The origin of Texas Venison Chili is full of lore and legend, but it may be that the dish originated in its earliest form near the present day city of San Antonio. Everyone has a recipe for chili. There is hot chili, mild chili and chili with beans. There is even designer chili called “White Chicken Chili”, Which is about as close to chili as Texas is to New Jersey!
The Texas Deer Hunting season is fast approaching and I still had some ground venison from last season. To make some room in the freezer and put together a tasty meal, I pulled out 3 lbs of white-tailed deer venison and 1 lb of axis deer venison for this dish.
I for one, like and promote the simplicity of meat, onions and chili peppers. This recipe is made with venison and, properly done, is a lean, free range alternative to beef. The recipe below will feed a pack of people and freezes well. It improves with age, so if there are leftovers, the second and third day warmed up batches are more flavorful than the initial day.
You can also substitute guajillo, pasilla, cascabel, mirasol or mulato chiles for the ancho for different levels of heat and flavor. Experiment with the blend that suits you best.
Please note: There are no tomatoes in this Texas Venison Chili. The base is thick and intensely flavored without them. I do not see the need to add them. Try it without and see for yourself.
The TEXAS VENISON CHILI RECIPE
1 lb thick cut sliced bacon
4 pounds ground venison
2 1/2 Large yellow onions – medium chop
8 cloves roasted garlic
12 Large dried ancho peppers
1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
4 tablespoon ground cumin
2 tablespoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoon dried Mexican oregano
1 tablespoon salt
2 (12-ounce) bottle beer
1 cup of black coffee
2 qts beef or venison stock
2 tablespoons masa harina
Grated cheddar cheese, garnish
Minced yellow onions, garnish
Chopped cilantro
Cornbread, corn muffins or corn tortillas, optional accompaniment
- Dice bacon into small pieces and fry in a large cast iron or heavy pot. While the bacon is rendering, de-stem and de-seed the dried ancho peppers.
- Place the peppers in a small saucepan and cover with water + 1 teaspoon of salt. Simmer the peppers until rehydrated
- Once the bacon is crisp, remove it from the rendered fat with a slotted spoon and drain of excess fat.
- Add the venison to the pot in 1lb batches and brown well.
- Once the venison is browned, remove it from the rendered fat with a slotted spoon and drain of excess fat.
- Add the onions and the roasted garlic to the pot and cook until the onions become clear.
- At this point remove the onions and drain as much fat as you can. This is the key to having a lean healthy chili.
- Add the simmered peppers, the 2 bottles of beer and the cup of coffee to the pot and puree with an immersion mixer until smooth.
- Add the stock to the pot.
- Season with oregano, cumin, salt and cayenne pepper to taste
- Return the bacon, venison and onions to the pot and simmer about 1 hr. Skim off any additional fat that rises during the simmer and discard.
- Add the masa harina and stir well.
- Serve topped with grated cheddar/minced onion and cilantro as preferred
Enjoy this on a cold day, or on a hot day with a cold beer. Either way I think you’ll enjoy this taste of history.