)
2 cans pinto beans with juices
1 can of Bushes chili beans with juices (also pinto, but has a chili sauce in them...is that cheating?)
2 cans whole peeled tomatoes
1 can of corn 
3 tablespoons Chili Powder
2 teaspoons of garlic
2 teaspoons of cumin
2 teaspoons of salt
1 packet of sugar
1 tablespoon of Chili Oil
1/8 teaspoon of cinnamon
Texas Pete hot sauce (to your liking)
1/2 cup of all purpose flour 

Marinating Instructions:
So last night, after we got done shopping as group at the Food City (it's a real grocery store, and no I am not kidding), I cut the steak into 1 inch cubes and put them in a bowl and put a Guinness on it. Put them in the fridge. My roommate Katie helped me with pork and put a little rib rub I found on it and then put a beer over them and put them in the fridge. I let them sit there over night.

Cooking instructions:
In a frying pan (large) throw some olive oil (or whatever oil you use) and warm it up. While that is getting hot, cut the pork into 1 inch squares/cubes/sections. Toss the steak in the flour and brown in the oil on all sides. Repeat with the cut pork and flour.

In a large pot add the remainder of the ingredients and then add in the meat and hot sauce. Stir to mix everything up and cook on low on the stove for 8-12 hours.

I plan on putting mine with this great cheddar cheese I found and some sour cream over white rice.

Chili #2: This chili may burn the nostrils, because when I was making it the peppers and the onions and garlic burnt my eyes today. So please be really careful! Consider wearing goggles AND gloves.  That being said, I call this batch Fire in the Hole Chili.

This is what is in it:

1 large chuck steak approx 2 lbs boneless
2 cans pinto beans with juices

1 can garbanzo beans
1 can black beans
2 cans whole peeled tomatoes
2 jalapaneo peppers
1 yellow bell pepper
1 red bell pepper
1 white onion diced
4 cloves of garlic smashed
1 bag cannellini beans (dry)
1 lime
1 long green pepper (see photo) (can be substituted with other various peppers - like ancho or whatever your grocery has available that day)
2 small red spicy peppers (you will know them because they are not habenero but they are adorable)
2 bottles of nice beer - I used a seasonal Sierra Nevada (it's also delicious)

Marinating the Steak: I stabbed the steak on all sides with a fork. I then put some olive oil on it with salt, garlic, Italian seasoning, fennel seeds and then a bottle of nice beer. Let this sit over night, covered in the fridge.

Cooking this f-ing chili: So first, I put all the liquid and canned ingredients into the crockpot and let them cohabitate and get all up in each others business. Ya know. While that is happening, I get to work on these crazy peppers I found. First, I slice the bell peppers and the onion and throw them into a big saute pan with some oil. Then I tackle the spicy peppers - WARNING WEAR GLOVES IF YOU HAVE THEM AND FOR THE LOVE OF YOUR SELF, DO NOT TOUCH YOUR BODY AFTER!!!!!!!! So I cut the jalapeno and take all the seeds out and slice it up and toss it in the pan. I do this with the other peppers and then smash the garlic and throw it in there. Squeeze some lime juice over this as well. Heat the oil and saute the peppers. Be really careful because the steam got in my face and I looked like I had been crying, hard, like a hard cry. But I am not sad and I wasn't sad then. These peppers and onions together was just an onslaught of heat. I loved it. Saute them for a few minutes and then add them to the pot.

Turn on the crockpot to low for 10 hrs and walk away. Add a bottle of beer to the mix before you walk away.

Now take the steak, cut that mother into 1 inch pieces, coat in flour and brown in a frying pan. Add to the crock pot, stir, and wait until tomorrow afternoon. After you have put them in, squeeze another lime on it.

I am going to also pair this with cheddar cheese and a little sour cream - no rice though, I think it will be quite hearty. Also, notice that I did not add much seasoning. This should be evident from the amount of heat coming from the peppers, garlic and onions and beer. 

To be truthful, this amount of chili, after I put the meat in, wanted to spill over the crockpot. So I had to take a little juice out. I used a baster and took about 2 squirts out. You can probably avoid this by using less meat (oh god, no) OR less bean action OR half a bottle of beer.

Again, my computer is still at Apple. Hopefully they will have it back to me ASAP because I have some sweet pictures. Happy almost FRIDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!