Posted on 02/10/2022 12:51:44 PM PST by mylife
Back in my 20s, when I was working as a sports reporter, I long-distance dated a guy from Cincinnati.
The first time he said we should “make it a three-way” my eyes bugged out of my head. No, it’s not as dirty as you’re probably thinking. But I wasn’t sure what to expect.
Cincinnati is known for many things. Hosting “Oktoberfest Zinzinnati,” the biggest Octoberfest in the U.S. Its ongoing hatred of Bengals owner Mike Brown And, most importantly, its love for a very particular type of chili.
“Cincinnati-style chili is a big thing,” says Joe O’Brien, a father of three who graduated from Oak Hills High School in Cincinnati in 1994. “People who visit have a binary reaction. You either love it or hate it.”
It’s nothing like Texas chili or any other type of chili. It’s runny. Its Greek-style tomato sauce makes it tangy instead of spicy. It’s made with tiny bits of crumbled-up ground beef boiled in water (or broth) and mixed with an assortment of spices (cumin, cloves, allspice) and tomato paste, among other ingredients, into a sludge-like concoction.
“It almost has a moussaka-like quality to it,” O’Brien says. Others say it looks like diarrhea. (You can read more about the Greek history of Cincinnati-style chili here.)
Some recipes, like the one by Meggan Hill, the executive chef and head of the Culinary Hill Test Kitchen, include apple cider vinegar, chicken broth, brown sugar, and garlic. Regardless of how it’s made, oyster crackers are thrown in to soak up the juices.
“It is so unique,” O’Brien says. “You have to forget the word ‘chili’ because there’s no other style of chili you can compare it to.”
(Excerpt) Read more at thetakeout.com ...
I grew up in and returned to Kentucky. It’s an acquired taste...I never did acquire it. Always reminded me of a lot of leftovers, although I would pick it over dog food.
is burgoo any better?
I never had it but they once had a promo for a "six-way".
I was always curious what the sixth ingredient was.
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