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Chef Bill Mitchell
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On Saturday, September 15,
2007 get your taste buds ready, your appetite up and your judging shoes on. The ‘49er Festival & Chili Cook-off is off again
in downtown Groveland. Tasting begins at 12 pm although the festival starts at 8am with a parade. In 2003 I won 1st place for
Judges Choice and 2004 1st place for people’s choice when I was the Executive Chef at the Hotel Jeffery with my
recipe. I left the Hotel in September of 2005 (before the 2005 chili cook-off) and this will be the first year under my own
company name “Bronco Billy’s Chili” with a slightly changed recipe. I urge everyone to “come on down” and taste the best chili
this side of Colorado. Come by our booth and pick up a card for a FREE recipe of this chili.
Chili, like apple pie, is an American institution. Although you might think it’s a Mexican dish, it isn’t. When Mexicans refer
to 'Chili Con Carne', they are referring to a dish that is a soupy concoction laced with chilies and chunks of meat or goat
meat. Chili is not a soup, in fact it is a stew consisting of mainly meat and sauce of a viscous nature. The history of chili
is a vast one and depending where you are you will find that there are many different stories.
One story is that chili was invented by Chuck Wagons cooks who traveled along with the cowboys on long cattle drives across
rugged hills and deserts of the great southwest. The story goes that, as they traveled they planted oregano, chilies and
onions among patches of mesquite to give them protection from extreme sun, foraging cattle and other animals. Then on their
way back along the same trail, they would collect the spices, and combine them with chopped beef and call it “Trail Stew” or
Trail Drive Chili”
Another story is that the cooks in the Texas state prisons system in the early days would take the cheapest cuts of beef and
boil them to make them more palatable and add spices and chilies to create a cheep satisfying meal. Who knows what the real
story is, but one thing I do know is, I don’t think that anyone can deny that Spanish and Mexican cuisine had a profound
influence on its development.
There is little doubt that Texas is the birthplace of the American stew known as Chili. After all Texas was once Mexico
(remember the Alamo?). So, even through the U.S. eventually took over the territory, the original Mexican people and their
spices and traditions were still in place. That’s what so great about cooking today. There are no boundaries in the world
today with the mixture of many different culture dishes that we take a little from this and a little from that to create new
fantastic flavors. So see you at the Chili cook-off, come by and say hello. Remember I do Private Dinners Parties in your own
home with your personal chef. For more information, drop me line,
chefbillmitchell@yahoo.com or 852-2728 happy cooking ! Chef Bill
For More Recipes By Bill Mitchell
The Chef's Corner Archives
Thanx, Chef Bill!
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