Homemade Chili Powder

This is Alton Brown's recipe for homemade chili powder. Once you've had fresh, you'll never go back. This chili powder will keep for about six months. Shop the Mexican aisle of your local grocery store to find these ingredients.

Ingredients:

3 dried ancho chiles

3 cascabel chiles

3 arbol chiles

2 tbsp. whole cumin

2 tbsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. smoked paprika (or regular)

1 tbsp. dired oregano

Directions:

Cut the top stem off the dried chiles and dump out all the seeds. Cut up the chiles and roast them, along with the whole cumin, in a pan to release the flavors. Remove from heat.

In a blender, combine all the ingredients and blend until a powder. Store in a jar for up to six months.

Pressure Cooker Chili (Alton Brown adaptation)

A few things that really set this chili recipe apart is the pressure cooking, the homemade chili powder, and the corn chips. It's not too hot, just right. But it still may be a touch too spicy for children. This will feed four people easily with everyone getting full.

Start by making a homemade batch of chili powder.

Ingredients
3 pounds stew meat (2 pounds beef and 1 pound pork; you can also use some bacon for some of the pork)
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
12 ounces of chicken stock
1 (16-ounce) container salsa
30 tortilla chips
2 chipotle peppers canned in adobo sauce, chopped

2 tbsp. brown sugar
1 tablespoon adobo sauce (from the chipotle peppers in adobo)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon chili powder (homemade)
1 teaspoon ground cumin

Directions
Place the meat in a large mixing bowl and toss with the vegetable oil and salt. Set aside.

Heat a 6-quart heavy-bottomed pressure cooker over high heat until hot. Add the meat in 3 or 4 batches and brown on all sides, approximately 2 minutes per batch. Once each batch is browned, place the meat in a clean large bowl.

Once all of the meat is browned, add the chicken stock to the cooker to deglaze the pot. Scrape the browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Add the meat back to the pressure cooker along with the salsa, tortilla chips, chipotle peppers, adobo sauce, tomato paste, chili powder, brown sugar, and ground cumin and stir to combine. Fisher cooking tip: Have your souz chef (Cindy) place all the secondary ingredients into little ramekins for easy dumping.

Lock the lid in place according to the manufacturer's instructions. When the steam begins to hiss out of the cooker, reduce the heat to low, just enough to maintain a very weak whistle. Cook for 25 minutes. Remove from the heat and carefully release the steam. Serve immediately.