Bob’s venison chili

I don’t know where Bob Szymakowski came up with the idea for this chili, but I’m glad he did. If you try it, you will be, too. It isn’t the ground meat-and-beans mixture that comes to mind when I hear the word chili. This combines ingredients that aren’t often used together, especially in any chili recipe I’ve ever tried, and they combine well to produce a nice, pleasant southwestern flavor.

If there is an issue with this, it is with Bob’s initial recipe — which made gallons. He admits he has a large crockpot and doesn’t cook unless it is full. Just so everyone understands, the amounts of ingredients listed are his original amounts and it makes gallons.

I have a fairly large crockpot, and preparing this with half the ingredients fills it over half-full. When I reduce the ingredients to half to make a smaller batch, there are several I don’t reduce to half. I still use whole yellow and green peppers, as I like their flavor and the color they add. I also only reduce the cumin to about 3/4 of a tablespoon to give it a little more flavor.

This is southwestern flavor, not Mexican, Tex-Mex or any other description that could be construed as spicy hot. It is filling, with a mildly tangy flavor, carrying just a little edge, but it should be appreciated by even your friends and family members with the mildest palates. Those who like it spicier can add some jalapeno peppers, a heavier dose of seasonings or a light sprinkling of hot sauce on their personal bowl.

NOTE: One of the ingredients is masa, and I had difficulty finding it. That is a shame, and some folks will consider the small amount used not worthy of the effort to locate some. In this recipe, it is used as both a flavor enhancement and a thickening agent. There are other thickening agents, but they don’t accentuate the southwestern edge and add to the flavor. Corn meal will do the job well, but it just doesn’t have the flavor of masa. I looked masa up and found several versions of how to make and substitute for it. In my interpretation of what I found, it is basically finely ground corn meal with some lime from limestone. One of the better substitutions was to grind corn tortilla chips to a powder in a food processor or blender. Another was to add some slaked lime to corn meal.

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 to 4 pounds cubed venison
• 1 bottle of A1 steak sauce
• 2 bottles regular Coke (20 ounce)
• 1 package of frozen corn nibblets (1-pound)
• 1 green bell pepper
• 1 yellow bell pepper
• 2 cans of diced tomatoes with chilies (8 oz)
• 1 can of French onion soup (8 oz)
• 1 can of sliced mushrooms (8 oz)
• 1 package of mixed frozen vegetables (1 pound)
• 2 diced yellow onions
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp Masa (Mexican corn flour)
• 1 tsp chopped cilantro

PREPARATION:

Marinate the venison in the Coke and half the bottle of A1 and store in refrigerator in a sealed container for two days, turning the meat twice a day. Remove meat from marinate and save marinate. Quickly grill or broil the meat pieces to char both sides, but leave the meat medium rare. Add all the canned ingredients, plus marinate, the other half-bottle of A1 to the crockpot and stir well. Add the frozen vegetables and chopped onions and peppers and stir them in well. Add 1 tablespoon of cumin and stir well. Blend in the venison pieces and cook on low temperature setting for 8 hours. Add 1 tablespoon of chopped cilantro and stir well. Draw off 1/4- to 1/2-cup of broth and stir into a tablespoon of Masa, mixing well. Pour the masa broth into the crockpot and stir well. Cook for 30 minutes and check the liquid. You may have to add water — the Masa thickens the liquid, and there must be enough to make a paste. Serve hot.

Bob Szymakowski’s suggestion is to serve this in or with tortillas, and it is very good that way. I’ll go a little farther and suggest serving it with tortilla chips, especially the ones with lime flavoring added. The extra lime definitely sets off the flavor.