I tend to be the other way, I am pretty strict with following recipes to ensure I don't screw it up, but then my slicing and dicing technique looks like someone asked a four year old to do the knife work.
Probably because of a bunch of people who will come whining in the comments that some other way makes more even dice, or some other way is better because they've always done it that way. When in reality Kenji has done the math that actually shows the best way.
Haha! Those onions do look perfect, but one wonders how important could perfect onions be in a dish where everything is cooking down into a mushy paste anyway lol! Still a cool technique tho. I use it.
Love this different take on cooking video format. Full POV without any cuts. Really gives you perspective on the kitchen management component of cooking which a lot of cooking videos leave out.
He and Cook Well w/Ethan's videos have ruined other cooking videos for me. Not only are they more enjoyable to watch (real kitchen, no cuts, actual entire process), you can typically follow along with the entire video while you're cooking.
i love kenji's recipe videos because you can tell his house is lived in ha. i don't mean that disrespectfully, but it makes me feel like i can better relate to him. so many youtube chefs have such perfect, pristine kitchens & i know most people don't live that way. i love to see kenji's sink with dishes and other random items laying around bc that's how my kitchen looks!
Yeah Ethan Chlebowski's new place is so empty and like empty of character. Which is probably better in terms of visual shots and focusing attention where needed but def makes me connect to it less
i am retired, living ín Mexico, and i add chipotle chilis in adobo sauce and a bit of chocolate. not for everybody but my friends and children here love it.
Chili is basically America curry. There are a lot of ways to do it, none of them wrong. You got meat, you got chiles, you got cumin, you got chili, whatever else you do with it.
Kenji, I definitely credit you for helping me build an intuition for cooking and being more comfortable not using recipes. It helps so much that you always focus on techniques, the qualities of ingredients (grassy, fat-soluble, high surface area, etc), and the rationale behind your decisions. Thanks for the incredible content! I made a pizza last night - got the dough recipe from my brother but improvised the sauce and it was genuinely some of the best pizza I've ever had
@@timeisntreal Crushed san marzano tomatoes, in a saucepan with olive oil, salt, pepper, a handful of chopped kalamata olives and their juice, a parmesan rind, and some italian spice mix. simmered until the tomatoes were as sweet as I wanted!
I always learn so much watching these POV kitchen videos. Watching them over the last few years I feel like I’ve absorbed so much subtle information and technique… watching the way you cut an onion or, in one of your videos, seeing how carefully you washed your hands and workspace after handling flour…. Just things i would never learn watching a regular old, highly edited cooking video/cooking show
I love that you add fish sauce once the cooking is done. I'm Vietnamese and in our cuisine we use it a lot, yet people from here still cook fish sauce for way too long, making it taste really unpleasant. I'm impressed that a chef from another culture could make great use of the ingredient.
Kenji, you provide my life with immense joy I hope you and your family are well, it seems so in the videos. I always have respected the way you protect your children from being in the public eye and keeping the focus on the cooking and knowledge. Love the content, and look forward to your next book!
Kenji using pre-shredded cheese is really comforting for some reason. It’s a reminder that not everything in a recipe needs to be “perfect” to taste good
Lol these Kenji nut huggers... Dude can't even use normal ingredients without people praising him! I mean I get what you're saying, but my goodness, he's just a person cooking food!
This is a great channel for people learning how to cook. "Usually has onion powder, but I'm out so not using it" "Normally use dark red kidney beans, but this is what I have" Cooking is about making due with what you have or what you like. Add more or less of an ingredient based on your personal preference. Baking is science. Use your scales and measuring cups there. Cooking is with the heart. Use what you have and what you love.
I love this. I thought I was nerdy about the math in dicing an onion. So glad to see I am not the only one. I do the exact same with dicing. Except I do the horizontal cut first so I don't have to hold the onion together while doing it.
Thanks Kenji, great chili in a hurry. Love how you constantly riff on your dishes with what you have on hand and your mood. Makes cooking so much more enjoyable than slavishly following a recipe EXACTLY. Cooking should be relaxing and fun not a chore. Besides, how can you find out what tastes best if you're not willing to experiment?
Yeah, but no. If science is important then resting the chilli is more important. Tomatoes undergo a... transformation that changes the flavour for the better. It's the same for any prominent tomato based ingredient/flavour. To my pallet and family. Having said that I would still gobble down anything Kenji presented.
I just had to say THANK YOU your whole channel and existence is wonderful ❤ I made a sort-of-chili with this video and the pressure cooker recipe for my birthday shindig, and it was a hit! Never again will I make a bland, sad, lifeless meal when I have such straightforward, loving insight and inspiration from Chef Kenji 😊
Wow ! I just thought to watch you make chili and I realized that after all these years I've made chili, I never thought to add Worcester to it. But I add it to everything else I cook. Thanks for the lesson ! God Bless !
I made this tonight, following the video rather than the printed recipe. I love how it’s so easy to throw in some improvisation. Just as an example, I added the following with HUGE success: 1. Diced jalapeño and habanero 2. Two chipotle chilis in adobo 3. A teaspoon of smoked paprika 4. A spoonful of gochujang with the tomato paste 5. A chunk of Mexican chocolate 6. I deglazed with some bourbon Holy crap, it was so good!
Newbie here from Wales, UK! Why have I not found Kenji before! Informative, easy going guy, very knowledgeable and such a relaxing vibe and easy to follow. I'm getting my head round what you call some food items, i.e ground beef, we call it mince, but that's what it's all about, sharing and learning every day. Have subscribed so off to binge watch more videos!
Welcome!!! Some of us have known him from his America's Test Kitchen days or his later stint at Serious Eats. This decades long history should provide you with endless resources for your cooking adventures. Also, you will inevitably come across his books of which Food Lab and The Wok are excellent but hefty and a bit pricey. As a former line cook and current home cook with a science background, I have never regretted buying either. PS I own a UK edition cookbook and I had to Google caster sugar, aubergine, and roquette.
You gotta try the baking soda trick for browning ground beef. You just add a tsp per pound, mix it up, and let it sit for 10-15 minutes. It keeps the moisture from pouring out and steaming the meat. Saw it from America's test kitchen and have used it ever since.
You can also just keep cooking it. The beef will expel a bunch of water and fat so just keep cooking until that water evaporates and now you're frying your beef which will give it those browned beef flavors you're looking for. Never heard of the baking soda thing. I will give that a try next time.
I was pretty sure Kenji knew about the baking soda trick….but now that you mention it, I can’t recall if I’ve seen him use it….it’s used to marinate the meat prior to wok cooking too, about 15 min before, same thing. Hmmmm….
Kenji, I would love to see a molcajete video! Advice on buying them, cleaning and care, maybe a few easy recipes or simple uses, etc. I’ve always wanted to get one seeing your use of it but just figured it’d be cool to see a full video talking about it!
Get one made of real granite or other igneous rock and you can clean with just soapy water and a good scrub, if you have a cheaper one made of porous rock you can get rid of smells by grinding dry rice, possibly with baking soda and white vinegar
I feel like @kenji has been teasing us about this mathematically ideal onion cut research for 1-2 years now; bring him on your next video already and share the nerdy science we’ve been waiting for!
I make chIli like this often. I always use Bush's chili beans because they add another dimension of flavor and you don't need any additional thickener. Also, some finely minced mushrooms added to the browning meat give some extra umami, sorta like your fish sauce trick.
I made a pot of this tonight and I used the exact same toppings (cheese, green onion, cilantro, Mexican sour cream) and it was amazing! Really adds some nice flavors.
Made this for the family tonight and it was a big hit. Followed the version in the video and it was super simple, but super delicious. I ended up simmering it down over very low heat for about an hour and a half in order to get it to a slightly thicker consistency and as all of the liquid reduced the flavor just kept getting better.
One of the things I picked up from Chef John's firehouse chili recipe is to cook 2-3 tablespoons of flour with the meat and onions for a couple minutes before adding the spices. I find that it really helps keep the fat integrated into the chili instead of just floating around on top of everything. I'll have to check out the masa technique, it does seem like it would be a more interesting flavor than the flour
I've been meaning to look for a good chili recipe while the weather is cold, and here I find one of my favorite chefs making a super simple one. Perfect!
I used to make this exact recipe in my uni days, with 5 or 6 carrots, bulk up the dish make it last a couple extra days without adding much to the price
@@frootloot6789 Personally I never have maseca lying around. Though, like your idea of tortillas as a side or carb, I usually have a jar of corn tortilla crumbs to thicken chili and as a panko sub for some breaded dishes.
Cleaned up Recipe: Easy Weeknight Ground Beef Chili Ingredients: 4 tablespoons unsalted butter 2 medium onions, grated 2 cloves garlic, minced or grated 1 teaspoon dried oregano 1 teaspoon kosher salt 2 chipotle chiles, finely chopped 2 anchovy fillets, mashed to a paste 1/2 cup chili paste or 1/4 cup chili powder 1 tablespoon ground cumin 1/2 cup tomato paste 2 pounds boneless ground beef 1 can whole tomatoes (28 ounces), drained and chopped 1 can red kidney beans (15 ounces), drained 1 cup chicken stock or water 2-3 tablespoons instant cornmeal 2 tablespoons whiskey, vodka, or brandy (optional) Freshly ground black pepper Grated cheddar cheese, sour cream, chopped onions, scallions, sliced jalapeños, diced avocado, and/or chopped cilantro, for serving Corn chips or warmed tortillas, for serving Instructions: In a large Dutch oven, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the onions, garlic, oregano, and salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onions are light golden brown (about 5 minutes). Add the chipotles, anchovies, chili paste, and cumin. Cook, stirring, until aromatic (about 1 minute). Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring, until homogeneous (about 1 minute). Add the ground beef and cook, using a wooden spoon to break it up into pieces. Stir frequently until the beef is no longer pink (do not try to brown it), about 5 minutes. Add the chopped tomatoes, drained kidney beans, stock, and cornmeal. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook until the flavors have developed and the chili has thickened (about 30 minutes), stirring occasionally. Stir in the whiskey, if using. Serve with grated cheese, sour cream, chopped onions, scallions, sliced jalapeños, diced avocado, and/or chopped cilantro. Serve with corn chips or tortillas. Enjoy!
I am happy to see that my standard no-frills chili recipe is very, very similar to yours. Although I tend to use one larger can of crushed tomato per lb of meat. It's much more tomato forward, but after simmering for a while I don't think it really tastes of tomato. One thing I do instead of fish sauce is add a spoonful of better than bullion, which brings most of the salt needed and bumps up the beefy flavor (especially good with ground turkey). Typically I add a diced bell pepper with the onions too, my kids don't like spicy so it's the best way I have to get some actual chilies in it. Tip for people with picky kids, shredded carrots and/or zucchini just melt into this style chili if you let it simmer until they're very soft. Also helps bulk it up for cheap.
Try poblano pepper along with bell if you get a chance. Poblano is a mild pepper that brings an earthier flavor. I like using more than one kind of pepper, I find they boost each other up :)
Terrific Kenji, and very much like I make on a cold, winter day! I do enjoy it in the small Frito bags or the “walking tacos” as my kids call it. Can’t beat it!
The ingredients in a little easier-to-read format: 4 tablespoons unsalted butter 2 medium onions, grated on the large holes of a box grater (about 11⁄2 cups) 2 large cloves garlic, minced or grated on a Microplane (about 4 teaspoons) 1 teaspoon dried oregano Kosher salt 2 chipotle chiles packed in adobo, finely chopped 2 anchovy fillets, mashed to a paste with the back of a fork 1⁄2 cup Chile Paste (page 259) or 1⁄4 cup chili powder 1 tablespoon ground cumin 1⁄2 cup tomato paste 2 pounds boneless ground chuck One 28-ounce can whole tomatoes, drained and chopped into 1⁄2-inch pieces One 15-ounce can red kidney beans, drained 1 cup homemade or low-sodium canned chicken stock, or water 2 to 3 tablespoons instant cornmeal (such as Maseca) 2 tablespoons whiskey, vodka, or brandy (optional) Freshly ground black pepper Garnishes as desired (such as grated cheddar cheese, sour cream, chopped onions, scallions, sliced jalapeños, diced avocado, and/or chopped cilantro, along with corn chips or warmed tortillas)
These are the ingredients he provided in the description, which he said multiple times in the video are from the recipe in his book, not exactly what he made in the video. I just found the formatting above very hard to read so I fixed it here.
One recipe that I use to make chili (for spaghetti red or chili dogs a la Fred & Red's) was developed in Missouri in 1923. Stores didn't carry masa harina back then so the recipe uses finely ground saltine crackers as a flavorful thickener. It is the simple, slightly odd and always delicious pot of chili to use as a sauce.
@@gabrielmann4634 in his chili con carne video he basically said "this is a traditional texan chili, the more typical one has beans, this one doesn't" at many points, then last second went back off camera and added beans to increase the portion, this is what I was joking about
Usually when the cook starts to chop or cut with meandering background music, I fast forward. Your channel is different: no music and you are always talking about something interesting. Not to mention an awesome POV. Great channel. I'm glad I found it.
Finally, Finally, Finally!!!! A cook who uses a compost bin! Nearly all of the RUclips cooks just throw out every bit of waste vegetable material. It is so easy to compost, we all need to do our part.
I''ve just had a kid, and I pre-froze a bunch of this chilli beforehand to have some easy reheatable meals that I would look forward to. Thanks Kenji for putting it out there, I know there are plenty of chilli recipes out there but the presentation of this is super accessible.
Finally. This is my most repeated recipe in The Food Lab. The page where this recipe is on has a lot of splash damage from tomato sauce. Now I can send other people the recipe via this video.
Corn is a common ingredient in this style of chili here in europe and I personally love it! It provides a great texture and sweetness to the spicy meat! 💯
This has to be among the worst culinary crimes we've perpetrated as a nation. That, and pronouncing sour cream as if it rhymes with you. Corn has no business in chili.
Cooked this with slight changes tonight (didn't add cumin or fish sauce, + added sweet corn after beans) and it turned out amazing! Great for dinner and lunch, very spicy too
Kenji, it was your recipe that got me to start using whole dry chili's in my Mexican cooking dishes. I actually started sneaking some into my mother's chili without telling her because she is so resistant to changing it. Thank you!
I'm Canadian. The very first intro to Rotel tomatoes was my 1st Nashville football party. Rotel dip is amazing and has been imported to home (spent more time in Colorado so green chilli is the best - but takes a lot more work).
This is almost the same way i do it. What goes really well with it is a can of corn and i use butter instead of oil. Sometimes i add a diced potato or a carrot but its optional. But what kicks the whole thing up a notch is adding cinnamon and chocolate. I know it sounds wierd but this goes extremely well with this dish. You definately have to try this. Just google it you see im not kidding you ;D. Btw oregano can be grown easily in your garden. Even if it snows in the winter it will come back the next year even bigger.
I'm in the process of making this for dinner. It's all simmering right now, the tastes that I've had are VERY good. I think I'll try lowering the the chili powered next time, and should have been more cautious this time, it's not too hot but it's close to too hot :p
Having watched a lot of chili making videos, I liked how simple yours is. You discarded the liquid from the canned beans, & I've noticed that people are divided 1/3 on whether to drain the beans, drain & rinse or use liquid & beans in a chili. Wish you spoke on why you went with the drain .
Probably because otherwise it would be too much unwanted liquid in a 15 minute meal, and rinsing it is an unnecessary extra step. The bean liquid has good flavour and a bit of thickening action though, and I'm pretty sure Kenji has thrown the lot in on previous chilli type videos.
Kenji, thank you for another personal visit to your kitchen! I love seeing that I do some of the same things as someone with your skill. One thing I always struggle with - how do you keep your board from taking on the garlic and onion smells?
It's from cooking in restaurants. You quickly develop an asbestos tongue and hands because it's a job requirement. Also, his knife skills show he's familiar with chopping 10 lb bags of onions without breaking a sweat.
Thank you to this video for giving me a basic chili technique that I had been searching for. Made something like this twice with this template, and both times it came out bomb. Kenji, love your videos and all your content. Hearing about the "impossible meat" chili did depress me though. 🙂
Hey Kenji, not being nosy but since you left and moved away from the restaurant. What have you been up to? Do you own or work at a local restaurant or just focusing on contents (books and RUclips). We appreciate all the great tips and contents you share with us. God bless
Did a variation on this with venison (because it's what we had) the other week. Riffed my own recipe, but we ended up surprisingly similar! Results were delicious.
a little trick, you can reduce the whole jug of chicken broth to enhance the power of the flavor and then just add it all instead of parting it, awesome recipe excellently explained, ps fish sauce is amazing, i add it to my french onion soup, with the white wine deglaze the pan after breaking down the brown onions
I don't really use masa, but I always have a few sad tortillas hanging around. I just chop them up small and add them for thickening and some nice flavor. Beer never hurts as some of the liquid either.
I'm sure everyone else has said this multiple times in the comments but just the fact that he is considerate and inclusive by ending every video with 'guys and gals and non-binary pals' endears him to me enormously. It's so easy, encompassing and nice on the ears that in a better world it would become a standard friendly way of saying goodbye.
I like that you slightly adjust to what you have. I'm just an amateur guy cook, but part of the fun for me is just ad libbing slightly, according to my mood/time/and what I have on hand . It's not always exactly the same taste, but I don't care, as long as it's good. If it were a job or occasion, I guess I would want to be more precise; but I'm mostly just cooking for me. What I'm most interested in, from you, are the Ideas, not the precise measurements/ingredients; and you are great at that!
"If you like beans in chili, put beans in chili. If you don't like beans in chili, but you dislike someone who also doesn't like beans in chili more than you dislike beans in chili, put beans in chili." -You Suck At Cooking
Fish sauce is just Salt+. It's salt, plus sooooo much more. It belongs in... almost everything. And Red Boat is 1000% the best. Thank you for this. I feel wholly vindicated in my use of fish sauce now.
Just made some ground beef chili while watching 👍 It's probably my favorite thing to do while cooking is watching cooking videos 😆 Good stuff kenji. Cook on brother!
Thank you kenji for the fritos pie reference. At my chilli party we have hot chilli, plenty of fritos, hot sauce, crema, and cilantro. Plus pickled onions and chillis.
My mom lied to my family growing up by making chili (The best in the world) and letting us believe she was a master. Turned out she would buy chili from a local burger joint called "B-Bop's" and put it in a crockpot before we got home from school. We were devastated when we found out the truth.
I love how relaxed Kenji is with most of his cooking and his techniques, but is so strict when it comes to dicing onions 😆
Goes from the cadence of your favorite art teacher in HS to pure Terminator math in a second.
I appreciate this technique but I'm not sure it really matters in the end I've done both ways and it doesn't really matter. I still respect it though.
I tend to be the other way, I am pretty strict with following recipes to ensure I don't screw it up, but then my slicing and dicing technique looks like someone asked a four year old to do the knife work.
Probably because of a bunch of people who will come whining in the comments that some other way makes more even dice, or some other way is better because they've always done it that way. When in reality Kenji has done the math that actually shows the best way.
Haha! Those onions do look perfect, but one wonders how important could perfect onions be in a dish where everything is cooking down into a mushy paste anyway lol! Still a cool technique tho. I use it.
Love this different take on cooking video format. Full POV without any cuts. Really gives you perspective on the kitchen management component of cooking which a lot of cooking videos leave out.
He and Cook Well w/Ethan's videos have ruined other cooking videos for me. Not only are they more enjoyable to watch (real kitchen, no cuts, actual entire process), you can typically follow along with the entire video while you're cooking.
umm… there are definitely cuts lol
what i love about kenji is that if he says a meal is easy and for the weeknights, it's gonna be easy and for the weeknights
10/10, no notes
i love kenji's recipe videos because you can tell his house is lived in ha. i don't mean that disrespectfully, but it makes me feel like i can better relate to him. so many youtube chefs have such perfect, pristine kitchens & i know most people don't live that way. i love to see kenji's sink with dishes and other random items laying around bc that's how my kitchen looks!
Yep! Life happens there, good life!
My mother in law says a house should be clean enough to be healthy, and dirty enough to be lived in.
oh some of these cooking channels are corporate made from the start
My favorite part is when Kenji has to go to the other side of his kitchen island in order to use the blender that's tucked in this awkward corner
Yeah Ethan Chlebowski's new place is so empty and like empty of character. Which is probably better in terms of visual shots and focusing attention where needed but def makes me connect to it less
i am retired, living ín Mexico, and i add chipotle chilis in adobo sauce and a bit of chocolate. not for everybody but my friends and children here love it.
@@tomgardner8825 Thank you for the Motley Fool, sir.
Chili is basically America curry. There are a lot of ways to do it, none of them wrong. You got meat, you got chiles, you got cumin, you got chili, whatever else you do with it.
I never thought about it this way, youre right.
Great point! You could say there at over 100+ variations. I'm think minimum 2+ per state
Kenji, I definitely credit you for helping me build an intuition for cooking and being more comfortable not using recipes. It helps so much that you always focus on techniques, the qualities of ingredients (grassy, fat-soluble, high surface area, etc), and the rationale behind your decisions. Thanks for the incredible content!
I made a pizza last night - got the dough recipe from my brother but improvised the sauce and it was genuinely some of the best pizza I've ever had
What did you do for the sauce?
@@timeisntreal Crushed san marzano tomatoes, in a saucepan with olive oil, salt, pepper, a handful of chopped kalamata olives and their juice, a parmesan rind, and some italian spice mix. simmered until the tomatoes were as sweet as I wanted!
Cooking is ninety percent joie de vive
I always learn so much watching these POV kitchen videos. Watching them over the last few years I feel like I’ve absorbed so much subtle information and technique… watching the way you cut an onion or, in one of your videos, seeing how carefully you washed your hands and workspace after handling flour…. Just things i would never learn watching a regular old, highly edited cooking video/cooking show
I love that you add fish sauce once the cooking is done. I'm Vietnamese and in our cuisine we use it a lot, yet people from here still cook fish sauce for way too long, making it taste really unpleasant. I'm impressed that a chef from another culture could make great use of the ingredient.
5:49 "Unless you're doing like a steamed... A steamed ham..."
When are you going to show us the Aurora borealis in your kitchen, Kenji?
Localized entirely in your kitchen?
I'll bet Kenji steams a great ham
Well Kenji, you're an odd fellow, but I must say: you steam a good ham
I didn’t know Kenji was from Albany.
Hohoho, no! Patented Lopez-Altburgers. Old family recipe!
Kenji, you provide my life with immense joy
I hope you and your family are well, it seems so in the videos. I always have respected the way you protect your children from being in the public eye and keeping the focus on the cooking and knowledge.
Love the content, and look forward to your next book!
@PeachandTree I'm fairly noob here. Do U know of any Kenji vids using Oyster sauce?
Kenji using pre-shredded cheese is really comforting for some reason. It’s a reminder that not everything in a recipe needs to be “perfect” to taste good
Yet, the onions….
@@dhallett77 I mean the onions should always be perfect haha
@@Captain_ACAB i was clumsily trying to agree
yes! that and canned beans. one of us, one of us
Lol these Kenji nut huggers... Dude can't even use normal ingredients without people praising him!
I mean I get what you're saying, but my goodness, he's just a person cooking food!
This is a great channel for people learning how to cook.
"Usually has onion powder, but I'm out so not using it"
"Normally use dark red kidney beans, but this is what I have"
Cooking is about making due with what you have or what you like. Add more or less of an ingredient based on your personal preference.
Baking is science. Use your scales and measuring cups there.
Cooking is with the heart. Use what you have and what you love.
Well saiid. Nailed the best of Kenji 😊❤
J. Kenji Lopez-Alt, you are always astonishing. I love your lessons.
Misread it as “15-minute weeknight chill”. Thought Kenji was branching out into mood vids. Insta-clicked as usual. Stayed for the chili.
The thickening with Maseca was such a nice touch that I haven't ever really thought of. I tried it in a vegetarian chili and am now a lifelong fan!
I love this. I thought I was nerdy about the math in dicing an onion. So glad to see I am not the only one. I do the exact same with dicing. Except I do the horizontal cut first so I don't have to hold the onion together while doing it.
Thanks Kenji, great chili in a hurry. Love how you constantly riff on your dishes with what you have on hand and your mood. Makes cooking so much more enjoyable than slavishly following a recipe EXACTLY. Cooking should be relaxing and fun not a chore. Besides, how can you find out what tastes best if you're not willing to experiment?
Kenji is a Chili guy..
That's why he is so cool
Yeah, but no. If science is important then resting the chilli is more important. Tomatoes undergo a... transformation that changes the flavour for the better. It's the same for any prominent tomato based ingredient/flavour. To my pallet and family.
Having said that I would still gobble down anything Kenji presented.
@@scottrowland7448 You must be fun at parties
@@bushDid911 more thank you, chill
What makes him special is that he stays cool even with chillis usually being hot!
@@scottrowland7448 shut up
I like how you always consider your dog, and you give out a ton of info too. You're really good at bringing to light the minute but important details.
I just had to say THANK YOU your whole channel and existence is wonderful ❤ I made a sort-of-chili with this video and the pressure cooker recipe for my birthday shindig, and it was a hit! Never again will I make a bland, sad, lifeless meal when I have such straightforward, loving insight and inspiration from Chef Kenji 😊
Wow ! I just thought to watch you make chili and I realized that after all these years I've made chili, I never thought to add Worcester to it. But I add it to everything else I cook. Thanks for the lesson ! God Bless !
I made this tonight, following the video rather than the printed recipe. I love how it’s so easy to throw in some improvisation. Just as an example, I added the following with HUGE success:
1. Diced jalapeño and habanero
2. Two chipotle chilis in adobo
3. A teaspoon of smoked paprika
4. A spoonful of gochujang with the tomato paste
5. A chunk of Mexican chocolate
6. I deglazed with some bourbon
Holy crap, it was so good!
Mexican chocolate- wow, would never have thought of that. But mole is, after all, savory so why not!
Interesting. Where do you get Mexican chocolates?
@@murali1981in just throwing in dark chocolate chips will do the trick tbh
@@Cristieaglethanks 🙏🏽
Paprika always for me. I add ground coriander also...
Honestly, when I want chili, this is exactly the sort of chili I crave. Thanks for this casual method that yields excellent results.
Newbie here from Wales, UK! Why have I not found Kenji before! Informative, easy going guy, very knowledgeable and such a relaxing vibe and easy to follow. I'm getting my head round what you call some food items, i.e ground beef, we call it mince, but that's what it's all about, sharing and learning every day. Have subscribed so off to binge watch more videos!
Welcome!
You are in for many treats :)
Welcome!!!
Some of us have known him from his America's Test Kitchen days or his later stint at Serious Eats. This decades long history should provide you with endless resources for your cooking adventures. Also, you will inevitably come across his books of which Food Lab and The Wok are excellent but hefty and a bit pricey. As a former line cook and current home cook with a science background, I have never regretted buying either.
PS I own a UK edition cookbook and I had to Google caster sugar, aubergine, and roquette.
@@capers72424 Thank You1
@@sanachanto Right! Can't wait, have binged lots, Kenji is amazing!
You gotta try the baking soda trick for browning ground beef. You just add a tsp per pound, mix it up, and let it sit for 10-15 minutes. It keeps the moisture from pouring out and steaming the meat. Saw it from America's test kitchen and have used it ever since.
Before or during cooking?
@@jeffrdrama7984 before and give it about 15 minutes then toss it in.
You can also just keep cooking it. The beef will expel a bunch of water and fat so just keep cooking until that water evaporates and now you're frying your beef which will give it those browned beef flavors you're looking for.
Never heard of the baking soda thing. I will give that a try next time.
I was pretty sure Kenji knew about the baking soda trick….but now that you mention it, I can’t recall if I’ve seen him use it….it’s used to marinate the meat prior to wok cooking too, about 15 min before, same thing. Hmmmm….
and then it blows up
Kenji, I would love to see a molcajete video! Advice on buying them, cleaning and care, maybe a few easy recipes or simple uses, etc. I’ve always wanted to get one seeing your use of it but just figured it’d be cool to see a full video talking about it!
Clean them with soup and water
@@dogcatdogable chicken noodle
Get one made of real granite or other igneous rock and you can clean with just soapy water and a good scrub, if you have a cheaper one made of porous rock you can get rid of smells by grinding dry rice, possibly with baking soda and white vinegar
There's a wonderful youtuber. She uses a mocajete all the time Rachel cooks with love. That is the channel. Rachel cooks with love.
I feel like @kenji has been teasing us about this mathematically ideal onion cut research for 1-2 years now; bring him on your next video already and share the nerdy science we’ve been waiting for!
Onion math or no balls
As KJ Dude said, here you go: ruclips.net/user/postUgkx3h7mFaqYTgz9F9FEc6cWSThpRNLP3LTO
It's a little underwhelming
Thanks for the tips Kenji, I think your onion slicing 1/1.5 tip is going to be super useful for me! 😀
Crazy how much you have changed in a year! Really really happy for you!
I make chIli like this often. I always use Bush's chili beans because they add another dimension of flavor and you don't need any additional thickener. Also, some finely minced mushrooms added to the browning meat give some extra umami, sorta like your fish sauce trick.
I like the Charro beans.
I can get the Kuner's chili beans they're great
I made a pot of this tonight and I used the exact same toppings (cheese, green onion, cilantro, Mexican sour cream) and it was amazing! Really adds some nice flavors.
I love you so much, Kenji. Thanks for making my life better.
Made this for the family tonight and it was a big hit. Followed the version in the video and it was super simple, but super delicious. I ended up simmering it down over very low heat for about an hour and a half in order to get it to a slightly thicker consistency and as all of the liquid reduced the flavor just kept getting better.
The fish sauce I can't fault, I tend to throw in some white miso paste with my chillis too! Adds a little salt and funk to it, goes great!
Nice, I’ll have to try some miso next time. I usually do a splash of Bragg’s liquid aminos and/or Worcestershire
Same, though red miso for me.
so you like fish sauce? you must be a gay fish
One of the things I picked up from Chef John's firehouse chili recipe is to cook 2-3 tablespoons of flour with the meat and onions for a couple minutes before adding the spices. I find that it really helps keep the fat integrated into the chili instead of just floating around on top of everything. I'll have to check out the masa technique, it does seem like it would be a more interesting flavor than the flour
I just finished making this, it’s absolutely amazing. Takes chilli to a whole new level.
I've been meaning to look for a good chili recipe while the weather is cold, and here I find one of my favorite chefs making a super simple one. Perfect!
My mom adds fish sauce to her spaghetti and chili 😂 secret ingredient that just takes it up a notch ❤
The real secret ingredient is cocoa powder. Prove me wrong.
i do the same fish sauce = anchovies staple italian ingredient
I do that now too! But i also have anchovie paste for the tomato based beef dishes like this.
I used to make this exact recipe in my uni days, with 5 or 6 carrots, bulk up the dish make it last a couple extra days without adding much to the price
How much did it impact the flavor?
yep i added a white carb like rice and tortilla chips and a pot lasted me a little over a week
@@jaredhardegree8377 the carrots add a little sweetness, but not really noticeable. If you notice, just pump the heat up a notch.
@@frootloot6789 Personally I never have maseca lying around. Though, like your idea of tortillas as a side or carb, I usually have a jar of corn tortilla crumbs to thicken chili and as a panko sub for some breaded dishes.
Cleaned up Recipe: Easy Weeknight Ground Beef Chili
Ingredients:
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 medium onions, grated
2 cloves garlic, minced or grated
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 chipotle chiles, finely chopped
2 anchovy fillets, mashed to a paste
1/2 cup chili paste or 1/4 cup chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1/2 cup tomato paste
2 pounds boneless ground beef
1 can whole tomatoes (28 ounces), drained and chopped
1 can red kidney beans (15 ounces), drained
1 cup chicken stock or water
2-3 tablespoons instant cornmeal
2 tablespoons whiskey, vodka, or brandy (optional)
Freshly ground black pepper
Grated cheddar cheese, sour cream, chopped onions, scallions, sliced jalapeños, diced avocado, and/or chopped cilantro, for serving
Corn chips or warmed tortillas, for serving
Instructions:
In a large Dutch oven, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the onions, garlic, oregano, and salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onions are light golden brown (about 5 minutes).
Add the chipotles, anchovies, chili paste, and cumin. Cook, stirring, until aromatic (about 1 minute). Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring, until homogeneous (about 1 minute).
Add the ground beef and cook, using a wooden spoon to break it up into pieces. Stir frequently until the beef is no longer pink (do not try to brown it), about 5 minutes.
Add the chopped tomatoes, drained kidney beans, stock, and cornmeal. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook until the flavors have developed and the chili has thickened (about 30 minutes), stirring occasionally.
Stir in the whiskey, if using. Serve with grated cheese, sour cream, chopped onions, scallions, sliced jalapeños, diced avocado, and/or chopped cilantro. Serve with corn chips or tortillas. Enjoy!
Cooking it on high until its completion means it is under 20 minutes every time! Quick and easy! Thank you!
This came out so damn good. Didn’t have fish sauce but I added a good amount of anchovy paste and it made quite a difference
ok the browning tip is a life saver, i used to waste a lot of time waiting for the liquid to evaporate only to then re-add the liquid later.
I am happy to see that my standard no-frills chili recipe is very, very similar to yours. Although I tend to use one larger can of crushed tomato per lb of meat. It's much more tomato forward, but after simmering for a while I don't think it really tastes of tomato. One thing I do instead of fish sauce is add a spoonful of better than bullion, which brings most of the salt needed and bumps up the beefy flavor (especially good with ground turkey). Typically I add a diced bell pepper with the onions too, my kids don't like spicy so it's the best way I have to get some actual chilies in it.
Tip for people with picky kids, shredded carrots and/or zucchini just melt into this style chili if you let it simmer until they're very soft. Also helps bulk it up for cheap.
Try poblano pepper along with bell if you get a chance. Poblano is a mild pepper that brings an earthier flavor. I like using more than one kind of pepper, I find they boost each other up :)
Terrific Kenji, and very much like I make on a cold, winter day! I do enjoy it in the small Frito bags or the “walking tacos” as my kids call it. Can’t beat it!
Thank you for the browning tip! Always an issue when I make this kind of chili.
Amazing how your observations match almost exactly with my personal experience. Well done chef.
The ingredients in a little easier-to-read format:
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 medium onions, grated on the large holes of a box grater (about 11⁄2 cups)
2 large cloves garlic, minced or grated on a Microplane (about 4 teaspoons)
1 teaspoon dried oregano
Kosher salt
2 chipotle chiles packed in adobo, finely chopped
2 anchovy fillets, mashed to a paste with the back of a fork
1⁄2 cup Chile Paste (page 259) or 1⁄4 cup chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1⁄2 cup tomato paste
2 pounds boneless ground chuck
One 28-ounce can whole tomatoes, drained and chopped into 1⁄2-inch pieces
One 15-ounce can red kidney beans, drained
1 cup homemade or low-sodium canned chicken stock, or water
2 to 3 tablespoons instant cornmeal (such as Maseca)
2 tablespoons whiskey, vodka, or brandy (optional)
Freshly ground black pepper
Garnishes as desired (such as grated cheddar cheese, sour cream, chopped onions, scallions, sliced jalapeños, diced avocado, and/or chopped cilantro, along with corn chips or warmed tortillas)
this is incorrect
TF is this?
These are the ingredients he provided in the description, which he said multiple times in the video are from the recipe in his book, not exactly what he made in the video. I just found the formatting above very hard to read so I fixed it here.
@@CockroachB it's chili
One recipe that I use to make chili (for spaghetti red or chili dogs a la Fred & Red's) was developed in Missouri in 1923. Stores didn't carry masa harina back then so the recipe uses finely ground saltine crackers as a flavorful thickener. It is the simple, slightly odd and always delicious pot of chili to use as a sauce.
"I know people roll their eyes 'you add fish sauce to everything' ,,, well I like fish sauce." Had me laughing out loud!
thank goodness i found this channel. everything is presented in a practical manner
I hope this time around he goes back and meticulously takes out every single bean last minute
He’s got beans in it because it’s chili. You’re thinking of hot dog sauce.
@@gabrielmann4634 in his chili con carne video he basically said "this is a traditional texan chili, the more typical one has beans, this one doesn't" at many points, then last second went back off camera and added beans to increase the portion, this is what I was joking about
Usually when the cook starts to chop or cut with meandering background music, I fast forward. Your channel is different: no music and you are always talking about something interesting. Not to mention an awesome POV. Great channel. I'm glad I found it.
Finally, Finally, Finally!!!! A cook who uses a compost bin! Nearly all of the RUclips cooks just throw out every bit of waste vegetable material. It is so easy to compost, we all need to do our part.
I''ve just had a kid, and I pre-froze a bunch of this chilli beforehand to have some easy reheatable meals that I would look forward to. Thanks Kenji for putting it out there, I know there are plenty of chilli recipes out there but the presentation of this is super accessible.
Finally. This is my most repeated recipe in The Food Lab. The page where this recipe is on has a lot of splash damage from tomato sauce. Now I can send other people the recipe via this video.
Probably my favorite chili I’ve ever made at home. Did not have a whiskey on hand so did a shot of Sapporo at the end - fantastic! Thanks Kenji!
Corn is a common ingredient in this style of chili here in europe and I personally love it!
It provides a great texture and sweetness to the spicy meat! 💯
This has to be among the worst culinary crimes we've perpetrated as a nation. That, and pronouncing sour cream as if it rhymes with you. Corn has no business in chili.
@@schwarzermoritz Or we could just let people enjoy what they like lmao. As long as they don't force feed it to you it shouldn't matter
@@schwarzermoritz corn in a chili like this sounds great! Idk what you're going on about
Cooked this with slight changes tonight (didn't add cumin or fish sauce, + added sweet corn after beans) and it turned out amazing! Great for dinner and lunch, very spicy too
Kenji, it was your recipe that got me to start using whole dry chili's in my Mexican cooking dishes. I actually started sneaking some into my mother's chili without telling her because she is so resistant to changing it. Thank you!
I'm Canadian. The very first intro to Rotel tomatoes was my 1st Nashville football party. Rotel dip is amazing and has been imported to home (spent more time in Colorado so green chilli is the best - but takes a lot more work).
This is almost the same way i do it. What goes really well with it is a can of corn and i use butter instead of oil. Sometimes i add a diced potato or a carrot but its optional.
But what kicks the whole thing up a notch is adding cinnamon and chocolate. I know it sounds wierd but this goes extremely well with this dish. You definately have to try this. Just google it you see im not kidding you ;D. Btw oregano can be grown easily in your garden. Even if it snows in the winter it will come back the next year even bigger.
I used this recipe tonight. It tasted great, the family loved it. Thanks for posting it!
I'm in the process of making this for dinner.
It's all simmering right now, the tastes that I've had are VERY good.
I think I'll try lowering the the chili powered next time, and should have been more cautious this time, it's not too hot but it's close to too hot :p
I cut the chili powder to 1 tablespoon and that work for our tastes. Excellent recipe.
Having watched a lot of chili making videos, I liked how simple yours is. You discarded the liquid from the canned beans, & I've noticed that people are divided 1/3 on whether to drain the beans, drain & rinse or use liquid & beans in a chili. Wish you spoke on why you went with the drain .
Probably because otherwise it would be too much unwanted liquid in a 15 minute meal, and rinsing it is an unnecessary extra step. The bean liquid has good flavour and a bit of thickening action though, and I'm pretty sure Kenji has thrown the lot in on previous chilli type videos.
I made this last night and it was so good! I added garbanzo beans cause I like them 😈 haha thanks for the beanclusivity 💝
Kenji is the man! I fell in love over the chorizo grilled cheese video. Nothing but love and good vibes over here
“15 Minute Chili” pulls out the mortar and pestle lmaooo
I like chili regardless of their beaniness. It's the sauce and heat that make it a treat.
Just in time for the colddddd in Canada! Thanks Chef!
The compost bin is an instant sub for me as a first time viewer
Hes a professional chef thats at the point he doesnt care about tradition or expectation, he just kicks ass and records it. What a gentelman.
Frankie Celenza always says "as long as you know the rules you're allowed to break them"
Thanks for going to all of this trouble. I really appreciate it and I’m looking forward to giving this recipe a try.
This man is a treasure. We must protect him.
I enjoy these videos SO much. AND I learn from them, what a combo
Kenji, thank you for another personal visit to your kitchen! I love seeing that I do some of the same things as someone with your skill. One thing I always struggle with - how do you keep your board from taking on the garlic and onion smells?
Oil it regularly.
I love the little spells he casts on his compost bin after tossing onions in it.
Bro, kenji just ate a spoonful of chili directly out of a boiling pot, mans got a tongue of steel
That was super impressive I'd be out of tastebuds for 24 hours if I pulled that stunt off
It's from cooking in restaurants. You quickly develop an asbestos tongue and hands because it's a job requirement. Also, his knife skills show he's familiar with chopping 10 lb bags of onions without breaking a sweat.
Thank you to this video for giving me a basic chili technique that I had been searching for. Made something like this twice with this template, and both times it came out bomb. Kenji, love your videos and all your content. Hearing about the "impossible meat" chili did depress me though. 🙂
I do like easy. I'll have to give this a shot!
I love this concept so please, yes, post more of them. Thank you!
Hey Kenji, not being nosy but since you left and moved away from the restaurant. What have you been up to? Do you own or work at a local restaurant or just focusing on contents (books and RUclips). We appreciate all the great tips and contents you share with us. God bless
I think he finished his book 'The Wok'. He also writes articles for the New York Times. Maybe he has other projects we don't know about yet.
Did a variation on this with venison (because it's what we had) the other week. Riffed my own recipe, but we ended up surprisingly similar! Results were delicious.
I was literally wondering how lean the beef was 5 seconds before you mentioned it. 👍
I was wondering the same; in case anyone else is wondering he says it at @11:55 - it's 80/20
Just made this for my partner’s birthday! They loved it :)
Happy birthday!
I love to use some cayenne pepper in my chili, I recommend it.
Chef John? That u?
a little trick, you can reduce the whole jug of chicken broth to enhance the power of the flavor and then just add it all instead of parting it, awesome recipe excellently explained, ps fish sauce is amazing, i add it to my french onion soup, with the white wine deglaze the pan after breaking down the brown onions
5:50 Kenji you gotta drop the steamed ham recipe
I thought we were having steamed clams…?
straight out of Albany
I don't really use masa, but I always have a few sad tortillas hanging around. I just chop them up small and add them for thickening and some nice flavor. Beer never hurts as some of the liquid either.
I'm sure everyone else has said this multiple times in the comments but just the fact that he is considerate and inclusive by ending every video with 'guys and gals and non-binary pals' endears him to me enormously.
It's so easy, encompassing and nice on the ears that in a better world it would become a standard friendly way of saying goodbye.
I like that you slightly adjust to what you have. I'm just an amateur guy cook, but part of the fun for me is just ad libbing slightly, according to my mood/time/and what I have on hand . It's not always exactly the same taste, but I don't care, as long as it's good. If it were a job or occasion, I guess I would want to be more precise; but I'm mostly just cooking for me. What I'm most interested in, from you, are the Ideas, not the precise measurements/ingredients; and you are great at that!
"If you like beans in chili, put beans in chili. If you don't like beans in chili, but you dislike someone who also doesn't like beans in chili more than you dislike beans in chili, put beans in chili."
-You Suck At Cooking
Fish sauce is just Salt+. It's salt, plus sooooo much more. It belongs in... almost everything. And Red Boat is 1000% the best.
Thank you for this. I feel wholly vindicated in my use of fish sauce now.
Just a thought: You should specify what kind of oil you use in every video :)
Just made some ground beef chili while watching 👍
It's probably my favorite thing to do while cooking is watching cooking videos 😆
Good stuff kenji.
Cook on brother!
Kenji you should do a surprise ending where you remove all the beans from this one.
Thank you kenji for the fritos pie reference. At my chilli party we have hot chilli, plenty of fritos, hot sauce, crema, and cilantro. Plus pickled onions and chillis.
My mom lied to my family growing up by making chili (The best in the world) and letting us believe she was a master. Turned out she would buy chili from a local burger joint called "B-Bop's" and put it in a crockpot before we got home from school. We were devastated when we found out the truth.
just done this as a total cooking rookie and it turned out amazing! thanks a lot