How to scale chili for a crowd? (1 Viewer)

[NewlyRetired]

I am going to be making chili for a football get together at my brothers house. It will need to fill around 10 people, 8 of which are adult males.

I am going to be following a relatively new recipe that involves a rack of spare ribs as one of the meats. The spare ribs will braise in the chili until fork tender and then be removed from the pan, all the meat will be stripped and put back into the chili.

The other meats I will be using with the rack of spare ribs will be sirloin tips and coarse ground beef.

How many pounds would you estimate to use for the sirloin tips and ground beef to feed 10? I was leaning towards 2-2.5 pounds of each to go with the ribs. So roughly 4-5 pounds of the beef, plus what ever I get in weight from the rack of ribs.

There will be the normal cavalcade of vegetables as well, including bell peppers, jalapenos. habaneros, onions etc.

 

[El Floppo]

damn... I read "scale" as "climb" and got excited about some kind of competitive chili mountain climbing in front of an audience.

 

[Eephus]

This may be a heretical question but are you adding beans?

 

[Juxtatarot]

Are others bringing dishes?

 

[Scoresman]

This may be a heretical question but are you adding beans?

Controversy surrounding beans aside, I always add beans as an easy way to add "filler" if there are a lot of people I'm cooking for. Especially with meat prices these days.

 

[NewlyRetired]

This may be a heretical question but are you adding beans?

No. Not heresy, I just don't like the taste.

 

[NewlyRetired]

Are others bringing dishes?

Usually my brothers wife makes something but I want to make sure I have enough. Am I way off on my estimates? I don’t have a good feel for how much meat in weight the ribs will be

 

[urbanhack]

I thought this was a scale for heat

 

[pollardsvision]

For catering, the basic number is generally about 1/3rd of a pound of (cooked) meat per person.

With some veggies and if you're brother's wife brings something, the 1/3 lb/person should definitely hold.

But most people for home stuff round up to a half pound, which it sounds like you are pretty much doing.

Your plan sounds great. You'll have some delicious leftovers, and I know your guests will be happy to take some of that home too.

 

[Leroy Hoard]

damn... I read "scale" as "climb" and got excited about some kind of competitive chili mountain climbing in front of an audience.

That's kind of how I read it. I was already wondering if like car racing a certain percentage of people just show up for the crashes.

 

[mr. furley]

3.5 lbs beef

 

[Bracie Smathers]

I am going to be following a relatively new recipe that I made once before, which was great, and involves an rack of spare ribs as one of the meats. The spare ribs will braise in the chili until fork tender and then be removed from the pan, all the meat will be stripped and put back into the chili.

The other meats I will be using with the rack of spare ribs will be sirloin tips and coarse ground beef.

Sounds really good. I hope you share the entire recipe.

 

[NewlyRetired]

A couple of people have messaged me for a general recipe, so here it is below. Any questions or recommendations for changes, let me know. I will leave the amounts up to each individual to scale for their own situation:

==============================

Ingredients

Meats
Spareribs
Sirloin Tips
Coarse Ground Beef

Veggies
Bell Peppers
Jalapeno Peppers
Habanero Peppers
Celery
Vidalia Onion
Garlic

Tomato Products
Passata
Canned diced tomatoes

Liquids
Stock (Homemade if possible, chicken, beef or veggie, water is fine in a pinch)
Hot sauce (choose your favorite)
Honey (Optional, mostly used if you need to tone down the heat)

Spices
Salt
Pepper
Chili Powder
Cumin
Cayenne


Olive oil



Steps

1) Take half of the peppers and celery and all of the onion and garlic. Chop these up and add to food processor or blender. Blend until smooth and set aside as the the base for the sofrito.

2) Cut sirloin tips into chunks easy enough to chew. Separate rib rack into individual ribs. Salt and pepper the ribs, tips and ground beef

3) In a frying pan or cast iron skillet, brown all the meat in hot olive oil. You will need many batches. Set browned meat aside.

4) There should be some fond in the skillet, use a little stock to de-glaze and leave aside.

5) In the pot you will be cooking the chili in, heat up some oil and add the sofrito from the blender/food processor and saute to wake everything up.

6) After a few minutes of sauteing the sofrito, add in your first load of spices and let them bloom in the sofrito

7) While sauteing, chop up the remaining peppers and celery into small pieces

8) Add your tomato products (diced and passata) to the sofrito and mix. Add in the liquid from the skillet you set aside earlier when browning the meat.

9) Add in your stock. With all the liquid now in, you can add your second load of spices to your taste and blend. Add in your hot sauce at this step

10) Add all meat to the pot and the remaining chopped up veggies and bring to a simmer. You can add more stock if needed depending on the consistency you like

11) Cover and let cook for at least 2 hours or until ribs are fork tender

12) When ribs are tender, remove all ribs from pan. Strip all meat off bones and return stripped pork to chili

13) Taste the chili. If too hot for you or your companies liking, add a little honey to tamper it down. This is optional

14) Let blend for about 30 minutes and you can serve or save until next day



Notes:

1) I recommend cooking this the day before. The ribs and tips will release a lot of fat and grease during the cook. The next day you can easily remove most of this as it will solidify in the fridge. If you want to cook same day, make sure you have a good way to skim or remove the fat/grease that will hover at the top of the chili.

2) Step 12 is actually optional. I do it because I will be in a setting where we will be eating in front of a tv watching football. If you are in a table setting, the original recipe just leaves the ribs on the bone and you just chow on them while eating the rest with a spoon.

3) The sofrito and the rib bones help give this chili a unique flavor that is a little different from the common chili's we make. Hope you like it if you try it.

 

[NewlyRetired]

I am going to be following a relatively new recipe that I made once before, which was great, and involves an rack of spare ribs as one of the meats. The spare ribs will braise in the chili until fork tender and then be removed from the pan, all the meat will be stripped and put back into the chili.

The other meats I will be using with the rack of spare ribs will be sirloin tips and coarse ground beef.

Sounds really good. I hope you share the entire recipe.

I was typing it as you responded . Give it a read through and let me know if you have any questions or recommendations for changes/additions

 

[Parrothead]

This may be a heretical question but are you adding beans?

not if he is making chili

 

[General Malaise]

A couple of people have messaged me for a general recipe, so here it is below. Any questions or recommendations for changes, let me know. I will leave the amounts up to each individual to scale for their own situation:

==============================

Ingredients

Meats
Spareribs
Sirloin Tips
Coarse Ground Beef

Veggies
Bell Peppers
Jalapeno Peppers
Habanero Peppers
Celery
Vidalia Onion
Garlic

Tomato Products
Passata
Canned diced tomatoes

Liquids
Stock (Homemade if possible, chicken, beef or veggie, water is fine in a pinch)
Hot sauce (choose your favorite)
Honey (Optional, mostly used if you need to tone down the heat)

Spices
Salt
Pepper
Chili Powder
Cumin
Cayenne


Olive oil



Steps

1) Take half of the peppers and celery and all of the onion and garlic. Chop these up and add to food processor or blender. Blend until smooth and set aside as the the base for the sofrito.

2) Cut sirloin tips into chunks easy enough to chew. Separate rib rack into individual ribs. Salt and pepper the ribs, tips and ground beef

3) In a frying pan or cast iron skillet, brown all the meat in hot olive oil. You will need many batches. Set browned meat aside.

4) There should be some fond in the skillet, use a little stock to de-glaze and leave aside.

5) In the pot you will be cooking the chili in, heat up some oil and add the sofrito from the blender/food processor and saute to wake everything up.

6) After a few minutes of sauteing the sofrito, add in your first load of spices and let them bloom in the sofrito

7) While sauteing, chop up the remaining peppers and celery into small pieces

8) Add your tomato products (diced and passata) to the sofrito and mix. Add in the liquid from the skillet you set aside earlier when browning the meat.

9) Add in your stock. With all the liquid now in, you can add your second load of spices to your taste and blend. Add in your hot sauce at this step

10) Add all meat to pan and the remaining chopped up veggies and bring to a simmer. You can add more stock if needed depending on the consistency you like

11) Cover and let cook for at least 2 hours or until ribs are fork tender

12) When ribs are tender, remove all ribs from pan. Strip all meat off bones and return stripped pork to chili

13) Taste the chili. If too hot for your or your companies liking, add a little honey to tamper it down. This is optional

14) Let blend for about 30 minutes and you can serve or save until next day



Notes:

1) I recommend cooking this the day before. The ribs and tips will release a lot of fat and grease during the cook. The next day you can easily remove most of this as it will solidify in the fridge. If you want to cook same day, make sure you have a good way to skim or remove the fat/grease that will hover at the top of the chili.

2) Step 12 is actually optional. I do it because I will be in a setting where we will be eating in front of a tv watching football. If you are in a table setting, the original recipe just leaves the ribs on the bone and you just chow on them while eating the rest with a spoon.

3) The sofrito and the rib bones help give this chili a unique flavor that is a little different from the common chili's we make. Hope you like it if you try it.

Is there a video for this? I'm not understanding the rib process in my head. A pan? Do you mean Dutch Oven or Stockpot? I think of a pan as something scrambled eggs go into.

No beer?

 

[NewlyRetired]

A couple of people have messaged me for a general recipe, so here it is below. Any questions or recommendations for changes, let me know. I will leave the amounts up to each individual to scale for their own situation:

==============================

Ingredients

Meats
Spareribs
Sirloin Tips
Coarse Ground Beef

Veggies
Bell Peppers
Jalapeno Peppers
Habanero Peppers
Celery
Vidalia Onion
Garlic

Tomato Products
Passata
Canned diced tomatoes

Liquids
Stock (Homemade if possible, chicken, beef or veggie, water is fine in a pinch)
Hot sauce (choose your favorite)
Honey (Optional, mostly used if you need to tone down the heat)

Spices
Salt
Pepper
Chili Powder
Cumin
Cayenne


Olive oil



Steps

1) Take half of the peppers and celery and all of the onion and garlic. Chop these up and add to food processor or blender. Blend until smooth and set aside as the the base for the sofrito.

2) Cut sirloin tips into chunks easy enough to chew. Separate rib rack into individual ribs. Salt and pepper the ribs, tips and ground beef

3) In a frying pan or cast iron skillet, brown all the meat in hot olive oil. You will need many batches. Set browned meat aside.

4) There should be some fond in the skillet, use a little stock to de-glaze and leave aside.

5) In the pot you will be cooking the chili in, heat up some oil and add the sofrito from the blender/food processor and saute to wake everything up.

6) After a few minutes of sauteing the sofrito, add in your first load of spices and let them bloom in the sofrito

7) While sauteing, chop up the remaining peppers and celery into small pieces

8) Add your tomato products (diced and passata) to the sofrito and mix. Add in the liquid from the skillet you set aside earlier when browning the meat.

9) Add in your stock. With all the liquid now in, you can add your second load of spices to your taste and blend. Add in your hot sauce at this step

10) Add all meat to pan and the remaining chopped up veggies and bring to a simmer. You can add more stock if needed depending on the consistency you like

11) Cover and let cook for at least 2 hours or until ribs are fork tender

12) When ribs are tender, remove all ribs from pan. Strip all meat off bones and return stripped pork to chili

13) Taste the chili. If too hot for your or your companies liking, add a little honey to tamper it down. This is optional

14) Let blend for about 30 minutes and you can serve or save until next day



Notes:

1) I recommend cooking this the day before. The ribs and tips will release a lot of fat and grease during the cook. The next day you can easily remove most of this as it will solidify in the fridge. If you want to cook same day, make sure you have a good way to skim or remove the fat/grease that will hover at the top of the chili.

2) Step 12 is actually optional. I do it because I will be in a setting where we will be eating in front of a tv watching football. If you are in a table setting, the original recipe just leaves the ribs on the bone and you just chow on them while eating the rest with a spoon.

3) The sofrito and the rib bones help give this chili a unique flavor that is a little different from the common chili's we make. Hope you like it if you try it.

Is there a video for this? I'm not understanding the rib process in my head. A pan? Do you mean Dutch Oven or Stockpot? I think of a pan as something scrambled eggs go into.

No beer?

Sorry, that was a typo, I meant a normal pot that you would cook chili in. Stock pot or Dutch oven is fine.

I have blended the recipe from a few different sources. This one is kind of similar if you want to see in general. I recommend low volume as the chef is a bit of a clown.

- YouTube

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.

www.youtube.com

 

[Scoresman]

A couple of people have messaged me for a general recipe, so here it is below. Any questions or recommendations for changes, let me know. I will leave the amounts up to each individual to scale for their own situation:

==============================

Ingredients

Meats
Spareribs
Sirloin Tips
Coarse Ground Beef

Veggies
Bell Peppers
Jalapeno Peppers
Habanero Peppers
Celery
Vidalia Onion
Garlic

Tomato Products
Passata
Canned diced tomatoes

Liquids
Stock (Homemade if possible, chicken, beef or veggie, water is fine in a pinch)
Hot sauce (choose your favorite)
Honey (Optional, mostly used if you need to tone down the heat)

Spices
Salt
Pepper
Chili Powder
Cumin
Cayenne


Olive oil



Steps

1) Take half of the peppers and celery and all of the onion and garlic. Chop these up and add to food processor or blender. Blend until smooth and set aside as the the base for the sofrito.

2) Cut sirloin tips into chunks easy enough to chew. Separate rib rack into individual ribs. Salt and pepper the ribs, tips and ground beef

3) In a frying pan or cast iron skillet, brown all the meat in hot olive oil. You will need many batches. Set browned meat aside.

4) There should be some fond in the skillet, use a little stock to de-glaze and leave aside.

5) In the pot you will be cooking the chili in, heat up some oil and add the sofrito from the blender/food processor and saute to wake everything up.

6) After a few minutes of sauteing the sofrito, add in your first load of spices and let them bloom in the sofrito

7) While sauteing, chop up the remaining peppers and celery into small pieces

8) Add your tomato products (diced and passata) to the sofrito and mix. Add in the liquid from the skillet you set aside earlier when browning the meat.

9) Add in your stock. With all the liquid now in, you can add your second load of spices to your taste and blend. Add in your hot sauce at this step

10) Add all meat to pan and the remaining chopped up veggies and bring to a simmer. You can add more stock if needed depending on the consistency you like

11) Cover and let cook for at least 2 hours or until ribs are fork tender

12) When ribs are tender, remove all ribs from pan. Strip all meat off bones and return stripped pork to chili

13) Taste the chili. If too hot for your or your companies liking, add a little honey to tamper it down. This is optional

14) Let blend for about 30 minutes and you can serve or save until next day



Notes:

1) I recommend cooking this the day before. The ribs and tips will release a lot of fat and grease during the cook. The next day you can easily remove most of this as it will solidify in the fridge. If you want to cook same day, make sure you have a good way to skim or remove the fat/grease that will hover at the top of the chili.

2) Step 12 is actually optional. I do it because I will be in a setting where we will be eating in front of a tv watching football. If you are in a table setting, the original recipe just leaves the ribs on the bone and you just chow on them while eating the rest with a spoon.

3) The sofrito and the rib bones help give this chili a unique flavor that is a little different from the common chili's we make. Hope you like it if you try it.

Is there a video for this? I'm not understanding the rib process in my head. A pan? Do you mean Dutch Oven or Stockpot? I think of a pan as something scrambled eggs go into.

No beer?

I haven't been adding beer to mine for a while. It's not bad in chili for sure, but I feel like I was adding it more for the story of telling people "It has beer in it!" than for what it actually added.

Most important is to make your own chili powder/paste, and using good beef, not just ground beef. Last time, I smoked my meats and it was a huge game changer.

Oh, and MSG. I'm adding MSG to tons of stuff these days. Such a great addition.

 

[Bracie Smathers]

recommendations for changes/additions

Sounds great as is. The only thing I could suggest is some turmeric.
Not for flavor, but for a nice lighter coloring and 'medicinally' as an anti-inflammatory spice.

 

[Joe Bryant]

This may be a heretical question but are you adding beans?

Not heretical. But already answered.

When he said he was making chili, that means no beans.

 

[Joe Bryant]

I am going to be making chili for a football get together at my brothers house. It will need to fill around 10 people, 8 of which are adult males.

I am going to be following a relatively new recipe that I made once before, which was great, and involves an rack of spare ribs as one of the meats. The spare ribs will braise in the chili until fork tender and then be removed from the pan, all the meat will be stripped and put back into the chili.

The other meats I will be using with the rack of spare ribs will be sirloin tips and coarse ground beef.

How many pounds would you estimate to use for the sirloin tips and ground beef to feed 10? I was leaning towards 2-2.5 pounds of each to go with the ribs. So roughly 4-5 pounds of the beef, plus what ever I get in weight from the rack of ribs.

There will be the normal cavalcade of vegetables as well, including bell peppers, jalapenos. habaneros, onions etc.

For the question, how many people does this recipe normally serve?

I'd just do the math and multiply.

Chili freezes pretty well if you make too much so I'd err on the side of too much.

 

[Joe Bryant]

Did you mean to write "celery" on the ingredient list?

 

[Joe Bryant]

Matty Matheson is fun. I've no doubt his recipe would be good.

The ribs cooking in the liquid is a "Sunday Gravy" type thing for pasta sauce. Will add a lot of fat and gelatin that will be good.

 

[NewlyRetired]

Did you mean to write "celery" on the ingredient list?

Yes

 

[NewlyRetired]

I am going to be making chili for a football get together at my brothers house. It will need to fill around 10 people, 8 of which are adult males.

I am going to be following a relatively new recipe that I made once before, which was great, and involves an rack of spare ribs as one of the meats. The spare ribs will braise in the chili until fork tender and then be removed from the pan, all the meat will be stripped and put back into the chili.

The other meats I will be using with the rack of spare ribs will be sirloin tips and coarse ground beef.

How many pounds would you estimate to use for the sirloin tips and ground beef to feed 10? I was leaning towards 2-2.5 pounds of each to go with the ribs. So roughly 4-5 pounds of the beef, plus what ever I get in weight from the rack of ribs.

There will be the normal cavalcade of vegetables as well, including bell peppers, jalapenos. habaneros, onions etc.

For the question, how many people does this recipe normally serve?

I'd just do the math and multiply.

Chili freezes pretty well if you make too much so I'd err on the side of too much.

I have blended a bunch of different recipes together. But I think I will be fine with 4-5 pounds of beef with the ribs.

 

[Joe Bryant]

What are the recipes you've blended?

Looks like a lot of it's Matheson's.

 

[NewlyRetired]

What are the recipes you've blended?

Looks like a lot of it's Matheson's.

The other recipes are just random chilis I have made over the years.

The spare rib idea came from Matty.

The differences are if memory serves:

He is using short ribs, Hungarian peppers, beer, no diced tomatoes, different spice blend, ground pork, no stock, and cilantro. Mine differs in these areas. There may be other differences I am forgetting.

The general cooking technique is very similar.

 

[Mrs. Rannous]

Will you have corn bread? Seems necessary.

I'd omit the bell peppers. They contaminate every other flavor.

Sounds like fun.

 

[Judge Smails]

Looks like a great chili. Not the best, but I’m biased

 

[NewlyRetired]

Will you have corn bread? Seems necessary.

I'd omit the bell peppers. They contaminate every other flavor.

Sounds like fun.

No corn bread, I am not a fan.

For 30 years I have used bell peppers in my chili. I think my muscle memory would spaz out if I omitted them

 

[Eephus]

Will you have corn bread? Seems necessary.

I'd omit the bell peppers. They contaminate every other flavor.

Sounds like fun.

No corn bread, I am not a fan.

For 30 years I have used bell peppers in my chili. I think my muscle memory would spaz out if I omitted them

Do you roast them first?

 

[NewlyRetired]

Will you have corn bread? Seems necessary.

I'd omit the bell peppers. They contaminate every other flavor.

Sounds like fun.

No corn bread, I am not a fan.

For 30 years I have used bell peppers in my chili. I think my muscle memory would spaz out if I omitted them

Do you roast them first?

Usually yes. But not a deep roast, just enough to wake them up. In this recipe they are part of the sofrito so I have not yet decided what to do with them. Roasting them first should still work in the sofrito

 

[SWC]

no matter what you do just make sure you throw three grape jolly ranchers in to the chile they add an amazing zesty grape spicy flavor take that to the bank brochachos

 

[encaitar]

I like the recipe. Looks tasty. I'd probably go with reconstituted Ancho and Guajillo chili peppers in the sofrito, but that's personal preference.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Nothing to add for the main topic but I just had a baked potato fresh out of the oven, topped it with turkey chili we made Monday Night and have been eating on for 3-4 days now
MNF, Tuesday chili dogs, Wednesday chili-mac, Thursday chili baked potato and maybe squeeze out one or two more chili dogs tonight watching the game

-I love making a big batch of turkey chili/regular chili and having food to eat for most of the week in the fridge ready to heat up
Chili is one of those odd meals that gets better the 2nd or 3rd day when you reheat it

You are hard pressed the find the versatility of a pot of chili in your fridge

 

[NewlyRetired]

I like the recipe. Looks tasty. I'd probably go with reconstituted Ancho and Guajillo chili peppers in the sofrito, but that's personal preference.

I like this. i have seen dried ones of these at my local market. How long does it take to re hydrate these?

 

[Ron Swanson]

I like the recipe. Looks tasty. I'd probably go with reconstituted Ancho and Guajillo chili peppers in the sofrito, but that's personal preference.

I like this. i have seen dried ones of these at my local market. How long does it take to re hydrate these?

20 minutes ish in hot tap water. Rinse the outside first to remove any dust or dirt and remove the stem and seeds. I find that easier to do when dry. The soaking liquid can also be used in small amounts....sometimes it can get a little bitter.

 

[encaitar]

I like the recipe. Looks tasty. I'd probably go with reconstituted Ancho and Guajillo chili peppers in the sofrito, but that's personal preference.

I like this. i have seen dried ones of these at my local market. How long does it take to re hydrate these?

20 minutes ish in hot tap water. Rinse the outside first to remove any dust or dirt and remove the stem and seeds. I find that easier to do when dry. The soaking liquid can also be used in small amounts....sometimes it can get a little bitter.

I usually remove the stems and seeds, then toast them in a pan for 30-60 seconds(you can smell when the oils are released) add about a cup or two of water, turn the stove to low and cover them and let them steam/steep for 10 minutes. Doing it this way means there's very little water left when they're done being rehydrated and so i just add everything from the pot to the blender and add a little stock to help smooth them out.

 

[Ilov80s]

You will need a grappling hook, a pair of mountaineering boots and a big silly hat (people like those).

 

[Eephus]

I like the recipe. Looks tasty. I'd probably go with reconstituted Ancho and Guajillo chili peppers in the sofrito, but that's personal preference.

I like this. i have seen dried ones of these at my local market. How long does it take to re hydrate these?

20 minutes ish in hot tap water. Rinse the outside first to remove any dust or dirt and remove the stem and seeds. I find that easier to do when dry. The soaking liquid can also be used in small amounts....sometimes it can get a little bitter.

I usually remove the stems and seeds, then toast them in a pan for 30-60 seconds(you can smell when the oils are released) add about a cup or two of water, turn the stove to low and cover them and let them steam/steep for 10 minutes. Doing it this way means there's very little water left when they're done being rehydrated and so i just add everything from the pot to the blender and add a little stock to help smooth them out.

If we have an cup of leftover coffee from the morning, I'll sometimes use that to rehydrate the peppers

 

[encaitar]

I like the recipe. Looks tasty. I'd probably go with reconstituted Ancho and Guajillo chili peppers in the sofrito, but that's personal preference.

I like this. i have seen dried ones of these at my local market. How long does it take to re hydrate these?

20 minutes ish in hot tap water. Rinse the outside first to remove any dust or dirt and remove the stem and seeds. I find that easier to do when dry. The soaking liquid can also be used in small amounts....sometimes it can get a little bitter.

I usually remove the stems and seeds, then toast them in a pan for 30-60 seconds(you can smell when the oils are released) add about a cup or two of water, turn the stove to low and cover them and let them steam/steep for 10 minutes. Doing it this way means there's very little water left when they're done being rehydrated and so i just add everything from the pot to the blender and add a little stock to help smooth them out.

If we have an cup of leftover coffee from the morning, I'll sometimes use that to rehydrate the peppers

Sounds like a good idea. Also adds a bit of flavor to the dish I imagine.

 

[Hot Sauce Guy]

I am going to be making chili for a football get together at my brothers house. It will need to fill around 10 people, 8 of which are adult males.

I am going to be following a relatively new recipe that involves a rack of spare ribs as one of the meats. The spare ribs will braise in the chili until fork tender and then be removed from the pan, all the meat will be stripped and put back into the chili.

The other meats I will be using with the rack of spare ribs will be sirloin tips and coarse ground beef.

How many pounds would you estimate to use for the sirloin tips and ground beef to feed 10? I was leaning towards 2-2.5 pounds of each to go with the ribs. So roughly 4-5 pounds of the beef, plus what ever I get in weight from the rack of ribs.

There will be the normal cavalcade of vegetables as well, including bell peppers, jalapenos. habaneros, onions etc.

Having some experience in scaling recipes professionally, I’ll offer a bit of advice. It is yours to take or leave, and I’m sure others with experience may agree or disagree with me. There are many paths to the house next door.

1. For the physical scaling to number of guests, if the recipe you have serves 4, it really is just a math problem to scale it out to feed 10.

2.5 x 4 =10

2. I would suggest making enough for 12. Easier to triple a recipe than multiply it by 2.5, and it never hurts to have leftovers. Mainly it’s better to have too much than not enough.

3. Some ingredients don’t scale equally. Salt, in my experience, is one of them. I’d knock off 20% of what the recipe calls for. You can always add a little more to the finished batch - salt’s one of those ingredients you can add at any time. But you can’t take it away if it’s too salty.
Peppers can be like this as well. I wouldn’t necessarily triple the habaneros or ghost, or scorpion peppers (for example) the same way I’d have no issue tripling pasilla, jalapeño, or Serrano peppers.

4. Don’t forget the sour cream, cheese, and a selection of hot sauces. I tend to under-spice a bit when cooking for a crowd. If it’s just me, 7/10 heat is great, but heat’s a bit like salt. You can always add more with hot sauce. You can’t take it out if you’ve stewed it in.

Cheers.

 

[Hot Sauce Guy]

I like the recipe. Looks tasty. I'd probably go with reconstituted Ancho and Guajillo chili peppers in the sofrito, but that's personal preference.

I like this. i have seen dried ones of these at my local market. How long does it take to re hydrate these?

Fun fact: there will be more than enough liquid for the dried peppers to rehydrate in the chili. I’ve made chili dozens of times. I don’t recall ever rehydrating the dried peppers.

That said, usually I’ll use dried and ground for more even distribution.

 

[Hot Sauce Guy]

Oh! One last tip - verbs are awesome.

Smoked onion, fire-roasted tomato, charred peppers.

Playing with fire and smoke during the ingredient prep is a lot more work, but results in a much more complex chili.

 

[Scoresman]

I like the recipe. Looks tasty. I'd probably go with reconstituted Ancho and Guajillo chili peppers in the sofrito, but that's personal preference.

I like this. i have seen dried ones of these at my local market. How long does it take to re hydrate these?

Fun fact: there will be more than enough liquid for the dried peppers to rehydrate in the chili. I’ve made chili dozens of times. I don’t recall ever rehydrating the dried peppers.

That said, usually I’ll use dried and ground for more even distribution.

Rehydrating the chilis and blending into a paste is good for even distribution. I assume that's why most recipes say to rehydrate. Sure, they could probably rehydrate in the chili, but how do you blend it in and distribute at that point? Or do some lucky folks get a big bite of a rehydrated chili when eating?

 

[Hot Sauce Guy]

Sure, they could probably rehydrate in the chili, but how do you blend it in and distribute at that point? Or do some lucky folks get a big bite of a rehydrated chili when eating?

Use dried and ground. Perfectly even distribution. Easy button dot gif.

You actually quoted that part, so not sure why this was in question?

 

[Scoresman]

Sure, they could probably rehydrate in the chili, but how do you blend it in and distribute at that point? Or do some lucky folks get a big bite of a rehydrated chili when eating?

Use dried and ground. Perfectly even distribution. Easy button dot gif.

You actually quoted that part, so not sure why this was in question?

I just wasn't sure how to distribute and incorporate peppers that are rehydrated in the actual chili itself. Would you pull them out to blend?

Drying and grinding separately does make sense. Although if I were being argumentative (lol) I would say that making a puree provides a better texture than powder.

 

[Hot Sauce Guy]

Drying and grinding separately does make sense. Although if I were being argumentative (lol) I would say that making a puree provides a better texture than powder.

When they reconstitute in the solution the texture is gravy.


I cheat a little and buy dried & ground. Saves a lot of effort.
Terrific selection here for reasonable pricing for smaller qtys. I get some of my mash from them for professional use.