The eternal Question

[Ohiogirl81]

I don't like the chili mix. Too salty. Maybe I'm doing something wrong ...

[AeroGuyDC]

Chili? You mean that mystery concoction disguised as a delicacy that only those who've never lived beyond the Ohio River enjoy? lol In all my years of travel, I can easily say that no where on earth does a spaghetti-sauce-like mystery goo like you find in Cincinnati qualify as chili!

[HuskerDu]

Originally Posted by AeroGuyDC

Chili? You mean that mystery concoction disguised as a delicacy that only those who've never lived beyond the Ohio River enjoy? lol In all my years of travel, I can easily say that no where on earth does a spaghetti-sauce-like mystery goo like you find in Cincinnati qualify as chili!

Greece... they just don't call it chili.

I dated a girl in Kiato, and when I went to visit one time, she cooked a pasta dish for me she called *something* Macaroni. I sat down to eat, took one bite and OMG it was exactly like skyline except for with white cheese.

[jlawrence01]

Originally Posted by HuskerDu

Greece... they just don't call it chili.

I dated a girl in Kiato, and when I went to visit one time, she cooked a pasta dish for me she called *something* Macaroni. I sat down to eat, took one bite and OMG it was exactly like skyline except for with white cheese.

I had the same deja vu moment. I was working for a foodservice company and prepared the taco filling per the recipe. When I went to taste it, it was exactly the same as Cincinnati chili.

[jlawrence01]

Originally Posted by Ohiogirl81

I don't like the chili mix. Too salty. Maybe I'm doing something wrong ...

I agree with you, especially if you use a smaller amount of ground beef. Increase the ground beef a bit and it becomes less salty.

[Cincy-Rise]

Originally Posted by AeroGuyDC

Chili? You mean that mystery concoction disguised as a delicacy that only those who've never lived beyond the Ohio River enjoy? lol In all my years of travel, I can easily say that no where on earth does a spaghetti-sauce-like mystery goo like you find in Cincinnati qualify as chili!

Did you really not know this was a Greek thing?

[aquila]

A little off-topic, but it relates to Cincinnati chili...

Many, many blue moons ago my mom was making homemade Cincinnati chili in a crock pot. No one was home and when I saw it on the counter I proceeded to grab a spoon and dipped into it, not realizing it was extremely hot. (You can see where this is going, can't you? ) I stuck that spoonful right in my mouth, and proceeded to swallow away. Yes, I could tell it was hot, but I didn't know what to do! I ended up with major blisters inside my mouth and throat! I later told my aunt about it and she said "Well why didn't you just spit it out? It would have been a lot easier to clean off the wall, don't you think?"

Okay, boring story. Just something that came to my mind. Movin' on....

[AeroGuyDC]

Originally Posted by Cincy-Rise

Did you really not know this was a Greek thing?

For those that couldn't decipher my tongue-in-cheek response, I'm mainly referring to "chili" as we know it here in the United States (as I should have said). I know that southerners and southwesterner's scoff at the notion that Cincinnati chili is "chili" ("Where's the beef? Where's the beans?"). As far as Greece goes, no, I have not experienced Greek chili. But as chili-lover, now that I know that, I doubt that I will try Greek chili either should I ever visit that country!

[jlawrence01]

Originally Posted by AeroGuyDC

For those that couldn't decipher my tongue-in-cheek response, I'm mainly referring to "chili" as we know it here in the United States (as I should have said). I know that southerners and southwesterner's scoff at the notion that Cincinnati chili is "chili" ("Where's the beef? Where's the beans?").

Give a Texan the finest NC BBQ and the first thing they are going to say is "that's not BBQ!"

Everyone has their own little definition of what "real" chili is like.

This weekend, I am making chile colorado which will be pretty close to what Texans like. But Cincinnati chili is still one of my favorites.

[soozycue520]

Originally Posted by AeroGuyDC

For those that couldn't decipher my tongue-in-cheek response, I'm mainly referring to "chili" as we know it here in the United States (as I should have said). I know that southerners and southwesterner's scoff at the notion that Cincinnati chili is "chili" ("Where's the beef? Where's the beans?"). As far as Greece goes, no, I have not experienced Greek chili. But as chili-lover, now that I know that, I doubt that I will try Greek chili either should I ever visit that country!

It is not "Greek chili". Cincinnati chili is based on a Greek dish called stifado, which is a stew made with different kinds of stew meat, but has pretty consistent spice mix, similar to Cincinnati chili. When Empress Chili first opened downtown, it was the Empress restaurant, named after the Empress burlesque theatre next door. The Greek food they were serving did not sell well to the German immigrants frequenting the theatre, and the downtown area. So the owner made a "chili" with ground meat and the spice mix used in stifado to serve the theatre patrons after the show let out, late night. Nicholas Lambrinides {who started Skyline Chili} worked for owners Tom and John Kiradjieff.

So if you go to Greece, stifado is what you want to try. If you ask for chili, they won't know what the heck you are talking about.