Delicious Cincinnati Chili
Submitted by ashukian
Cincinnati chili: thin, spiced ground beef sauce with cinnamon, allspice, cloves, and a touch of molasses, simmered low and slow. Serve over spaghetti with cheddar, onions, and beans.
YIELD
40 servingsPREP
15 minCOOK
2 hrsREADY
2 hrsCincinnati chili is its own thing, and arguing about it is half the fun. This isn’t Tex-Mex chili. It’s a Mediterranean-influenced ground beef sauce, thinner than what you’d ladle into a chili bowl, scented with cinnamon, allspice, cloves, and mace, and finished with vinegar and a splash of molasses for that signature sweet-tangy edge.
The beef goes in raw, gets simmered uncovered for two hours, and turns into something closer to a meat ragout than a Texas chili.
Chef Tips
- Don’t brown the beef separately. Adding it raw to the simmering aromatics is what gives Cincinnati chili its fine, almost crumbled texture instead of chunks.
- Skim the fat off the top during the last 30 minutes. The chili should taste rich, not greasy.
- Make it a day ahead. The spices need time to bloom and the flavor deepens overnight in the fridge.
- Serve over spaghetti for “three-way” (chili and cheese), four-way (add onions or beans), or five-way (chili, spaghetti, beans, onions, and cheese).
- Mound the cheddar high while the chili is hot so it melts into a stringy blanket the way Skyline and Gold Star serve it.
Variations
- Add 1 ounce of unsweetened chocolate during the simmer for the deeper, slightly bitter version some Cincinnati spots favor.
- Swap molasses for dark brown sugar if that’s what you have on hand.
- Stir in a tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce at the end for extra umami depth.
Ingredients
Directions
In a large heavy kettle, cook the onions and the garlic in a little oil over moderate heat, stirring, until the onions are softened.
Add the beef, and cook the mixture, stirring and breaking up the lumps, until the beef is no longer pink.
Add the chili powder, paprika, cumin, coriander, allspice, oregano, cinnamon, cloves and mace and cook the mixture, stirring, for 1 minute.
Add the bay leaf, water, tomato sauce, vinegar, and molasses.
Simmer the mixture, uncovered for 2 hours, or until thickened but still soupy, stirring occasionally.
Add more water if necessary to keep the beef barely covered.
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