Comal County History and Culture :: Recipes :: Easy German Texas Chili :: Comal County Genealogy Society

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	Easy German Texas Chili
Wendel	Posted: 19.12.2006, 00:07
registered: Jan. 2006 Posts: 13 Status: offline last visit: 20.09.08	Ingredients: 1 lb ground beef 1 cup chopped onion (optional) 1 clove garlic, minced (optional) 1 tbsp Gebhardt Chili Powder 2 tsp ground cumin 1 tsp salt 1 (32 oz) jar Picante Sauce (pick your heat – Mild, Medium, Hot) 3 tbsp masa harina or flour (optional) ¼ cup water (optional) Directions: 1. In a skillet, brown ground beef, chopped onion (optional), and minced garlic (optional). 2. Combine ground beef mixture, Chili Powder, ground cumin, salt and Picante Sauce in a slow cooker. 3. Set on low and cook for 8 hours, stirring occasionally. 4. For thicker chili (optional), combine masa and water. 4a. Pour mixture evenly over the chili and mix. 4b. Cook for an additional 15 minutes. Prep Time: 20 minutes Cooking Time: 8 hours Servings: 5 Description: So what’s so “German” about Chili? Chili power was invented by a German Immigrant by the name of William Gebhardt. He developed his mixture of ground chili and spices in a small restaurant in New Braunfels, Texas. Since chiles were only available after the summer harvest, chili was only a seasonal food during that era. Gebhardt solved the problem by importing Mexican ancho chiles, grinding the peppers through a small home meat grinder three times, and then dried the ground pepper into a powder. The resulting mixture could be used to serve Chili year-round. Gebhardt moved to San Antonio in 1890 and registered Eagle Brand Chili Powder in 1896. The Gebhardt brand of chili powder is today regarded by many chili cooks as a premium chili powder and specified by name in their recipes. - Wendel