For a while there I had some silly notion that I was too aristocratic to eat such proletarian fare. I probably thought this because I invariably associated chili mac with food-box end-of-the-month desperation and snaggle-toothed trailer park gourmands. It was just a phase, I guess.
Prep time 15 mins.
Cooking time 1 hour 20 mins.
Est. servings 12
Today's Specimen
Ingredients
- casserole
- 2 cups large elbow macaroni
- 1 lb. lean ground beef
- 1½ cups green bell pepper, diced small
- 2 tsp. habanero pepper, diced fine
- 1 tbsp. garlic, diced fine
- 2 tbsp. fresh cilantro, chopped small
- 1 tbsp. chili powder
- 1 tsp. cumin
- 1 tsp. oregano
- 1 (6 oz.) can tomato paste
- ¼ tsp. black pepper
- ½ tsp. salt
- 1/16 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/16 tsp. nutmeg
- topping & garnish
- 8 oz. monterey cheese, shredded
- 8 oz. Tillamook Vintage White Extra Sharp Cheddar cheese, grated
- ½ cup tomatillo
- ½ cup annaheim pepper
- ¼ cup white onion
- 2 tbsp. fresh cilantro
- 2 tbsp. fresh-squeezed lime juice
- 1 tsp. white vinegar
Directions
- In a medium to large pot on medium-high heat boil the noodles in roiling water for 10 minutes, drain and set aside.
- In a large frying pan or sauce pot on medium heat cook the ground beef until it's evenly cooked, constantly crumbling the beef with a spatula until it's of a fairly fine consistency. This will take about 15 minutes.
- Add the peppers, onion, garlic, and cilantro to the beef and cook for an additional 5 to 7 minutes, stirring constantly.
- Drop the temperature down to low and add the tomato paste and spices to the meat and vegetable and let it simmer for about half an hour, preferably covered partially. Add water 1 tablespoon at a time if necessary to keep moist; you want a fairly thick consistency, like that of a good sloppy joe sauce.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F while the sauce is simmering. Once the sauce is finished cooking pour it in with the macaroni and stir thoroughly and pour into a lightly sprayed or greased casserole pan. Cover the pan with foil and set in the oven on the middle rack and let cook for 20 minutes.
- While the chili mac is baking in the oven grate and mix the cheeses and set aside. Add all the other topping ingredients to a food processor and puree until the result is a smooth green salsa. Set aside.
- After the chili mac has baked in the oven for 20 minutes remove from the oven and remove the foil. Evenly spread the grated cheese over the top of the chili mac, followed by an even layer of the green salsa. If you prefer, you can just buy a 7-ounce can of green chilis and use that to top the cheese with instead. Return to the oven uncovered to bake for fifteen minutes or the cheese is just slightly burned around the edges.
- Remove and let cool on the counter for 10 minutes before portioning and serving.
Next Time in the Lab
Hey, this is pretty tasty! Better than anything I've seen cobbled together out of a food box or in a trailer park, at least. Still, I'd like a bit more of a casserole, and perhaps some diced tomato would make for a great garnish, too.
- Increase the ground beef to 1½ lbs.
- Increase the bell pepper to 2 cups.
- Increase the white onion to 1½ cups.
- Increase the garlic to 2 tbsp.
- Increase the cilantro to 3 tbsp.
- Add a single (14 oz.)can of diced tomato to the casserole.
- Add about a cup of diced fresh tomato to the garnish.
