Camp Washington Chili Cincinnati-Style Chili Recipe
Camp Washington Chili Cincinnati-Style Chili is a Cincinnati classic: spiced beef chili spooned over spaghetti, buried under shredded cheddar and built into a 3-Way, 4-Way or 5-Way. It is not Texas chili. It is not spaghetti sauce. It is its own glorious local thing, and Cincinnati has the fork skills to prove it.
Yield: 8 Servings
Ingredients
Cincinnati-Style Chili
- 2 tablespoons Vegetable Oil
- 1 large Yellow Onion finely chopped
- 4 cloves Garlic minced
- 2 pounds lean Ground Beef
- 1 can Tomato Paste 6 ounces
- 5 cups Water
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar
- 3 tablespoons Chili Powder
- 1 tablespoon Paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground Cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground Cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon ground Allspice
- 1/4 teaspoon ground Cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
- 1 teaspoon Salt plus more to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground Black Pepper
- 2 Bay Leaves
Spaghetti and Toppings
- 1 pound Spaghetti
- 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
- 2 cups Red Kidney Beans or Small Red Beans warmed
- 1 cup finely chopped White Onion
- 4 cups finely shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese preferably Wisconsin Cheddar
- Oyster Crackers for serving
- Hot Sauce for serving
Instructions
- Heat vegetable oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat.
- Add onion and cook until softened.
- Add garlic and cook 1 minute.
- Add ground beef.
- Cook, breaking beef into very small crumbles, until browned.
- Stir in tomato paste.
- Cook 2 minutes, stirring often.
- Add water, Worcestershire sauce and apple cider vinegar.
- Stir in chili powder, paprika, cinnamon, cumin, allspice, cloves, cayenne pepper, salt, black pepper and bay leaves.
- Bring chili to a simmer.
- Reduce heat to low.
- Simmer uncovered 1 1/2 to 2 hours, stirring occasionally, until chili is loose, deeply flavored and slightly thickened.
- Add a little more water during cooking if chili becomes too thick.
- Remove bay leaves.
- Taste and adjust salt.
- Cook spaghetti in salted water until tender, slightly softer than al dente.
- Drain spaghetti and toss lightly with olive oil.
- For chili spaghetti, place spaghetti on plates and spoon chili over top.
- For a 3-Way, top spaghetti and chili with shredded cheddar cheese.
- For a 4-Way, add either warmed beans or chopped white onion before the cheese.
- For a 5-Way, layer spaghetti, beans, chili, chopped onion and shredded cheddar cheese.
- Serve immediately with oyster crackers and hot sauce.