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Hill Country Chili Powder
Chili powder is used in many recipes, from barbecue sauces to tacos, but it's the signature seasoning of Chili Con Carne (chili with meat), the classic cowboy chuck wagon trail stew. The best American chili powders have several layers of complexity and heat that come from the different types of chiles to form their base.The Chili Legend
As with many spices and seasonings chili powder is the center of a great culinary food feude. Which region makes the best chili (Texas, New Mexico, Arizona or Wyoming) and then of course the "beans or no beans" viewpoint that can get as equally heated. Still more debate centers on the argument of where the first bowl of chili was made and who made it. Some believe it was introduced just west of Laramie, Wyoming in the early nineteenth century (this view is shared by those that believe it was born on a Texas cattle drive). Others have a more gruesome story of infuriated Aztecs who battled invading Spanish conquistadors, cut up the dead Spaniards they defeated, seasoned them with a variety of chile peppers, and ate them.While both of these are colorful versions of history and it may be impossible to be sure which is true there are early writings that can't be ignored. The mixing of beans, herbs, meat and peppers was used by the Aztecs, Incas and Mayan Indians well before Columbus and the conquistadors stumbled onto their land and certainly long before cowboys roamed the central prairies.
Today chili powder blends are very popular in American cuisine and the first commercial blend of chili powder in the U.S. were created in 1894 by William Gebhardt for his chili con carne. Gebhardt had a saloon in New Braunfels, Texas and his chili was the town's favorite dish. Gebhardt's challenge was that the chile peppers he used were only available at certain times of the year. So as any resourceful businessman would do he imported some ancho chiles from Mexico and processed the peppers through a small meat grinder.
What's the Difference between Chili and Chile?
In this country the terms "chili" and "chile" are often used interchangeably, but they certainly don't mean the same thing. Chili powder (chili with an "i") is typically a blend of ground chile pods and other spices and herbs including cumin, oregano, garlic, onion and salt. The chile peppers used in a chili powder are typically cayenne chiles or another species of Capsicum annuum. Some of the popular other chiles used include ancho, jalapeño, New Mexico and pasilla chiles. As a result of the various heat levels of these different chiles the spiciness of any given chili powder can vary.Chile powder (chile with an "e") usually refers to pure ground chile pod with no additional ingredients. To be sure which is which you should check the ingredient label. For most recipes we prefer using a pure ground chile powder, as it allows me to add (or not to add) additional spices and herbs for that particular dish.
In most other countries, chile powder is just ground red chiles, usually just one cultivar (often cayenne), but sometimes several chiles, and these are much hotter than American chili powder.
Inspired by...
Our Hill Country Chili Powder blend was inspired by the beautiful hilly area around Austin Texas. And true to its Tex-Mex roots this chili powder has a flavor that is deep, complicated and loaded with spicy peppery heat without being overly hot. This chili powder is easily our best selling chili powder. If you prefer your chili powder loaded with heat then you will want to try our El Paso Chili Powder (Hot) version.What's In It
Hand blended from ancho chile powder, New Mexico chile powder, onion, chipotle chile powder, cumin, garlic, Mexican oregano and allspice. Best of all this blend is salt free!Helpful Hints
You will also find a wide selection of chili powders to suite just about any flavor style - from our classic general purpose Mild Chili Powder to several of our newer versions including our Chili Con Carne and Sweet Chili Powder you're sure to find one that suits your needs and flavor preferences.The Hill Country Chili powder makes a very tasty Easy Homemade Chili of course, but you can also use it as a side with some Sweet Potato Chili Fries or take it with you with some Hill Country Spiced Pecans.
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