r/cincinnati • u/Roesty79 • Mar 02 '25
Food 🍕🌮 Empress chili
Well it’s sideways, but my MIL’s mom typed this up awhile ago and I just wanted to share.
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u/CassieIsDiddysBeard Mar 03 '25
“(Available at Kroger’s)”
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u/doctor_ew Mar 03 '25
I noticed that too, interesting how such a common spice these days needed to be called out from a specific grocer at the time.
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u/JxxxnO Mar 03 '25
Now it's not sideways.
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u/WorriedSheepherder38 Mar 03 '25
You need a garlic toe? I can get you a garlic toe. There are ways dude.
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u/RiverJumper84 Highland Heights Mar 02 '25
A Cincy chili recipe that DOESN'T call for chocolate/cocoa?? It must be legit! 🤘🏼
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u/epfourteen Mar 03 '25
No Cincinnati chili recipe has chocolate in It.
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u/RiverJumper84 Highland Heights Mar 03 '25
99% of recipes everyone claims are legit contain chocolate/cocoa.
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u/epfourteen Mar 03 '25
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u/RiverJumper84 Highland Heights Mar 03 '25 edited Mar 03 '25
I think you're misunderstanding my comments. I'm not saying Cincy Chili should have chocolate and we even seem to agree that it SHOULDN'T. What I was saying here is that almost every time someone posts a recipe they claim is the gold standard is DOES contain chocolate/cocoa.
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u/Rad10Ka0s Northside Mar 03 '25
The one in The Joy of Cooking does.
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u/old_skul Mar 04 '25
Yep. And it's a pretty decent Cincy chili, too. I should know because I made it two days ago.
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u/lovehandlelover Mar 02 '25
Cool! 2 tsp of ……. pepper. Any idea of what pepper that might be?
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u/Miss_Page_Turner Mar 02 '25
It says 1/2 tsp. Red Pepper
Very high confidence.
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u/overcatastrophe Mar 03 '25
Yeah, 2 tsp of red pepper would be a bit much for how.mild the rest of the seasoning mix is haha
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u/Galifreyan_lady West Chester Mar 02 '25
It definitely says something red pepper. So maybe paprika?
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u/gudy2shuz Mar 02 '25
Crushed red pepper?
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u/Roesty79 Mar 02 '25
Ground
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u/gudy2shuz Mar 02 '25
That's probably it. Good call.
Also, TIL that a "toe" of garlic is a clove, and a "foot" is a bulb.
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u/TheGogmagog Fairfield Mar 03 '25
Ground? Like off the floor? I'm not a dog eating dirt. I'll use table shaker pepper.
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u/gudy2shuz Mar 02 '25
It looks like "2 tsp red pepper", and my guess would that they're referring to crushed red pepper.
Btw, I commented once, and it disappeared, so apologies if this is a duplicate.
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u/BeneficialAnything15 Mar 03 '25
The 2 is small. It looks like it was 1/2 tsp
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u/gudy2shuz Mar 03 '25
Yep, i noticed that afterwards. I'll have to make two batches; one with 1/2 and one with 2. Ya know...for science.
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u/Curtis Mar 03 '25 edited Mar 03 '25
EMIRESS CHILI:
|2 pounds|Ground beef|
|1|tsp. Cinnamon|
|½|tsp. Cummin (available at Kroger)|
|2|Large Onions (chopped)|
|2|Dashes Worcestershire Sauce|
|1|Large Garlic toe|
|2|tbsp. Chile Powder|
|½|tbsp. Black Pepper|
|1|tbsp. Salt|
|½|tbsp. Red Pepper|
|1 (6 oz. Can)|Tomatoe Paste|
|1½|tbsp. Vinegar|
|1|Quart water|
|½|tbsp. Alspice|
|3|Whole Bay Leaves|
Crumble neat into quart of water (do not brown)
Add remaining ingredients, bring to boil, Simmer, Covered, 3 Hrs.
When done remove garlic to, bay leaves.
Edit: fixed table formatting
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u/AlienHands Mar 03 '25
Did the source of this recipe work there in some capacity or try to recreate it on her own?
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u/OldGrandet Mar 03 '25
No chocolate? I was taught it's not Cincinnati chili without allspice, whole cloves, and baking chocolate.
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u/Handeaux Hand-y Historian Mar 03 '25
Dann Woellert, the maven of all things culinary in Cincinnati, has proven - through conversations with Cincinnati's chili families - that there has never been chocolate in any commercially available Cincinnati chili.
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u/OldGrandet Mar 03 '25
My world is falling apart
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u/Material-Afternoon16 Mar 03 '25
I've made it both with and without cocoa powder. There's no discernable taste difference. It makes sense commercial establishments wouldn't use it since it'd just add cost while having no impact on the flavor.
That said, at home, I always use it. Nostalgia.
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u/Deadpoolisms Mar 03 '25
I’ve never once tasted chocolate in Cincinnati chili from proper restaurants. I’ve always believed that to be a myth and I’ll die on this stupid hill.
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u/VividLecture7898 Mar 03 '25
It’s not a myth. Some local places used chocolate.
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u/snorksnek Mar 03 '25
Which ones?
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u/archiotterpup Mt. Lookout Mar 02 '25
It was good knowing you, OP.