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Lauren's Cincinnati Chili

“Cincinnati's famous chili dates to 1922 when a Moravian immigrant created a dish with Middle Eastern spices including cloves, cinnamon, and allspice; along with chocolate, cayenne pepper, Worcestershire, and tomato sauce; and used the mixture to season ground beef. Served over spaghetti, the spicy dish with many variations has been a hit every since.”

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Reviewed: Jan. 16, 2012

We really, truly wanted to like this. It smelled really good, and I understand and definitely appreciate the love of regional food. Have always wanted to try Cincinnati Chili. Cooked exactly as directed; same proportions, etc. I guess you have to be from Cincinnati, but we just thought this was not so great. I guess we have ruined our palate w/Texas chili, but we couldn't get our taste buds around all those extra spices. They seemed to cover up the taste of whatever it was supposed to be. I'm sorry, and I do want to thank the author for posting. I feel I always learn from cooking different things, and maybe I just don't have the Cincinnati Chili knack. LOL

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Cchm

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Cooking Level: Intermediate

Reviewed: Jan. 9, 2011

Very good! exactly like it should be. The taste may be somewhat of an acquired one however. We love it! 8/1/11 made it again and it was great. I used sweet chocolate(didnt have anything else), diced tomatoes instead of sauce. Still super delicious!

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3 users found this review helpful

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Cozmo1998j

Reviewed: Oct. 23, 2010

Very easy recipe and exceptional taste. Another one of those recipes that tastes better a day or two later. It has a bit of a kick to it so you may want to cut back the cayenne pepper to a 1/4 tsp.

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3 users found this review helpful

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properethel

Reviewed: Oct. 6, 2010

This was one terrific chili, Lauren. Native Ohioans can argue about the best "copy cat" recipes, but this one is truly delicious and easy. I just browned the beef, and mixed all of the ingredients the night before. I placed this in the crockpot on low for twelve hours the next day (yup, really busy day!) and it was delicious over pasta. I added a tad more salt to taste, only tweak. Excellent recipe!

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4 users found this review helpful

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Saveur631

Home Town: Cleveland, Ohio, USA

Living In: Columbus, Ohio, USA

Reviewed: Aug. 28, 2010

Awesome recipe for chili dogs (coneys) the kids love it

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4 users found this review helpful

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duckdog07

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Kings Mills, Ohio, USA

Living In: Columbia, Tennessee, USA

Reviewed: May 22, 2010

I grew up in Cincinnati, eating Skyline Chili EVERY Friday night. Since then, I've become a vegetarian, but still longed for my Cincy Chili fix every now and then. I used this recipe, without altering it aside from using Morningstar Farms "crumbles" in place of the ground beef. It came out great, and definitely what I remembered from all those years ago. Thanks, Lauren, for sharing your recipe. I'm going to go pig out on a bit of nostalgia

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Christy

Reviewed: Feb. 15, 2010

This chili was THE BOMB! It was really simple to make, and it is not time consuming if you make it in a slow cooker, which is what I did. Whole family loved it and everyone had seconds. I was guilty of eating at least three bowls in one sitting myself! :) Fun tip: Play "Guess the Secret Ingredient" with your family. No one except my mom and I could tell that chocolate was the secret ingredient in this rich, suculent chili. Thx for sharing Lauren!

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4 users found this review helpful

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MAC Baby

Cooking Level: Beginning

Home Town: Fort Wayne, Indiana, USA

Living In: Charlotte, North Carolina, USA

Reviewed: Oct. 28, 2009

I've tried several Cincinnati Chili recipes and this is the best! My friend said it was better than Skyline's, which is greasier. This is probably because I used a leaner beef and put the beef in a pot of cold water, brought to almost a boil, skimmed the foam and drained.

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Therese

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Berkley, Michigan, USA

Living In: Barrington, Illinois, USA

Reviewed: Sep. 8, 2009

This was very good stuff! I think I made a version of this a few years ago and don't remember being all that impressed. But this time, with this recipe, I enjoyed it a lot, over four days. I think I'll still always prefer the Tex-Mex, blazing hot kind of chili, but this really grew on me. I used 96% lean ground beef, and a little over 2 lbs. of it (2.13 to be exact). I used two medium-sized yellow onions, and cut a 1-oz. baking chocolate square in half. I put it all in a slow cooker, and since it only has high and low settings (no medium-low), I cooked it on low for the full 5 hours. I served the results over spaghetti. The chili was pretty spicy, and watery, but that's the idea, I gather. The sheer variety of spices might have been lost on my particular palate, but it all tasted good. I'm going to make another batch tomorrow!

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SPOOTY

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Reviewed: Aug. 18, 2009

Definitely a tasty recipe! To those who complained about the spices, you have clearly never tried Cincinnatti style chili! It is delicious and original, and has become my favorite "style" of chili. The recipe is meant to taste different than your average chili, and if you are expecting the "same ole, same ole" chili, try a more common recipe. Cincinnatti chili can't be beat :)

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9 users found this review helpful