Recipe - Chili Chicken Success

6 Dried ancho or pasilla
chilies
3 pound Beef chuck, cut in cubes
1 lg Onion, chopped

One half teaspoon Salt
1 3 tbs chili powder
(unsalted)
3 One half cup Boiling beef broth
2 tablespoon Vegetable oil
4 Cloves garlic, crushed
chopped
2 teaspoon Ground cumin seed
1 2 tbs cornmeal (optional)

Ancho chilies (sometimes called pasilla chilies) are sweet and fairly mild.
In this recipe, they give the chili a rich, dark color and provide a
unique, slightly spicy flavor. Remove stems and seeds from chilies.
Coarsely chop chilies. Place in bowl, cover with boiling beef broth and let
steep for 30 minutes. Heat oil in large Dutch oven, add onion and cook,
stirring constantly, until soft and lightly browned. Add garlic, salt and
beef cubes. Cook, stirring constantly, just until beef loses its pink
color. Strain chilies, reserving liquid and chilies. Stir 2.5 cups of chili
liquid into beef. Stir in chili powder and ground cumin seed and bring to
a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, over mediumlow heat for 1
hour, stirring occasionally. Place soaked chilies and remaining liquid in
blender container, cover and blend until smooth. (If necessary, add One half cup
more of water to make blending easier.) Add mixture to beef and cook over
mediumlow heat, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes or until meat is
tender. If a thicker chili is desired, gradually stir in cornmeal 1 tbs at
a time then cook, stirring constantly, until thickened. Taste and season
with salt as desired. Remove from heat and ladle into bowls. Serve with a
variety of condiments such as chopped yellow peppers, red onions, tomatoes,
avocado, fresh lime juice or grated cheese. From: Fleurette Delisle Date:
Mon, 011

From Gemini's MASSIVE MealMaster collection at www.synapse.com/~gemini