Deb's Hot Rod Chili Recipe...

• 2 lbs. of coarsely ground meat
• 1 8 oz. can of “El Pato” tomato sauce
• 1 15 oz. can of beef broth

Mix the following spices for dump 1:

• 1 Tbsp onion powder*
• 2 tsp garlic powder*
• 2 tsp beef crystals
• 1 tsp of chicken crystals
• 1 Tbsp of Pacific Beauty Paprika*
• 1 Tbsp of Mexene Chili Powder
• 1/2 tsp cayenne*
• 1/4 tsp black pepper*
• 1 package Sazon Goya*

Mix the following spices for dump 2:

• 1 Tbsp of Mexene Chili Powder
• 1 Tbsp of Hatch Mild Chili Powder*
• 2 Tbsp Cowtown Light chili powder*
• 1 Tbsp Mild Bills dark chili powder*
• 1 tsp cumin*
• 1/4 tsp white pepper*

Mix the following spices for dump 3:

• 1 tsp onion powder*
• 1 tsp garlic salt
• 1/4 tsp cayenne*
• 3/4 Tbsp Cowtown Light Chili Powder*
• 1 Tbsp cumin*

Instructions
1. Gray the meat and drain grease. 2. Slow boil meat in beef broth and 1 equal can of distilled water. 3. Add dump 1 and medium boil for 60 minutes. 4. Add dump 2 and medium boil for 45 minutes. 5. Add dump 3 and medium boil for 15 minutes. In last five minutes taste for heat — adjust as required.
* These spices available from Mild Bill’s Spices, etc.

DA: You do need grease in your chili, but you need to get a lot of it off. After I gray the meat, I put it in a colander and pour water over it to drain, to get some grease off of it. I use the 80/20 beef — 80 percent lean, 20 percent fat.
ESQ: Can you overcook chili?
DA: Yeah, the meat gets mushy. And it'll burn.
ESQ: Any other advice?
DA: Don't take the lid off too often — you lose a lot of flavor.
ESQ: What about stirring?
DA: You put your different dumps in, and then every once in a while, stir it to make sure it's not getting too thick.
ESQ: Dumps?
DA: Different blends of chili powders and spices. I have three dumps that I add at different times.
ESQ: Why not just put it all in at once?
DA: Things like cumin you can't get too hot, so you want to add that at the end.
ESQ: How spicy is your chili?
DA: From zero to five, mine's probably a four. But you can add a drop or two of lime juice to tone it down.
ESQ: Texas chili doesn't have beans in it, right?
DA: Right.
ESQ: What about macaroni?
DA: Oh, no. You can't do that. They call that a "foreign object."
ESQ: What should you drink with chili?
DA: Well, beer usually.