Red River Chili takes on Hitchin’ Post
Food Dude friend Paul “Ole Shep” Shepard entered his version of Red River Chili into a chili cookoff recently and took 4th. Here’s the note he sent me…
Hey Dave, Ole Shep here, Well a couple of weeks ago, I think it was the 22nd of January, that was the day it was like 78 degrees, set a state record, etc. I was out riding my motorcycle and rode up to Guthrie and then over to Kingfisher and stopped at a little place called “The Hitchin Post” to have a cool one, well anyway the bar maid was tellin me that they were going to have a chili cook-off the 31 of January, so I made your famous “Red River Chili” and went. I took 4th place out of 14 pots/crock-pots of chili. I also won 1st place for the hottest chili, I didn’t think it was hot. Lookin forward to next year, maybe I’ll do better. I had 4 pounds of rump roast and then doubled your recipe plus one tablespoon of ground cayenne pepper. I had fun, met several nice folks and came home with a cloth folding chair with Hitchin Post on it, Bud Light hat and tee shirt, a thermos, deck of Hithcin Post playing cards and a few other goodies, so I didn’t come home empty handed. Also I took 3 copies of your recipe and 3 people ask if I happen to bring the recipe, so your “Red River Chili” recipe is now up in Kingfisher, Oklahoma.
Well have a great day, Ole Shep
Where does he got all those wonderful spices?
Today’s Red River Chili recipe includes a few dried chiles you might not have seen in the store before.
While the state boast many fine gourmet shops, the biggest boost to finding a greater variety of chiles falls squarely on the rise in the Hispanic population. There are markets that specialize in Hispanic imports statewide.
That said, I go straight to the source: Pendery’s in Dallas/Ft. Worth.
Pendery’s claims to be the birthplace of chile blending, what we now call chile powder. I have visited their retail store in Ft. Worth dozens of times, and I’ve been shopping with them online for years. Not once have I been unable to find the chile I’m looking for.
What they don’t have is fresh chiles. As I mentioned, the rise of Hispanic markets has increased availabilty of poblano peppers as well as a larger supply of jalapenos, serranos and habaneros.
To read about Pendery’s history and check out their supply, go to www.penderys.com.
In search of a bowl of chili
First things first. The chili you order in a restaurant is different than chili you might eat at cookoff. The meat is almost always ground beef and beans are often cooked into the mix. Also, the brew is usually thinner as long cooking times and less spices are usually used.
That doesn’t make it bad.
While chili parlors used to dot the landscape like Starbucks, few remain.
Tulsa appears to be the state’s chili mecca.
Not does it have Ike’s, but Ron’s Chili and Burgers started there, too. Ron’s has since spread across to Oklahoma City.
Have yet to go to a place that specializes in onion burgers that doesn’t serve chili. Same with coney establishments.
While Chili’s does serve a bowl of the red, it’s off the menu. They will serve you a bowl if you ask for it, and it’s a pretty fair rendition.
If you know of any good chili joints out there, let me know. I’m always on the lookout.
Variations on a pot of chili
One of the beauties of chili is its flexibility. It’s great by itself, but you know you love to smother a coney, burger or plate of fries with it. Here’s 8 uses for leftover chili
1. With a healthy dose of water or broth, chili can be converted into a hearty enchilada sauce.
2. Mixed with a couple tablespoons of sour cream and a little dry mustard, you can turn it into a spicy version of Beef Stroganoff.
3. Stir fry it with rice and an egg as either an omelet or terrific breakfast taco.
4. Mix it with refried beans and wrap it in a burrito with cheese and onions for burrito.
5. Add more water, some sliced tomatoes and sliced and boiled potatoes. Give this new mix at least another 20 minutes cooking time and you’ve got carne guisada.
6. Add leftover Thanksgiving turkey and, if you’re feeling adventurous, stuffing for a holiday leftovers you don’t dread.
7. Ever hear of Frito Pie?
8. Using the thinned version mentioned above, spread it over flat bread and add your favorite cheese(s), red onions, and sliced Spanish chorizo to make a pizza that will make you never want to call Little Caesar’s again.
History shows chili soothes the soul
When the young, upwardly mobile of the late 19th Century descended upon a young land called
Snake-oil salesmen, saloon-owners, traveling theater troupes, launderers, clergymen joined food vendors in attempting to civilize the wind-blown plainsmen.
Chili parlors started popping up before 1900 in Oklahoma and enjoyed prosperity for more than 50 years. According to the Oklahoma Historical Society, 33 chili parlors are documented in 16 communities from 1897 through 1948, including Perry, Grant,
Ike’s Chili Parlor opened in Tulsa around that time. It lasted long enough to become a favorite haunt of Will Rogers. He apparently regularly coughed up 15 cents for hot bowl at Ike’s. That, obviously, was Depression-proof pricing. And so Ike’s carried on, gaining fame when Peggy Cass announced to a national television audience on “What’s My Line?” during the 1960s, that Ike’s was indeed the best chili in the country and that she had some in her freezer at home. Ike’s still thrives in Tulsa at 5941 E Admiral.Lyndon Johnson, born and reared on the banks of the Pedernales River, understood the soul-soothing qualities of good chili.
Johnson never figured out Hippies or Vietnam as president. He left the Democratic Party in a shambles. He won a close Senate election against Gov. Coke Stevenson in which a key district later showed voters, in a miraculous show of coincidence, cast their lots in alphabetical order.
And yet, bus tours still run daily to his family ranch.
I like to think it’s because his wife, Lady Bird, made Pedernales River chili a household recipe during the LBJ’s abbreviated stay in the White House. LBJ is remembered as a good ol’ boy and Lady Bird has a library named after her.
Chili, not a divider!
And think what might’ve been had State Rep. Randy Terrill been around back in the 19-oughts. We might not have any chili at all. The original Ike and his nephew Ivan Johnson, purportedly got the chili recipe from an employee named Alex Garcia, of, umm, Texas.
Doubt he had a green card.
Would you have us a chili-free state, Randy? Lucky for you, this information wasn’t circulated before the elections.
