Cooking help

[rchippie]

I need some help. Im cooking chili tommorow in my crock pot. I bought some habinaro peppers to spice it up a little. But i have never used them before . How many should i use ?. Im not looking for super hot with no flavor . But i would like a litte heat with flavor. I will be using 2 pounds of meat with 6 cans of beans & 1 large onion. The peppers are about 1 1/4 by 1 1/4 in size.

[JERRY2KONE]

All I can say is be careful. I learned the hard way that you always start out lite and work your way up. The first time I made my mom's famous chillie I got a little bit crazy with Jallopinio peppers and ended up having to throw the entire pot away. I had no idea that just a little tiny bit of pepper would make it so hot. It was so hot that just touching it to our lips was painful. No one could eat it and we like hot food, so in the garbage disposal it went.

I would only add one or two of them shredded, and see how it works out for you. Then if you want more "heat" you can add more after it is already cooked. I only use red hot chillie pepper powder in mine now. One teaspoon is enough to put just a bite into the mix. Anything more than that makes it almost uneatable. I also add a couple tablespoons of sugar to sweeten up the taste just a tad. The rest is a family trade secret. Good luck with your chillie treat.

[rchippie]

Originally Posted by JERRY2KONE

All I can say is be careful. I learned the hard way that you always start out lite and work your way up. The first time I made my mom's famous chillie I got a little bit crazy with Jallopinio peppers and ended up having to throw the entire pot away. I had no idea that just a little tiny bit of pepper would make it so hot. It was so hot that just touching it to our lips was painful. No one could eat it and we like hot food, so in the garbage disposal it went.

I would only add one or two of them shredded, and see how it works out for you. Then if you want more "heat" you can add more after it is already cooked. I only use red hot chillie pepper powder in mine now. One teaspoon is enough to put just a bite into the mix. Anything more than that makes it almost uneatable. I also add a couple tablespoons of sugar to sweeten up the taste just a tad. The rest is a family trade secret. Good luck with your chillie treat.

These are hotter than the jallopinio peppers thats for sure . I was thinking one or two for the whole pot as well. I can chop them up small . It is going to cook all day long in my crock pot . I like the idea of adding some sugar .

[What's_nitro?]

You better send me some when you're finished!

[rchippie]

Originally Posted by What's_nitro?

You better send me some when you're finished!

I dont know if it will be any good . This is my first time cooking chili that was not in a can .

[What's_nitro?]

Awe, it's not that hard. Just dont burn it! Yuck! The nice thing about slow cooking is that you can taste it every now and then until it's right.

[rchippie]

Originally Posted by What's_nitro?

Awe, it's not that hard. Just dont burn it! Yuck! The nice thing about slow cooking is that you can taste it every now and then until it's right.

Yes burning it would blow .

[rschoi_75]

I agree with Jerry. Start with a little bit at first. You can always add more, but you can't take away once its in there.

I would also wait until the last 30 minutes to add the chilis since the flavor might concentrate too much over the course of the day and you may end up with something that's a lot spicier than you first thought. 30 minutes should give it enough time to cook, and still control the level of heat to exactly how you like it.

As for the prep... wear gloves... make sure to take out the seeds and only use the flesh. You could also roast them and take off the skin which will give it a nice smokey flavor. Don't touch your eyes.

[JERRY2KONE]

I try to keep things simple when I cook, and I am quite good at it. Our family has come to love the dishes I create, and our extended family are always trying to get recipes out of me. I do as little prep as possible because I just do not like doing things that are not required to make a good meal. Don't cut your onions up too small either. That is part of the fun. Too much detail makes the experience overwhelming. Quick & Easy. I would just put the pepper or peppers into a blender or use a hand chopper and dice the pepper up seeds and all to a size that befits your taste, and add them to the mix right from the start. At what point you add them is not going to make that much of a defference to really matter. The amount is what counts here. I always brown the meat first and get the flavor of the beef where it needs to be first, then start adding your ingredients one by one. I try to have everything ready and standing by just like you see on those TV cooking shows. It just speeds things up. Once you get everything into the slow cooker, then you can do all of your clean up so when teh meal is ready there is nothing to do but eat and enjoy your creation. Don't over think it. Just do it and remember what you did for the next time. If anything was not quite right, then stash your thoughts and make changes the next batch to improve your skills. Before long it will become as easy as opening a can of soup. Good luck with your chillie treat.

[rchippie]

My next door neighbor suggested to only start with one pepper . He has cooked with then before. He also said they are pretty hot & you can always add more latter if the chilie is not hot enough .

[George16]

Star with half and go from there. After the initial half, keep on tasting the chili every so often so you can gauge how much more you need. It's a lot easier to add some more than to take out some if it becomes to hot for your taste.

[rchippie]

The recipe said cook on high for 4 hrs. Is it better to cook on a lower temp for a longer time, 8hrs on low ?.

[JERRY2KONE]

The whole idea of cooking over a longer period of time is that it tends to make everything melt in your mouth. It softenes up whatever you are cooking. The 8 hour time is best, but if you need it to be done in 4 then use that. The good thing is that when it reaches its limit, then it just keeps it warm so nothing gets burned. Let us know how that works out. Lito is right about starting with half of a pepper for safety reasons. By the way what kind of beans are you using?

[rchippie]

Originally Posted by JERRY2KONE

The whole idea of cooking over a longer period of time is that it tends to make everything melt in your mouth. It softenes up whatever you are cooking. The 8 hour time is best, but if you need it to be done in 4 then use that. The good thing is that when it reaches its limit, then it just keeps it warm so nothing gets burned. Let us know how that works out. Lito is right about starting with half of a pepper for safety reasons. By the way what kind of beans are you using?

Jerry i am unemployed so i have more time than i know what do with . I using 3 cans of bush hot chili beans & 3 cans of dark red kidney beans.

[reno911]

Mmm Chili.

If you want some heat and don't want to be too worried about overkill. There are plenty of other great peppers out there. Annaheim is what I use for chili, mild heat, good flavor. I usually roast them over the stovetop before cutting them up. Dry pepper pwoder can also be a good source for heat, if you want to sneak it in with out the obvious chunks of peppers.

Crock pot method, start everything raw and cook it all together for how ever long you want.