[Chris P.]

What a great idea David!

Here's a chili I just came up with not long ago:

What you'll need:

meat - the cheap cuts are the best, and they MUST HAVE BONES! <-(very important) Pork shoulder and neck is good, smoked shank, beef ribs, etc... mix them up. Don't bother cutting anything up, it's gonna cook a looooong time.
Onion - don't go light on the onion and don't dice it up into tiny little bits either, but probably no bigger than 1/2" dice, or you can slice it.....
Garlic - again, don't go light and a rough chop is all you need.
Dried hot pepper of your choice
a good quality chili powder
cinnamon (ground)
cocoa (ground)
cumin (whole)
dried beans - pinto, kidney, whatever you want - if dried, soak them overnight first and rinse well.
Fresh pepper of your choice (aneheim, pasilla, etc...)
tomato - whole canned plum tomato works fine if you don't have fresh

Cook the onion in hot olive oil, add garlic and all the spices - you don't need to go heavy on the cinnamon or cocoa, and you can adjust later anyway. Remember, you want just enough of each to provide a hint that they are there. The spices should be in for about 2 minutes (don't BURN them obviously but the heat helps release flavors) Add meat, tomatoes, and enough water to cover everything. Let slow simmer (covered)for 3 hours. Add beans and cook another 1/2 hour. Add the fresh peppers and cook until they are done. Adjust seasonings (add some fresh ground black pepper and some salt too). You can remove the cover later in the process if you want it to reduce a little to your preferred consistency - don't thicken it with "thickeners".

Watch the bones and enjoy with some fresh chopped onion and cilantro and some fresh baked corn bread! (hint on the corn bread: cook it in a cast iron skillet and put the skillet in the oven while the oven is preheating. Then lightly oil it before putting the batter in. It will be that perfect brown and crispy this way.)